The information below is for entry in 2026, or deferred entry in 2027.
At Queens’ College we offer 30 of the 31 undergraduate courses available at the University of Cambridge (not Philosophy). We are one of the Colleges also offering the Foundation Year course. You can find out more information about studying a subject at Queens’, as well as hearing from our current students, on our individual subject pages.
Students are admitted to Queens’ based on academic ability and the potential to succeed in their chosen course. We encourage applications from all outstanding UK or international students. This includes those whose schools have little or no experience of sending students to Cambridge, those who may be the first in their family to progress to higher education and those who have faced challenging personal circumstances. Every applicant is considered individually, in a holistic assessment using all of the information available to us. Once students are admitted, we ensure that they are given the support they need to successfully complete their course at Cambridge.
Most of the general application process is the same across the Cambridge Colleges and you can find out more on the University’s website.
Some details on how and when to apply may be specific to Queens’, including precise requirements for school subjects, admissions assessments and written work, or additional documents. You should check for these on the following pages:
We are also one of the Cambridge Colleges accepting applications to the Foundation Year in Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences (a pre-degree course). This innovative route is designed for a new field of candidates to help them realise their academic potential through a full-time, residential programme fully embedded in the Collegiate University.
For more information about our open days, visit our ‘Considering Queens” page.
I chose Queens’ because of the link to my home area of Bradford and the support that the access team gave me in my application. Upon visiting Queens’ I loved the friendly and welcoming environment; it felt like somewhere I would feel at home! I feel like coming here has just confirmed this, I love walking through College and bumping into people I know and I also love meeting new people here too who are all so friendly and helpful. I couldn’t have picked a better College.
Rebekah
Colleges are responsible for students’ education and welfare and organise the small group undergraduate teaching (‘supervisions’) that makes Cambridge so distinctive. Colleges also provide accommodation and are a social focus for students. The Colleges are part of the University, which also includes Faculties and Departments. The University’s Faculties and Departments organise lectures, practicals and exams, and it is the University that awards degrees.
Queens’ is one of the largest Cambridge Colleges with approximately 1000 students, 500 of whom are undergraduates. We admit around 150 undergraduates each year.
At the moment, first years tend to live in the Cripps Building, and second and third years all over the place! Our oldest rooms date from the foundation of the College in 1448 and the newest were finished in 2007. All rooms have central heating and internet access. Many of them have en-suite shower rooms.
The sports ground is about 1 mile away. It has pitches for football, rugby, cricket and hockey, and three hard courts for tennis and netball. The boathouse is about the same distance away in the opposite direction.
Most popular sports and clubs are organised on an inter-College basis so that there is at least one competitive football, tennis, cricket, rugby or hockey team. Sport is also played at a more informal, less competitive level. Many sports, such as squash, are played just for fun at all levels of proficiency. The University has societies for almost every interest and activity from aerobics to tiddlywinks. In addition, Queens’ has a number of its own subject societies (e.g. History, Law, and Medicine) which hold speaker meetings and arrange dinners and other social events. There is also the possibility for you to form your own society.
Music goes on at many levels in Queens’. We have an active Music Society that puts on several concerts and recitals each term. The Drama Society puts on several plays a year and has access to the Fitzpatrick Hall, one of the best small theatres in Cambridge.
At Queens’ we know that adjusting to university life and the intense academic environment of Cambridge can be tough, so we employ a team of trained and experienced Welfare Advisers and Nurses. Each student is also assigned a Tutor to provide support in overcoming any difficulties which might affect their wellbeing and/or ability to study effectively, including health, welfare, financial or personal issues. Please see our dedicated page for more information.
Our admissions decisions are based on academic criteria (ability and potential) and we expect to see evidence in your application of your wider engagement with areas of academic interest, such as reading and other explorations relevant to the course for which you have applied. Extra-curricular activities which are of no relevance to the course will not increase your chances of receiving an offer. If, however, particular extra-curricular activities have enabled you to develop transferable skills, such as organisation or time management, then do include them in your personal statement. Such activities might include significant caring responsibilities or paid employment, which can help us fully contextualise your application, as well as sport, physical activity, music, drama and volunteering.
Please note that we do not normally consider applications from students currently enrolled on a degree course at another UK university, unless:
In cases 3 or 4, you may need strong support in the form of a written reference or letter of support from your course director or tutor. You may also be asked to demonstrate that you have sufficient funding to complete the Cambridge degree where you have already used part of your Lifelong Learning Entitlement.
We recognise that there may be good reasons for students from outside the UK to be undertaking an initial period of study at a local university. If that applies to you, please contact us for guidance.
If you do not disclose prior undergraduate study via your UCAS application, this will be treated as a fraudulent application, and your application may be cancelled.
Yes. We are happy to encourage applicants in all subjects to either apply for deferred entry or to apply post-A Level (or equivalent qualification). We think that time away from study between school and university can offer students the chance to develop, mature and gain experience of the world. Applicants who have or have not taken a gap year will be assessed in the same way.
Queens’ College does not routinely admit students who will be under the age of 18 when they start their course.
Applicants who will be under 18 on admission should seek advice from our Admissions Tutor as early as possible to discuss their application. If you are considering Medicine, you should also read the advice regarding age requirements for this course in the Medicine course entry on the University’s website.
Applicants who would be under the age of 16 on admission may also be subject to additional requirements and restrictions in order to comply with legislation.
All students must demonstrate that they have the maturity and personal skills to cope with university-level study and will be able to gain full benefit from the course when admitted.
Queens’ College welcomes applications from prospective students who are care experienced or estranged from their family. If you are considering applying to us, we would encourage you to make contact with our admissions team via admissions@queens.cam.ac.uk as early as possible, to find out more about how we would be able to support you as a candidate, offer holder or student at Queens’.
Support available to care-experience or estranged students, depending on individual circumstances, might include:
The CAO Looked After Children Travel Bursary to help care-experienced young people travel to Open Days and other similar events.
We would encourage you to meet with us as soon as possible to discuss your needs and circumstances and establish the level of support that you will need. For example, this may include accommodation requirements, to highlight any additional financial support that is available from the College or the University, and if possible, to give you the chance to meet your Personal Tutor or a member of our Health and Wellbeing Team.
Queens’ is proud to be one of the 12 participating colleges of the Cambridge Foundation Year. Care-experience applicants are eligible to apply for a place on the Foundation Year.
Information about support available to care-experienced and estranged students across the University can be found on the University’s website under ‘Support for care-experienced students‘.
For further support or guidance related to study at the University of Cambridge, contact the Realise Team via realise@admin.cam.ac.uk.
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