Durham Master's Bursaries are intended to support UK students from low-and middle-income households who wish to enhance their skills and knowledge by undertaking a postgraduate programme of study.
The majority of taught master's and MRes programmes are eligible.
The following programmes are not eligible:
Full-time postgraduate taught students - £3,000 paid into your bank account in termly instalments (subject to you remaining a fully registered student throughout your studies)
Full-time MRes students - £2,000 paid into your bank account in termly instalments (subject to you remaining a fully registered student throughout your studies)
If you are studying a full-time two-year master's programme, including an MSW, payments will be limited to your first year of study.
Part-time students will be paid pro rata at 50% per year for each of their two years of study.
Most taught master's and MRes programmes are eligible.
Applicants must meet the following eligibility criteria at the time of application.
The table below shows the relevant household income / Maintenance Loan amounts for students assessed by Student Finance England.
If you were income-assessed by Student Finance Northern Ireland (SFNI), Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS) or Student Finance Wales (SFW) and you are not sure of your eligibility, please contact grants.bursaries@durham.ac.uk.
If your final year of undergraduate study was before 2020/21 and you are not sure of your eligibility, please contact grants.bursaries@durham.ac.uk.
Applicants' eligibility for Durham Master's Bursaries may only be demonstrated by their household income as assessed by Student Finance England (or equivalent) in their final year of undergraduate study. The only acceptable evidence is household income made available to Durham University via the Student Loans Company HE Portal (Durham Graduates) or student finance notification showing the amount of maintenance loan received (non-Durham Graduates). Applicants may not demonstrate their household income by other means, e.g, parents' P60's.
Any other queries about eligibility? Contact us for advice.
Submit an academic application to Durham University for an eligible programme of study.
Complete the online application form.
Durham Graduates
You don't need to send any evidence after submitting your online application form. We will check your household income as assessed by Student Finance England (or equivalent) in your final year of undergraduate study via the interface between the Student Loans Company and Durham University ("the HE Portal").
Non-Durham Graduates
Please email the following evidence to grants.bursaries@durham.ac.uk.
A copy of your student finance notification from Student Finance England (or equivalent) confirming the total amount of Maintenance Loan awarded to you for the final year of your undergraduate degree programme.
This stands as a proxy for your household income as assessed by Student Finance England (or equivalent).
On rare occasions, the amount of Maintenance Loan awarded is lower than the amount to which a student's household income entitles them (usually due to an overpayment in a previous academic year). If this applies to you, please send us the relevant correspondence from Student Finance England (or equivalent).
Please note that applicants' eligibility for Durham Master's Bursaries may only be demonstrated by their household income in their final year of undergraduate study as assessed by Student Finance England or equivalent (for which the amount of maintenance loan received stands as a proxy for non-Durham Graduates). We will not accept any other evidence of household income apart from:
Please note that, as Postgraduate Master's Loans are not income-assessed, they cannot be used as evidence of eligibility for the Durham Master's Bursary Scheme.
Bursaries will be awarded on a "first-come, first-served" basis to eligible applicants.
Applications will close once the final bursary has been awarded and a suitable number of reserve applications have been received.
We will update this page and disable the online application form as soon as applications close.
Applicants on the reserve list will be notified that they are on the list, and if a bursary becomes available to them (i.e. due to a bursary awardee not taking up their offer of a place at the University, being awarded another University-administered scholarship or withdrawing their application for any other reason).
The reserve list will be ordered on a "first-come, first-served" basis.
Successful applicants with an undergraduate degree from Durham University will also be eligible for the Alumni Fee Scholarship, i.e. the Durham Master's Bursary and the Alumni Fee Scholarship can be held at the same time.
The Durham Master's Bursary cannot be held at the same time as any other University-administered scholarship.
Durham Master's Bursaries are awarded at the University's discretion, and the University is not responsible for applicants unable to submit timely applications, except where the delay is demonstrably due to University IT failure.
In the event of any dispute, applicants' eligibility for Durham Master's Bursaries will be determined by the Head of the Student Immigration and Funding Service (or their deputy), whose decision will be final.
Successful applicants with an undergraduate degree from Durham University are also eligible for the Alumni Fee Scholarship; i.e. the Durham Master's Bursary and the Alumni Fee Scholarship can be held at the same time.
Please note that the Durham Master's Bursary cannot be held with any other University-administered award. If you are awarded a Durham Master's Bursary and accept another University-administered award, you will be required to decline your Durham Master's Bursary.
Durham University makes every effort to ensure that the information published or contained on its website is accurate. However, the University cannot guarantee the information may not subsequently be altered owing to circumstances beyond the University's reasonable control. Such circumstances include (but are not limited to) changes in Government policy or change of law. Whilst any changes will be incorporated into the University's website any person wishing to clarify the details of a particular scholarship/s should contact scholarships.advice@durham.ac.uk.
If you have any questions about whether you are eligible for a scholarship or the application process, get in touch with the Scholarships and Student Funding Office:
Durham University
Palatine Centre
Stockton Road
DH1 3LE, UK
Telephone: 0191 3348997
Durham University makes every effort to ensure that the information published or contained on its website is accurate. However, the University cannot guarantee the information may not subsequently be altered owing to circumstances beyond the University's reasonable control. Such circumstances include (but are not limited to) changes in Government policy or change of law. Whilst any changes will be incorporated into the University's website any person wishing to clarify the details of a particular scholarship/s should contact the University at scholarships.advice@durham.ac.uk.
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