President’s PhD Scholarships At Imperial College London 2027/2028

Imperial College London is offering 50 President’s PhD Scholarships for the 2027-28 academic year, covering full tuition fees plus a £27,036 annual stipend and a £2,000 yearly consumables fund, for 3.5 years of study. There’s no separate scholarship application — you apply through Imperial’s standard PhD admissions system and a supervisor at Imperial who has already agreed to take you on. Applications run in three rounds, and the first closes November 2, 2026.

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About the President’s PhD Scholarships

This is one of Imperial’s most selective funding schemes, explicitly built to attract candidates with excellent academic performance and genuine research potential, not just strong grades on their own. Alongside the standard eligibility route, Imperial runs a Department Special Case process for candidates with extenuating circumstances behind their grades, and a separate Alternate Pathways route with its own ring-fenced funding allocation for candidates with non-traditional academic or career backgrounds who show strong research potential. If you don’t get the scholarship, you’re not simply rejected outright; your application is automatically considered for a standard, unfunded PhD place instead.

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President’s PhD Scholarships At Imperial College London Summary

Who Qualifies for the President’s PhD Scholarships

You must have, or be due to receive, one of the following:

• A first-class (or equivalent) undergraduate or integrated Master’s degree, or
• If you haven’t achieved a first-class degree, a distinction in a standalone Master’s qualification. This route exists specifically for candidates who’ve shown excellence at Master’s level after an undergraduate degree that wasn’t first class

If your only qualification is a single undergraduate degree or an integrated Master’s, with no separate standalone Master’s, you still need first-class or equivalent. The distinction-based alternate route only applies to candidates who’ve completed a genuinely separate Master’s programme.

International candidates should confirm with Imperial’s Admissions team that their specific grades meet the scheme’s requirements, since equivalency isn’t always self-evident across different national grading systems.

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Two Routes If You Don’t Meet the Standard Criteria

Department Special Case: If extenuating circumstances explain why you didn’t achieve the standard grades, but you’re otherwise judged to be of the calibre this scholarship requires strong marks in research project modules, or evidence of high performance on research placements, for example — your department can put you forward as a special case. You need to contact your proposed department directly about this before you apply, not after.

Alternate Pathways: Imperial explicitly encourages candidates with non-traditional academic or career backgrounds who show strong research potential to apply, and the College Selection Panel makes additional offers from a ring-fenced strategic allocation specifically set aside for these candidates.

Other Eligibility Rules

• The scholarship applies to both full-time and part-time study
• This is for new PhD applications only if you’re already a registered Imperial PhD student, you’re not eligible to be considered for this scholarship
• Some departments may be unable to support international candidates specifically, even though the scholarship itself has no nationality restriction. Check this with your target department directly

The Supervisor Requirement — Before You Apply

This is the step most likely to catch applicants off guard: before you submit anything, you need to have already contacted a supervisor in an Imperial academic department who has agreed to supervise your research project. Supervisors can only take on one President’s PhD Scholar at a time, so check Imperial’s Unavailable Supervisors page before reaching out, since a supervisor already committed to another scholar can’t take you on regardless of how strong your application is.

What the Funding Covers

• Full funding for your tuition fees for the full 3.5 years
• A stipend of £27,036 per year (2027-28 rate) toward living costs
• A consumables fund of £2,000 per year, for the first 3 years of study only, not extended into the final half-year
• A programme of bespoke opportunities and events through Imperial’s Early Career Researcher Institute
• Full access to Imperial’s postgraduate support services, including tailored support for disabled and international students

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Application Process for the President’s PhD Scholarships

1. Secure a supervisor first. This has to happen before you submit anything else.
2. Apply through Imperial’s standard online admissions system for PhD study; there’s no separate scholarship application form.
3. Structure your personal statement as two pages within Supporting Documents. The first page covers your motivations for applying to Imperial and the scholarship, plus any supporting information not captured elsewhere on the form. The second page is your research proposal. Write in the first person.
4. Use the separate “research proposal” option if your specific department requires a more detailed document beyond the two-page statement.
5. Name two academic referees — someone like your personal tutor or thesis supervisor, but explicitly not your proposed PhD supervisor. Share Imperial’s reference-writing guidance with them, which specifically recommends they use “they/them” language rather than gendered pronouns.
6. Select the President’s PhD Scholarship option in the funding section of the additional questions tab. Missing this step means your application won’t be considered for the scholarship at all, even if everything else is complete.

How Selection Actually Works

Your application goes through your department first; they review candidates who meet or are predicted to meet the eligibility criteria, then shortlist candidates to present to the College Selection Panel. That panel, made up of the Vice-Provost (Research), the Director of the Graduate School, and the Faculty Vice-Deans for Research, makes the final decision. A Faculty allocation stage scores and ranks departmental shortlists first, with Faculty Vice-Deans presenting justified offers to the panel — and separately, the panel makes additional offers from the ring-fenced Alternate Pathways allocation.

Assessment weighs your academic excellence, past results, transcripts, relative class position, and any awards or distinctions — alongside your research potential, judged through your research experience to date, your research proposal’s quality and potential contribution, and your departmental statement, which also reflects your interview performance.

Application Deadlines

• Round 1: Apply by 23:59 UK time, November 2, 2026 — notified by January 31, 2027
• Round 2: Apply by 23:59 UK time, January 11, 2027 — notified by April 15, 2027
• Round 3: Apply by 23:59 UK time, March 1, 2027 — notified by May 31, 2027

For 2027-28 funded places, the earliest start date is August 1, 2027, and the latest is November 1, 2027. Given you need a confirmed supervisor before you can even submit, start that search well ahead of whichever round you’re targeting — supervisors are limited to one scholar at a time, and finding one willing and available takes real lead time.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need a separate application form for the scholarship itself?

No. There’s no standalone scholarship application — you apply through Imperial’s regular PhD admissions system, select the President’s PhD Scholarship option in the funding section, and your department puts you forward for consideration based on merit.

What happens if I’m not selected for the scholarship?

You’re automatically considered for a standard, unfunded PhD place instead, so applying for the scholarship doesn’t put your broader PhD application at risk.

Can I include my proposed PhD supervisor as one of my two academic referees?

No. Your two referees need to be people who can provide an academic reference — like a personal tutor or thesis supervisor — but your proposed PhD supervisor specifically cannot be one of them.

I didn’t get a first class degree, but I have a strong Master’s — can I still apply?

Possibly. If you have a distinction in a standalone Master’s qualification, this specific route exists for you. If your only qualification is a single undergraduate or integrated Master’s degree without first class, you wouldn’t qualify through this particular route.

Are current Imperial PhD students eligible for this scholarship?

No. The scheme is only open to new PhD applications — students already registered in an Imperial PhD programme aren’t eligible to be considered.

Disclaimer: All scholarship details, deadlines, award values, and eligibility criteria in this post were verified from official sources as of September 2026. Information is subject to change without notice. Always confirm the latest details directly on the official Imperial College London website before submitting your application. ScholarWaka is not affiliated with Imperial College London.

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