Churchill Scholarship

Summary

The Churchill Scholarship provides one year of support for a postgraduate degree in the sciences, engineering, and mathematics at the University of Cambridge. At least fifteen Churchill Scholarships are offered annually. The Churchill Scholarship is open to US citizens who are in their senior year or have just graduated.

The criteria for selection consist of outstanding academic achievement; proven talent in research; and outstanding personal qualities. Learn more about the Churchill Scholarship including the application process, the eligibility requirements, and the options for Programs of Study  at the University of Cambridge.

Note: Applicants for the Churchill Scholarship must also apply to the University of Cambridge at the same time they are working to meet the campus deadline.

Campus Nomination Process

Overview: The full application is due by the campus deadline of September 27, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. and must be submitted through the Churchill Scholarship's online application portal.

Note: Please instruct your four letters of recommendation writers to upload their letters to W&M's Churchill application Box folder by September 27, 2026 so that the campus committee can review these as a part of selecting nominees. When requesting letters, please consult Churchill's letter guidance under Step 2 of the "Applying" section of the Churchill webpage. We also encourage you to share this guidance with your letter writers.

Note: If your application is selected for campus endorsement, it is your responsibility to inform your letter writers that they will need to submit their letters to the Churchill portal by the national deadline. You will also be able to edit your application materials after your campus interview and before the national deadline.

Application Format: The Churchill application must be completed on the Churchill Scholarship’s online application portal.

Deadlines and Timeline:

• September 27, 2026 by 11:59 pm Eastern: Campus Deadline. The application and all required components need to be complete and submitted in Churchill's online application portal. The four letters of recommendation must be uploaded to the campus Churchill application Box folder by this deadline.
• Early to mid-October: Review of applications
• November 1, 2026, 11:59 pm Eastern: Final Submission Deadline. Campus nominees will have a short window to edit applications before submitting their final applications in time to meet Churchill's national deadline.
• November 2, 2026, 5:00 pm Eastern: National Deadline for the University.

Endorsements: William & Mary can nominate up to two students for the Churchill Scholarship.

Important Reminder: Apply to the University of Cambridge!
The Churchill Scholarship is only tenable at Churchill College, so you must put Churchill College as your first choice on the Cambridge application. The Scholarship is only for a 1-year Master's degree, so your application must be for an MPhil or MASt, or in rare cases an MRes. Because of Cambridge's rolling admissions, we strongly suggest that you apply by the deadline for the Gates Cambridge Scholarship, which is typically in early October.

National Application Process

The national deadline is November 2, 2026, 5:00 pm Eastern. After the final submission deadline, the University will review your materials to ensure a complete application by the national deadline.