University of Sussex Scholarships for International Students 2026

The University of Sussex offers online programmes, but many Sussex-funded scholarships are aimed at on-campus study and explicitly exclude online courses.

Sussex scholarships span a wide range of subjects, including humanities, business, STEM, and more. Global Scholarships recipients at Sussex also reflect this range: business/finance (Ruby Uche, Sustainable Finance and Accounting), education/policy (Azza, Education Policy and International Development), development/governance (Sebuoeng Tau and Adnan Anjum Saeed Akhter, Development Studies), and social sciences/development (Aarti Rajput, Development Studies), who sums up her experience as “10 out of 10.”

Sussex offers scholarships to a broad set of nationalities, with some awards open to many countries and others designed for specific countries/regions. In the Global Scholarships Sussex stories, you can see how international the recipient pool is: Azza introduces herself as “a Palestinian,” Ruby Uche says “I’m from Nigeria,” Sebuoeng Tau is from Lesotho, and Adnan Anjum Saeed Akhter is from Pakistan, useful examples of the kinds of nationalities commonly supported through major schemes like Chevening and through Sussex’s broader international scholarship ecosystem.

It depends on your background and course: Sussex’s application process includes an English proficiency section and may require proficiency tests if English is not your first language (or if you don’t meet exemption rules). In recipient stories, some took tests while others qualified through English-medium education: Azza writes, “I prepared for the IELTS exam,” while Adnan Anjum Saeed Akhter notes, “I took the IELTS… and achieved a score of 8.0.”

Others didn’t need a test: Himanshu Pahwa says, “No, it wasn’t required… it depended on the medium of my education,” and Ruby Uche adds, “I didn’t take any standardized tests because my undergraduate degree was in English, and that was accepted by my chosen institution.”

Yes, minimum grades depend on the programme and level. For Masters, Sussex states a general entry requirement of at least an upper second-class (2:1) or lower second-class (2:2) undergraduate honours degree (or equivalent), depending on the course.

In scholarship stories, you can also see how “minimum for admission” and “competitive for scholarships” can differ: Sebuoeng Tau notes, “As long as your grades secure university admission, it’s your work and purpose that carry the application,” while other recipients describe very high academic ranks when competing for fully funded awards.

A strong academic record plus clear motivation/fit is typically expected, and some Sussex awards publish concrete minimum-grade guidance by country (for example, the Chancellor’s International Scholarships list “minimum grades required to apply for the scholarship” by nationality/education system and describe the award as competitive for those with “exceptional academic achievement”).

Recipient stories show what “strong” can look like in practice: Azza describes graduating with “99.5%” in high school and an undergraduate “GPA of 96.5%, ranked first across all faculties,” while still emphasizing sustained effort; and Ruby Uche highlights alignment and purpose, saying she focused on “experience and purpose” and made sure her application matched the scholarship’s values.

For applications, Sussex’s online application guide indicates you’ll typically upload copies of your degree certificate(s), transcript (and interim transcript where applicable), English proficiency evidence (including tests if needed), a CV (for graduate porgrams), plus references and a personal statement (for graduate programs).

Recipients’ stories underline how important the written parts can be: Ruby Uche says, “I spent time writing, reflecting, and redrafting my Chevening essays,” and Sebuoeng Tau points out that Chevening itself can require multiple essays (she mentions “four 500-word essays”).

Undergraduate: Applications go through UCAS, and UCAS charges an application fee.

Postgraduate (Masters): Sussex uses its own postgraduate application portal for most Masters courses; Sussex’s application guidance focuses on documents and eligibility and does not publish an application fee, but you should still check your specific course route and any external systems involved.