Postgraduate Academic Excellence Scholarship

The Postgraduate Academic Excellence scholarship is available for students on Postgraduate Taught (PGT) courses at Brunel University of London who are self-funding their studies, paying Home fees and have obtained a First-Class undergraduate degree;

• from a UK University, either in the UK or at an overseas campus or
• obtained the equivalent of a UK First Class degree from an EU institution

Additionally, graduates of Brunel University of London will receive the Graduate Discount of 15% off the final tuition fee amount due (after any the scholarship award has been applied). On the basis that they register on a taught postgraduate programme on a fully self-funding basis. More information about the Graduate Discount can be found here.

Value: A discount of 15% off the tuition fees, per year.

How many: We are offering an unlimited number of awards. The Postgraduate Academic Excellence Scholarship will be awarded to all applicants that meet the eligibility criteria.

Application process: No application is required. Applicants should apply for the programme in the usual way, eligibility will be automatically considered and the fee reduced once fully Registered on your course at Brunel University of London.

The Scholarship will be awarded to all full time, part time, distance learning and online learning students who meet all the following criteria:

2.1 Have an unconditional offer to study a taught Master’s programme at Brunel University of London, this includes the MBA and Mres programmes.

2.2 Is a Home fee paying student holding an offer on a course starting in 2025/26, (applicants classed as Overseas for fee purposes are not eligible).

2.3 Have achieved a First Class honours degree from a UK University or an EU University:

a) For a UK degree: the award must be from a UK University, the student does not have to have attended a UK based campus.

b) An honours degree awarded with distinction is acceptable where no first class classification exists.

c) Holding a higher degree, without having achieved a First Class classification at undergraduate level does not qualify for receipt of this award.

d) For an EU equivalent the award must be from a recognised EU institution and be the equivalent of a First-class honours degree, as listed in appendix 1.

2.4 Are attending the University on a self-funding basis and are responsible for paying their own tuition fees in full. Students, who are funding their studies with a SLC Postgraduate Master’s Loan or a scholarship/bursary fee waiver are considered self-funding for the purpose of this Scholarship. 

Students whose tuition fees are paid by their Employer, Government or a third party, either partially or in full, are not eligible for this discount. For further information on sponsorships and discounts, please see the Sponsorship Discount Table in the Student Financial Policy.

Those not eligible for this scholarship:

• Applicants classed as Overseas for fee purposes.
• Applicants on all associate courses or modules.
• Applicants undertaking short courses.
• All PGCert, PGDip and PGCE courses – with the exception of the PGCE Secondary Education with PE and PGCE Primary (which are not funded by the Governments Teacher Training bursaries).
• Applicants on Postgraduate Research courses.
• Sponsored applicants - Applicants who are being funded either in full or partially, this includes:

- Applicants whose fees are being paid by their employer;

- Applicants who are sponsored by their Government or any other organisation or external body;

- Students in receipt of a Brunel studentship;

- Recipients of an NHS Bursary;

- Recipients of bursaries provided by the National College for Teaching and Leadership (NCTL); This discount will apply to courses that are not eligible for a bursary, namely the PGCE in Primary Education and the PGCE in Secondary Education with PE only;

- Applicants on the PGCE in Primary Education.

• Online learning applicants awarded a regional discount.
• Students undertaking a dissertation only module (march start).
• Students who are completing any Staged Masters Programmes (PG Cert, PG Dip and Masters).
• Students who complete MSc dissertation only programmes.

3.1 Eligibility criteria are reviewed annually.

3.2 Applications will be reviewed on a regular basis throughout the year by the Scholarship Team. Awards will be assessed rigorously against a set of standard criteria.

3.3 Scholarships are awarded to those who meet the eligibility criteria at the time of allocation. Applicants who meet the eligibility criteria at the time of allocation will be considered for scholarships using the information provided at the time of their course application only and cannot be considered should their circumstances change during the course of their studies. Scholarships cannot be backdated.

3.4 All decisions are final. Any appeals in respect of the decisions made by the Panel should be referred to the admissions policy. An appeal will only be considered in line with procedural irregularities, where a student believes that the University has not followed the procedures stated within the relevant Scholarship Terms and Conditions and there is reasonable doubt as to whether the outcome might have been different had the error not occurred. Any appeals relating to Scholarship allocation must be lodged ay the start of the student’s first academic year at the University. Brunel will not be able to consider later appeals.

3.5 Depending on the programme start month Scholarships will be formally awarded to all students meeting the eligibility criteria in September, January or May.

3.6 EU equivalency will be reviewed annually. Where no equivalent appears, the Admissions Office will assess the course application and determine eligibility.

