SOAS Bursary

At SOAS, we want to support all students in fulfilling their potential. The SOAS Bursary offers additional financial support for students with the greatest financial need.

Award period

The award period for 2026/27 will remain open until 31 October 2026.

For September 2026 entry, the SOAS Bursary offers:

• £4,500 of cash bursaries over the duration of your degree
• £1,500 cash bursary in first, second or third, and final year (£0 during year abroad or placement year)

These bursaries are not available during a student's repeat year of study.

We will use the household income information held on the Student Finance portal to assess your eligibility for a bursary. You do not need to make a separate application.

We will not be able to assess your eligibility if your parent(s) or legal guardian didn't provide their household income information to Student Finance, or opted out of sharing it.

If you are not taking out a student loan but would still like to be assessed for a bursary, please follow the instructions below.

If you are not taking out a Maintenance Loan for religious or other personal reasons, you may still be able to receive the SOAS Bursary if you meet the eligibility criteria. You will need to apply to Student Finance and request to be means-tested with a £0 Maintenance Loan so you won’t borrow any money.

If you have not applied to Student Finance

1. Create an online account with Student Finance and start your application for loans.
2. When asked Do you want to apply for Maintenance Loan?, select Yes.
3. When asked Do you want to apply for the higher amount of Maintenance Loan?, select Yes.
4. When asked How much Maintenance Loan do you want to borrow, select I want to borrow a specific amount and enter 0 into the box.
5. Complete the rest of the application form and submit it.

When you have completed the application, your parents or partner will be asked to submit their household income information. They must complete this step for SOAS to assess you for the bursary.

If you have applied to Student Finance but did not apply for a Maintenance Loan or to be means-tested

1. Sign in to your Student Finance portal.
2. Select Undergraduate student finance application and select the 26/27 application.
3. Under the heading Manage your student finance, select change or cancel your application.
4. Select Change your application > Update your loan amounts > Apply for the higher amount of maintenance loan.
5. You then will be asked to download three PDF forms which you must complete and return to Student Finance, either by post or by uploading them to the evidence section of your online portal. The forms are:
   • 'Maintenance Loan request' form – put £0 in the amount of loan requested
   • 'Applying for student finance 2026/27 based on household income; form
   • 'PFF2', to be completed by your parent(s)

To be eligible for a SOAS bursary, you must: 

• Enrol onto the first year of a full-time undergraduate/foundation degree course at SOAS that commences in 2026/27.
• Ordinarily be a resident in England and a Home student for fee purposes.
• Be a new student and not already hold a first degree or higher qualification.
• Have been income assessed by Student Finance and have a household income of £25,000 or less in each year of your programme, even if you do not intend to take up the maintenance loan.

Meeting the listed criteria alone will not guarantee this award as these are limited in number. Priority will be given to students:

• With experience of care.
• From the lowest participation neighbourhoods (Polar Quintile 1) [see notes].
• With the lowest household income (students with a household income closer to £0 will be given priority over those with an income of £24,999, for example)
• Who are first in their family to go to university.
• With refugee status.

Notes

‘Low participation neighbourhoods’ are areas identified using data of the participation rate of young people in higher education by ward or region. This information is included with an applicant’s UCAS application form. There is a postcode lookup tool on the Office for Students website if you wish to check your postcode.

'First’ means that an applicant’s parents, step-parents or guardians did not attend university. This is self-declared data which applicants include in their UCAS application form. If you are the first generation in your family to attend a higher education institution, you must declare this in your UCAS application to be considered for this award.

In November 2026, Student Finance will notify students who have been awarded a SOAS bursary. You can find your bursary notification in the inbox section of your online portal.

The payment for each award are made in instalments. For the bursary of £1500, SOAS will deposit the cash bursary directly into the student's bank account as follows: