Welcome to Churchill
This page is for applicants to the college who have received a letter (normally by email) from the Senior Postgraduate Tutor advising that they have been allocated membership of Churchill College. The letter will confirm that the “college membership” condition of their University offer has been met.
If you have not done so, please complete the online College Membership Form:Â Membership Form
Please contact the Postgraduate Admissions team if you have any queries about this: postgrad.admissions@chu.cam.ac.uk.
At Cambridge, the application process progresses on two parallel tracks: the central University process and the College process. Please contact the University’s Postgraduate Admissions Office (PAO) in the first instance for any queries about your application for study, and contact the College if you have any questions about joining the College and coming to Cambridge, or about anything PAO have been unable to help with.
Contacts
Contact information for the central University PAO is available here: www.postgraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/contact-us.
You can contact the Churchill Postgraduate Admissions team by email: postgrad.admissions@chu.cam.ac.uk.
Our postal address is: Postgraduate Office, Churchill College, Cambridge, CB3 0DS, United Kingdom.
What is a Cambridge College?
The College system is part of what makes Cambridge (and a few other Universities in the UK) special. All student members of the University are required to be a member of a College, which is why College membership is one of the conditions set by the University as part of your entry requirements.
Each of the colleges is an independent social and intellectual community of scholars under the umbrella of the University. Most postgraduate teaching, study, and research takes place in the departments, libraries and laboratories of the University, the College provides additional pastoral and practical support, from accommodation and catering to sports and music facilities, and a mixed community of friends and scholars that forms the heart of the experience of studying here.
Churchill is proud to be a distinctive academic community of outstanding academic fellows and students from across disciplines and departments. We look forward to welcoming you to Cambridge.
What happens next?
The next step in the College process is for you email the College or reply using the membership form to confirm that you have received and read the College Membership letter. Your College membership will only be fully activated once you have completed all the elements of the application process, met the offer conditions you have been set by the the University, and arrived in Cambridge, but confirming you’ve received the letter as early as possible enables us to add you to our communications for new students and begin making arrangements for your accommodation and other support.
If you are unsure at this stage, you can submit the membership form with the information you do have, and update it later. If it transpires that you are ultimately unable to commence your degree in Cambridge for any reason, please do let us know – while we hope this won’t happen, and we will help and advise if we can, we understand that it is sometimes necessary to withdraw and we will help make arrangements.
You should continue working to complete all the academic and non-academic conditions of your offer from the University, including completing any processes or assessments they may require and uploading any required documentation. The main point of contact with the University will be through the Applicant Portal, but you can also contact the Postgraduate Admissions Office directly and check their other sources of information.
In the meantime, please do explore the student pages, and other pages on the College website.
Finally, please check the tabs below for guidance on some key points for postgraduate applicants with applications in progress, make contact if we can help you, and enjoy exploring the website to find out more about the College.
Finances
One of the conditions which you will have to fulfil before coming to Cambridge is a “financial condition” set by the University. You will need to confirm to the University’s Postgraduate Admissions Office (PAO) that you have financial resources to cover fees, rent for your accommodation, and other maintenance needs (food, heating, clothes, books etc.) including those of any dependants, while you are at Cambridge.
Aside from some limited support for those in financial hardship, there is normally no further financial assistance available once you have started study. If you have funding for three years, you will be expected to complete witin this timeframe, and you should plan to do so, as there is no automatic additional funding beyond the funded period.
Please note that you may be required to make advance payments for the College or the University before arrival. The College’s Accounts Office will contact you about these and other payments once you have been fully confirmed for study. They can be contacted on student.accounts@chu.cam.ac.uk.
The estimated costs of undertaking a postgraduate degree at Cambridge University published on the University website www.graduate.study.cam.ac.uk/finance.
Please note that fees may increase from year to year and that you should take into account possible exchange rate movements. You must also make provision for any dependants.
Finances
A. Tuition fees
Self-funded students’ payment for the academic year is required at least 14 days before arriving in Cambridge. Part-funded students’ payment of the student’s fee contribution is required at least 14 days before arrival in Cambridge. For fully-funded students, evidence of funding by the external organisation should be provided to the College as soon as it is confirmed. If confirmation of full fee funding is received before arriving in Cambridge, no advance tuition fee payment will be required.
B. College charges
A College account is set up for each student to record tuition fee and accommodation charges and payments. Each student receives a University Card which entitles them to a number of access arrangements and benefits, including the facility to charge meals bought in College, to their account. Students in single rooms are billed quarterly in arrears for rent, catering and other accommodation charges. An advanced payment may be required on arrival.
If you have any further questions about arrangements for fees and charges, please contact the College’s Finance Office: student.accounts@chu.cam.ac.uk
Accommodation
The College offers accommodation to all first-year students who request it and meet the conditions of their offer by 1 September.
Most postgraduate accommodation provided by the College is part of the main college site, with a mix of large and small houses with gardens and shared facilities, and rooms with en-suites in purpose-built accommodation buildings. The College also has some of the best provision for students with families and partners in the University, with 45 flats and maisonettes with gardens and play areas.