3.7 If an applicant is eligible for more than one scholarship, they will normally be awarded the one that provides the largest financial benefit during the course duration; however, exceptions may apply; please see individual scholarship terms and conditions for additional details. This excludes Brunel’s Graduate Discount, Family Discount, the 2% early payment Discount and the MBA scholarship.

3.8 The Postgraduate Academic Excellence Scholarship can be combined with the Brunel Graduate Discount, the Family Discount, the 2% early payment discount and the MBA Scholarship.

3.9 The fee reduction will only be applied providing the student is fully enrolled at the University on a full time, part time, distance learning and online learning students postgraduate taught programme of study which includes having had their qualifications and other documentation verified and checked, and then completing the University enrolment procedures. This includes holding the correct visa to study.

4.1 Students awarded this scholarship will have a discount of 15% applied to their annual tuition fee.

4.2 The reduction is applied only to the tuition fees and not to any other type of additional fee that may be incurred, such as re-submission, repeat modules or resit fees.

4.3 Applicants will be responsible for paying the remainder of their tuition fees after the fee reduction is deducted from their tuition fee.

4.4 The fee waiver will only be applied provided the student is fully enrolled at the University, which includes having had their qualifications and other documentation verified and checked, and then completing the University enrolment procedures.

4.5 Awarded scholars are excluded from all other scholarships and tuition fee waivers with the exception of the Brunel Graduate Discount, Family Discount, 2% early payment Discount and the MBA scholarship.

The order of discounts will be applied as follows:

1. Scholarship/bursary fee waiver. If you have a fee waiver and the Postgraduate Taught Academic Excellence Scholarship, we will apply the fee waiver first.
2. 10% Brunel Alumni Family Discount or Brunel Family Discount applied to the net tuition fee (if applicable).
3. 15% Graduate discount applied to the net tuition fee (if applicable).
4. 2% Early payment discount applied to the net tuition fee (if applicable).

Further information about tuition fee discounts can be found in the Student Financial Policy.

4.6 Scholarship awardees who have already paid the full course fees can visit the Student Centre to request a refund of any overpayment; once they have met all conditions of their offer and enrolled onto their course in person.

5.1 Misleading information: The University reserves the right to withdraw a scholarship from anyone who is found to have misled the University about any aspect of their eligibility and to seek payment of discounted fees already paid by appropriate means.

5.2 Amendment of Fee Waivers: Fee waivers are applied at the start of the academic year as part/all of a scholarship entitlement and will not be amended once the fee waiver has been processed. Any tuition fee liability remaining after fee waivers are applied would therefore be calculated in accordance with the Student Financial Policy.

5.3 Abeyance/Temporary Withdrawal: A student who takes a period of temporary withdrawal (abeyance) and who is in receipt of a scholarship award would cease to receive scholarship payments whilst temporarily withdrawn. Scholarship payments made prior to temporarily withdrawing will not generally be requested to be repaid and remaining payments would generally be paid once the student returns to complete that level of study.

5.4 Suspension of Study: Should a student be suspended for any reason, scholarship payments would be withdrawn and consideration of reinstatement will be dependent on the disciplinary outcome.

5.5 Repeat/Extended Study: Repeat periods of study, and periods of temporary withdrawal that result in extended periods of study, are not supported by additional scholarship payments. Scholarship entitlement is for the maximum duration of each award and entitlement is not extended if overall course duration alters.

5.6 Withdrawal from Study: A student who withdraws from their programme prior to completion and who is in receipt of a scholarship award will not normally be requested to repay scholarship payments made up to the point of withdrawal; however, entitlement to all future scholarship payments and/or adjustments, cease immediately when a student withdraws from Brunel University of London. 5.7 Students who have changes to their funding during the programme after the scholarship has been applied will have the scholarship withdrawn and any tuition fees remaining will need to be paid to Brunel University of London. This includes late notification of NHS or National College for Teaching and Leadership funding.

5.7 Where students who have changes to their sponsorship status at the start or during the programme, such as late notification of Government sponsorship, an employer paying the students tuition fee, late confirmation of an NHS Bursary, any other type of Bursary, sponsorship or funding and this is received after this scholarship has been applied will have the scholarship withdrawn and discounted tuition fees will need to be paid by the sponsor. Student who are sponsored by these are not eligible for this Scholarship and should notify scholarships@brunel.ac.uk if a Scholarship award is made. Any queries relating to these terms and conditions should be addressed to the Admissions Office by emailing: scholarships@brunel.ac.uk

Any queries relating to these terms and conditions should be addressed to the Admissions Office by emailing: scholarships@brunel.ac.uk

This list of EU countries and equivalent qualifications is accurate as of January 2025 and is subject to change for 2025. The list will be updated at the start of every scholarship cycle. If an EU country is not listed, applicants with qualifications from that country will not be eligible to be considered for the scholarship for academic year 2025/26.

Updated 17 March 2025.