Clarendon Scholarship 2027–28: The Oxford Handbook
Oxford’s automatic-merit graduate scholarship. There is no Clarendon form: apply for a new Master’s or DPhil by the December or January deadline that belongs to your course, and Oxford considers you on academic merit and potential alone.
ScholarshipUnion Editorial
5 min read
Updated Oct 6, 2026
Selection is outstanding academic merit and potential — not a leadership essay, not a constituency interview, not a nationality quota. This independent handbook explains how the Clarendon Fund actually works for the 2027–28 graduate admissions cycle, which is now open on Oxford’s course pages.
The scholarship that does not ask you to apply
The Clarendon Fund is the University of Oxford’s flagship graduate scholarship. Officially it offers over 200 new fully-funded scholarships each year. More than 700 scholars are on course at any one time, from about 70 nations. In 2025/26 the Fund celebrated its 25th intake. The first scholars arrived in 2001, and the scheme opened to UK and EU students in 2012. Oxford reports over 230 new scholarships in 2025/26.
What most listing sites get wrong is the application. There is none. You do not open a Clarendon portal, you do not upload a leadership statement, and you do not need a campus nomination. You submit a complete Oxford graduate application for a new Master’s or DPhil by the December or January deadline that is relevant to your course. The department then considers you for admission and may nominate you for Clarendon on academic merit and potential alone.
That is the opposite of Rhodes, which runs a separate constituency competition before Oxford, and of the Weidenfeld-Hoffmann Scholarships and Leadership Programme, which requires you to tick a box on the Oxford form and upload an extra statement. Clarendon is the automatic-merit pot: the strongest academic files in each division, considered without a second form.
The one rule: your course deadline
Deadlines →Oxford does not publish a single Clarendon closing date. Almost every graduate course lists a December deadline, a January deadline, or both. Whichever of those is relevant to your course is the Clarendon gate. A March or later application may still win a place on the course, but Oxford says it is ineligible for Oxford scholarships, Clarendon included. Deadlines fall at 12 noon UK time.
For 2027–28 entry, departments have now printed their dates, and they differ from course to course. Published examples include 1 December 2026 (DPhil in Population Health), 2 December 2026 (MPhil in Development Studies), 5–7 January 2027 (the DPhils in Philosophy, Mathematics and International Development) and 26 January 2027 (several ODID MSc courses). Look up the date on your course page — do not copy a date from a blog, or from this paragraph.
As of 6 October 2026, the 2027–28 graduate cycle is the live cycle. Confirm every date on ox.ac.uk before you submit.
What Clarendon actually funds
Funding →A Clarendon scholarship covers course fees in full for both Home and Overseas fee status. Full-time scholars also receive an annual living grant of at least the UKRI minimum doctoral stipend. The last figure Oxford printed on the Clarendon applicants page is for 2025–26: at least £20,780. UKRI has since set its minimum at £21,805 from 1 October 2026, so by the Fund’s own rule 2026–27 scholars should receive at least that. The figure for 2027–28 entry has not been published yet. Recheck the official full-time page before you budget.
| Element | Full-time | Part-time |
|---|---|---|
| Course fees | Covered in full, Home and Overseas fee status | |
| Living support | Living grant of at least the UKRI minimum (£20,780 in 2025–26; UKRI minimum £21,805 in 2026–27) | Study-support grant of a sixth, a third or half of the UKRI minimum |
| Duration | Normally the period of fee liability | |
| Continuation charges | Not covered | |
Awards are normally for the scholar’s period of fee liability — the years you are required to pay course fees. Continuation charges are not covered. Some divisions later extend the living grant beyond fee liability at their discretion; the continuation charge itself still is not paid.
Who is in the room
Eligibility →Clarendon is open to all nationalities and all subjects. Full-time and part-time Master’s and DPhil courses are eligible. Postgraduate certificates and diplomas are not. You must be applying to start a new course.
- Any nationality, any ordinary residence, any subject.
- A current Oxford Master’s student who re-applies for a DPhil is eligible for DPhil funding.
- Holders of a deferred Oxford offer are not considered.
- Students who will simply continue the same degree next year are not considered.
Official selection guidance says an excellent academic record is essential. The majority of successful scholars have at least a first-class honours degree or equivalent — Oxford cites a GPA of at least 3.7/4.0 as an illustration, and notes that many scholars sit higher. An outstanding Master’s can compensate for a moderate first degree. Assessors also read future potential, aptitude for the proposed course, and motivation through references, the research proposal where required, and the personal statement.
What this handbook covers
All nationalities and subjects. New Master’s or DPhil only. Deferred offers and continuing the same degree are out.
Apply to Oxford. No extra Clarendon papers. Completeness — including references — is the real gate.
How to find the date that actually counts, and why midday UK time has wrecked so many files.
Transcripts, references, statement, written work, research proposal — the same file Clarendon will read.
Full Home and Overseas fees, UKRI-linked living grant, fee liability, and what continuation charges are not.
Why two funding windows exist, when November also counts, and why March is too late for Clarendon.
Clarendon against Rhodes, Weidenfeld-Hoffmann, Gates Cambridge, and Chevening.
CB1 and CB2 letters, mid-June silence, partnership awards, and the questions applicants actually ask.
What happens if you win: the CB1 offer, the CB2 breakdown, college, visa and arrival.
One interactive tracker: eligibility, your course deadline, Oxford documents, apply steps, and after-selection. Planning tool only.
Start with the course page
Find the graduate course, read its December or January deadline, and treat that date as Clarendon. Then confirm you are applying for a new eligible degree.
This handbook is independent and not affiliated with the University of Oxford or the Clarendon Fund. Dates, amounts and rules live on the official Clarendon site.