Please let us know whether or not you will require accommodation, and any accommodation preferences. The earlier you can provide this the easier it will be to offer more suitable accommodation. Most postgraduates are allocated accommodation with a room licence to the end of August each year, and you can apply to a ballot for further accommodation if your course is continuing into further academic years.
Accommodation
There is more information about available accommodation on the main pages:
www.chu.cam.ac.uk/campus-facilities/accommodation-at-churchill-college/postgraduate-accommodation/
You can request accommodation by emailing postgrad.admissions@chu.cam.ac.uk or by updating the College Membership Form: Â Membership Form
International students
Coming to Cambridge from overseas
Arriving in Cambridge and the UK to study for the first time can be daunting. However, Cambridge is one of the most international universities in the world, especially at postgraduate level, and University and College support systems are well-geared to helping students from outside the UK with settling in and getting on in Cambridge.
You can seek guidance and advice from the College’s Postgraduate Office before arrival and once you are here, your individual College tutor (who will be assigned when you arrive at Churchill), the student representative body (MCR) and their welfare officers, and other College provision including the nurse and the wellbeing coordinator are available to you. In addition, the University’s International Students office (ISO) provides a central information and guidance point for international students covering all aspects of their time in Cambridge from applying, visas, and finances, to careers development and immigration matters after graduation.
See, in particular, the ISO’s pre-arrival information and International Student Guide.
Healthcare
The National Health Service (NHS) is the UK’s state healthcare system providing a wide range of services including appointments with a doctor and hospital treatment. Those applying for a student visa and coming to the UK for 6 months or longer will be required to pay an immigration health surcharge as part of their visa application fee. You may also need to make arrangements for personal health insurance for yourself or dependants of this is not available to you. There is more information available here: www.internationalstudents.cam.ac.uk/arriving/healthcare-uk.
Visas
Visas
The primary reference point for student visa queries is the central University’s International Students office (ISO). Their website is available here: www.internationalstudents.cam.ac.uk/. The UK government website also provides guidance on student visa arrangements: www.gov.uk/browse/visas-immigration/student-visas.
The University makes arrangements to sponsor non-UK students who need a student visa. Please contact the ISO if this may apply to you.
Please note that there is an NHS charge payable on visa application. This also applies to dependants.
The terms of your visa will require you to formally register with the University and the College when you arrive to study. At Churchill this registration takes place in the Postgraduate Office. This requires you to bring your passport and visa information for recording and you are also required to keep your student record updated with a Cambridge term time address and UK mobile phone number.
Please read the detailed information about student visa arrangements on the ISO webpages: www.internationalstudents.cam.ac.uk/immigration/student-visa.
Medical and disability
All students must register with a local GP (family doctor) in Cambridge when they arrive. (If you have travelled to the UK from overseas, you will need to pay a UK government immigration health surcharge as part of your visa arrangements giving you access to NHS (National Health Service) care in the UK.) In addition, the College nurse is available to all students during their course of study, and the College’s Wellbeing coordinator can provide confidential advice and support for matters related to psychological wellbeing, as well as helping to access the College counsellors.
Arrangements for disability assessment and support provision is overseen centrally in the University by the Accessibility and Disability Resources Centre. If you have support needs the ADRC can help with please contact them directly: www.disability.admin.cam.ac.uk/how-get-support.
Medical
It is helpful if you can advise the College of any medical or disability support needs, especially if these relate to accommodation provision. You can email the nurse and the wellbeing coordinator at wellbeing@chu.cam.ac.uk and nurse@chu.cam.ac.uk, you can also do this by updating the College Membership Form: forms.office.com/e/TEqbg0hfSq.
Sometimes additional follow up is required, and this can take time. Whether letting the College or the ADRC know about these requirements, you are welcome to do so at any stage, and the earlier you can do so the easier it will be to ensure we have things ready when you arrive in Cambridge.
There is helpful additional guidance on health matters and healthcare arrangements on the University’s student support webpages: www.studentsupport.cam.ac.uk/physical-health.
Families
If you are planning to bring your family with you, Churchill is a wonderful place to study. We have 45 flats/maisonette’s well suited to students coming to Cambridge with partners and families. Located in one quiet part of the College, our family accommodation also helps to provide an informal parent and partner support network – not to mention a ready-made group of playmates for your children!
Families
Children and partners are welcome in the dining hall at self-service meals and the College will help provide facilities for family events.
Please do note that childcare in the UK can be very expensive and waiting-lists can be long, so please plan this aspect of your arrangements with care.
The central University’s childcare office oversees the facilities and assistance offered to University staff and students with children, provides an information service helping support families in the University community, and has a wealth of further guidance and information: www.childcare.admin.cam.ac.uk/.
The University has four Workplace Nurseries, the two nearest to Churchill are West Cambridge Nursery and Eddington Nursery, and there are other private nurseries nearby and elsewhere in the city. Places in the University’s nurseries are not guaranteed, so please do check criteria and begin making arrangements for these as early as possible.
