Croeso i Gaergrawnt!

Gweld y dudalen hon yn Gymraeg

At Cambridge, we're committed to attracting the best students from all over the UK, including Wales. Our first HE+ hub outside England was in Swansea and became an important template for the Welsh Government’s Seren Network, which Cambridge researchers helped to set up and contribute to. Increasing numbers of Welsh students have applied to Cambridge recently and we really welcome this. We want to admit more representative UK cohorts.

Entry requirements

Most Welsh students who apply to Cambridge take GCSEs and A Levels. Unlike some universities, Cambridge does not convert these (or any other qualifications) into UCAS Tariff Points. Also, we do not normally set offers based on the Welsh Baccalaureate Advanced Skills Challenge Certificate (ASCC). Instead, our entry requirements are typically based upon three A Levels.

To find out more, select your chosen degree from our Course List then look at the Entry Requirements tab. Note that “typical offers” can sometimes vary from College to College, so make sure to check out the 'Entry Requirements by College' document that is available on the same tab. If you are in any doubt, head over to College Contacts and reach out to an Admissions Office for advice.

Foundation Year

If you want to study an Arts, Humanities, or Social Sciences degree but you have not been able to study the A Levels that our degree requires, you might be eligible to apply for our Foundation Year in Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences. Additional information, as well as a full list of eligibility criteria, can be found on our Foundation Year profile page.

The application/admissions process

Applications are made via UCAS. You can find detailed information about Cambridge and how to apply on our Undergraduate Study website.

Student finance

Welsh students applying to Cambridge often have questions around student finance and the support available to help pay for tuition and maintenance costs. There’s lots of information about this on the University’s Fees and Finance webpages.

At Cambridge, we have a principle that no suitably qualified “home fee” student should be deterred from taking up a place at Cambridge by their financial circumstances. All UK entrants are considered for the Cambridge Bursary Scheme, which is offered dependent upon household income and does not have to be repaid. For more information about the Cambridge Bursary and other Cambridge funding opportunities, head to Financial Support.

Support is also available for Welsh students from Student Finance Wales (SFW).
The SFW website has lots of information about this and can give you an indication of how much you may be able to borrow for living costs.

Travel information

At Cambridge, there are three terms a year. Most undergraduates stay in Cambridge for the full eight weeks of term, with very few occasions when they might return home. Other than if there are exceptional circumstances therefore, students only travel to and from Cambridge at the start and end of each term.

We are conscious that some Welsh students may have relatively longer journeys to get to Cambridge than others in the UK – comparable, for instance, with students from Scotland. We have included a few examples here of approximate travel times, which you can use to estimate your own circumstances.

Trains: Rail journeys to Cambridge include those from Bangor (5 to 7 hours), Haverfordwest (a little less than 7 hours), and Aberystwyth (6 to 7 hours). Each of these requires a few changes. Wrexham to Cambridge can be done in as little as 4 hours but typically takes over 5, and Newport to Cambridge takes 3 hours 30 minutes.

Driving: As with rail, the further west you come from, the longer it will take you to get to Cambridge. With limited traffic, you can drive to Cambridge from Milford Haven in 6 hours, and from Holyhead and Lampeter in 5 hours. Starting points further east take considerably less time.

Frequently asked questions