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Undergraduate Study

 

At the University of Cambridge, we welcome applications from all backgrounds. 
Care leavers and estranged students may have specific concerns when considering or starting university, and it’s important to us they feel supported during this time.

The University has signed up to the Care Leaver Covenant, which commits to the provision of support and opportunities for young people leaving the care system.

If you would like to find out more about support for estranged young adults, visit our Estranged Students page.

Care leavers

At Cambridge we recognise that any time spent in local authority care can have a significant impact on educational opportunities and outcomes.

  • As someone who has spent time in local authority care, you may be eligible for pre-entry support. Please check The Realise Project for more information on pre-entry support for young people (aged 7-18) in care.
  • If you are an applicant or are thinking of making an application, see the Care leaver applying page for more details on care leaver applications.
  • We also have a travel fund to support young people in care who’d like to attend one of our events in Cambridge to find out more about applying to the University. In addition, care leavers who are invited to attend an interview as part of the application may also be eligible for help with the cost of travelling to interview. Please see the Travel Fund page for further information.
  • If you are offered a place at Cambridge, there’s a range of support available to you – please see the Care Leaver Support page for more information.

Mature students and student parents

If you're aged between 21 and 25 and previously spent time in care, you may be entitled to support if starting education at this stage.

If you left school a while ago and are now considering taking up a higher education course, please refer to our information for mature students.

If you're a student with children you can find details about support available to you on the University Childcare Information Service website including family accommodation, childcare services and finance.

Sign up to a Realise mailing list

To be kept up-to-date with the latest Realise events and opportunities, sign up to one of our mailing lists:

Cambridge life as a care leaver/estranged student

Contact Us

Advice and support for care leavers and estranged students:

The Realise Team
T 07720 161797
E realise@admin.cam.ac.uk