Application and Eligibility Information

Who can apply for a Harding Distinguished Postgraduate Scholarship?

• Applicants pursuing a full-time or part-time PhD course of study at the University of Cambridge.
• Candidates applying for a PhD via a fully integrated MRes+PhD (1+3) route are also eligible.
• Applicants of any nationality are welcome.
• Scholarships are open to PhD students in any discipline.
• Applicants will be assessed as academically excellent by the Department to which they are applying.

It is the expectation of the HDPSP that all Scholars (Home and Overseas) will be resident in the UK for the majority of their studies, with time spent outside the UK for the purposes of fieldwork, internship or other long term academic activity.

College eligibility

Harding Distinguished Postgraduate Scholarships can be held at all Colleges except Trinity College or St John's College. If you have applied to either of these Colleges, this will not preclude you from being considered for a Harding Distinguished Postgraduate Scholarship. However, please be aware that if you are offered a Scholarship, you will be asked to change to an eligible College in order to take it up.

A proportion of the Scholarships will be at St Catharine’s College. This group of Scholars at St Catharine’s College reflects David Harding’s previous association with the College.

Already studying at the University of Cambridge?

If you are currently studying for an undergraduate or Masters degree at Cambridge and you wish to apply for a PhD course here then you will be eligible for consideration for a Harding Distinguished Postgraduate Scholarship, provided you fulfil the eligibility criteria above. For example, you would be eligible if you are currently studying for an MPhil at Cambridge and you are applying to pursue a PhD here.

However, if you have already started your PhD course at the University of Cambridge, you cannot ask to be considered for a Harding Distinguished Postgraduate Scholarship to fund the remainder of it.

Already have a PhD?

Applicants in already in receipt of a PhD, or who have previously received an HDPSP Scholarship will not normally eligible for an award unless at the discretion of the Advisory Committee who may approve an award to an applicant with exceptionally groundbreaking interdisciplinary research.

The application process

You can apply for admission to a PhD course, a College place and various sources of funding (including a Harding Distinguished Postgraduate Scholarship) via the University’s online Applicant Portal. 

To be considered for a Harding Distinguished Postgraduate Scholarship you must:

1. Tick the box in the 'Funding your Study' section in the Applicant Portal indicating that you wish to apply for funding.
2. Apply by the funding deadline for your course.
3. Be assessed as being academically excellent by the Department or Faculty to which you have applied.

Steps 1, 2 and 3 must be fulfilled to be considered for a Harding Distinguished Postgraduate Scholarship.   

The selection process

Academic Excellence

Harding Distinguished Postgraduate Scholarships are offered to the most academically excellent applicants in any given year.  Academic Departments and Faculties at the University of Cambridge assess applicants (through their transcripts, references, experience and the potential to succeed on the chosen course) and those identified as being the most academically outstanding are considered for a Harding Distinguished Postgraduate Scholarship.  

Feedback

• The HDPSP is not able to provide advice to individual applicants on improving their chances of selection for a Scholarship, including the choice of College.
• We regret that due to the number of applications received, we are not able to provide specific feedback on unsuccessful applications.

Deadlines 

Applications for Harding Scholarships beginning in 2026-27 will open in September 2026.

You can find the application deadlines for your course by checking the course directory.

Timeline

Images source: University of Cambridge