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The Clarendon Scholarship Oxford programme funds more than 200 new postgraduate students a year, and you are considered automatically if you apply to your course by its December or January deadline. Oxford’s own Clarendon page says no separate application is needed. With the 2027-28 cycle open, the practical task is to find your course’s exact deadline and apply on time.
In this guide
- What the scholarship covers
- Who is considered
- Deadlines for 2027-28 entry
- How to apply
- Other funding routes
- Clarendon questions
What the scholarship covers
According to Oxford, the scholarship pays course fees plus a grant for living expenses for the period of fee liability. It is awarded for outstanding academic merit and potential, and Oxford says there are over 200 new, fully funded scholarships each year. A third-party guide, Opportunity Inside, adds that the living grant is at least the UK Research and Innovation doctoral minimum, and prints a figure of £20,780 for 2025-26 while advising that the 2027-28 amount be confirmed. Treat that figure as a guide rather than a promise, since we could not verify it on an Oxford page.
Who is considered
The same guide says any nationality is eligible, with no country quota, for new full-time or part-time Oxford master’s and DPhil courses in any subject. It says departments nominate candidates, deferred offers are not considered, and continuing the same Oxford degree is not funded. Oxford’s page confirms the key rule: automatic consideration for those who meet the December or January deadline.
Consider a hypothetical case. Ngozi is a Nigerian public-health graduate who plans a one-year master’s in Oxford. Because the scholarship is automatic, her task is not to write a separate essay but to submit a strong course application, with references and transcripts in place, before the deadline for her course. If she misses that deadline, she is not considered for Clarendon funding in that cycle.
Deadlines for 2027-28 entry
Oxford’s page says only that the relevant deadline is in December or January, depending on the course, and does not list dates. The third-party guide lists 26 January 2027 in its details box, with a noon UK cut-off, and says applications opened in September 2026. It also says divisions meet in February or March 2027 and most first offers go out by the end of April 2027. Because these are secondary reports, check the exact date on your course page in the Oxford course directory before relying on them.
How to apply
Identify your course and its deadline, prepare the full application, and submit it by noon UK time on the day. Do not wait for the last hour, since documents and references are part of the deadline. After that, departments nominate candidates and there is no separate scholarship form to fill in. If you are choosing between several UK courses, the visa eligibility checker can help you plan the study-visa side alongside funding.
Other funding routes
Clarendon is one of several routes for postgraduate study abroad. Tamara News has also covered the Gates Cambridge deadlines, the Commonwealth master’s scholarships, the Chevening timeline and the Erasmus Mundus joint master’s programmes. Several have passed or are close, so apply to more than one where you qualify.
Clarendon questions
Do I need a separate Clarendon application?
No. Oxford says you are automatically considered if you apply by the December or January deadline for your course.
What does it cover?
Oxford says course fees plus a grant for living expenses for the period of fee liability.
How many scholarships are there?
Oxford says over 200 new, fully funded scholarships each year.
What is the deadline?
December 2026 or January 2027, depending on your course. A third-party guide lists 26 January 2027 for one deadline, so check your course page.
Is there a nationality restriction?
The third-party guide says any nationality can be considered, with no country quota.
Can I defer an offer?
The third-party guide says deferred offers are not considered for the scholarship.
Sources
- University of Oxford — Clarendon Scholarships. https://www.ox.ac.uk/clarendon/
- Opportunity Inside — Clarendon Scholarship Oxford 2027 (third-party guide). https://opportunityinside.com/scholarships/clarendon-scholarship-oxford-uk-2027.html
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