Brunel CSC PhD Scholarship 2027-2028 in UK | Fully Funded

Brunel CSC PhD Scholarship gives academically outstanding Chinese students the opportunity to pursue a fully funded PhD at Brunel University of London, with 20 full scholarships available for entry in October 2027 or January 2028.

The scholarships are jointly supported by Brunel University of London and the China Scholarship Council (CSC). Brunel provides tuition fee coverage and CSC provides a stipend, travel and visa reimbursement as detailed on the programme page.

Brunel CSC PhD Scholarship Benefits

• Brunel University of London will provide full tuition fees (up to 48 months) for each successful candidate.
• The China Scholarship Council will provide each scholarship recipient with a stipend for living costs (including medical insurance), one international round trip economy class airfare between China and the UK, and reimbursement for one-off visa application fees.

Brunel CSC PhD Scholarship Eligibility Criteria

• Applicants must be citizens of the People’s Republic of China. Overseas Chinese students may be eligible for application subject to CSC policy at the time.
• Applicants must have a strong academic background.
• Applicants must meet academic and English entry requirements set by the University (https://www.brunel.ac.uk/research/Research-degrees ).
• Applicants will require a visa to enter and study in the UK (https://www.brunel.ac.uk/international/visas-and-immigration ).
• Students currently registered for a PhD programme at Brunel University of London who commenced their PhD after January 2026 are also eligible to apply. These applicants will be considered by CSC in open competition with all other applicants. If successful, CSC Scholarship funding will start from the beginning of the second year of the PhD.
• Applicants must also fulfil the CSC’s criteria. Please see details from CSC’s website: https://www.csc.edu.cn/chuguo

How to Apply for Brunel CSC PhD Scholarship?

1. Before applying to CSC, applicant must have applied for and received an offer to study at Brunel on a PhD programme. These offers will be made by Brunel after assessment of all applications received by the deadline of 8 January 2027.
2. Contact the relevant Department or staff at Brunel to identify a suitable supervisor. Applicants may contact individual academic staff directly and can find details about research expertise and staff at https://www.brunel.ac.uk/people.
3. Apply for PhD admission online via https://www.brunel.ac.uk/research/Research-degrees/How-to-apply before the deadline of Friday 8 January 2027. Early applications are highly recommended.
4. Applicants must specify in their online application that they will be applying for the ‘BUL/CSC Joint Scholarship Scheme’ and should include the name of the potential supervisor in their application. To do this go to the Fees and Funding section of the application form and select ‘Funded’, then select ‘China Scholarship Council (CSC)’ as your funding option.
5. For current first-year PhD students at Brunel University London, please submit a short personal statement (maximum 750 words) outlining the subject of your research and the name of your supervisor. Please also provide a letter of recommendation from your supervisor, including confirmation that you have successfully passed the nine-month progress review. Please send those documents before the application deadline to the following email address: [email protected]
6. Brunel will select the applicants to be nominated to the CSC by the end of February 2027. These successful applicants will be issued with a Brunel offer letter. This offer letter must be submitted to CSC along with your application to them.
7. Nominated applicants must then apply directly to the CSC during the application window (expect to be in March 2027). Please check the CSC’s website for details.
8. Brunel expects to receive the list of successful candidates from CSC in late May/early June 2027.
9. Students are expected to start their PhD studies in October 2027, or January 2028.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Here are the most frequently asked questions about the Brunel CSC PhD Scholarship. These answers cover eligibility, benefits, deadlines, nomination and application steps based on the official programme information.