StudyDesk Scholarships
About the scholarship
Robert Gordon University (RGU) sits on a riverside campus in Garthdee, Aberdeen, and is known for industry-linked degrees built with employers. Its flagship undergraduate award for overseas students is the Vice-Chancellor’s Undergraduate Scholarship: a merit-based fee waiver that pays the whole first-year tuition bill for an eligible international or EU undergraduate.
The single most important thing to understand is what the award is not. It is not a living-cost grant, not a cash payment, and not funding for the whole degree. If your programme’s first-year international fee is covered, years two, three and four — plus rent, food, travel and visa costs — remain yours to fund. Used with that understanding, it is still a very large saving: a full year of tuition at a UK university, awarded on merit.
Eligibility
- Hold an offer from RGU for a full-time, on-campus undergraduate course.
- Be classed by the university as an international or European fee payer.
- Be a self-funding student (externally sponsored students are excluded from RGU scholarships and awards).
- Be entering Year 1, or directly entering Year 2, for the September intake.
- Have met all offer conditions except the tuition deposit by the scholarship deadline.
- Be willing to engage in extra-curricular activities and act as an ambassador for RGU, promoting the value of studying there.
- Selection is based on academic merit, community engagement and extra-curricular activities — not on financial need.
Benefits
- Full first-year tuition fee for any eligible undergraduate degree — the value follows your programme’s fee.
- Applied on enrolment as a fee waiver; there is no cash payment to manage.
- Open to students from all countries who meet the international/European fee-payer test, including India.
Documents to prepare
- Your RGU offer letter for a full-time, on-campus undergraduate course.
- Academic transcripts and proof of qualifications meeting RGU’s entry requirements.
- A valid passport.
- English-language evidence where required by your course.
- A personal/support statement (published guidance for the scholarship application refers to a statement of around 500 words) setting out why you chose the course and what you bring to RGU life.
- Any written recommendation from a teacher or adviser who knows you academically, where the application form asks for one.
How to apply
- Apply for an eligible RGU undergraduate course for September 2027 and receive your offer.
- Work through your offer conditions so that everything except the tuition deposit is met well before June 2027.
- Watch for the scholarship window opening in the New Year and submit the separate Vice-Chancellor’s Undergraduate Scholarship application before the June 2027 deadline.
- Do not stack expectations: RGU applies only one award per offer, normally the most beneficial one — check on rgu.ac.uk whether the separate early-deposit discount stacks for your intake.
- Keep your ambassador commitment in mind: winners are expected to take part in university activities and promote the international student experience.
FAQs
No. It covers the full first-year tuition fee only. Living costs, accommodation, travel, visa fees and later years of tuition are not covered — it is a fee waiver, not a cash grant.
Yes. You need a course offer first, then a separate scholarship application in the window that opens in the New Year for the September 2027 intake.
The deadline month published across summaries is June 2027. The exact closing day was not published in the official notification checked — one secondary summary lists 30 June 2027 — so confirm the exact day on rgu.ac.uk as soon as the window opens.
No — RGU applies only one university scholarship, financial award or discount per offer, normally the most beneficial one. The £2,000 discount is the fallback award for students who do not win a named scholarship.
January-start shorter-programme students are not eligible for this September-intake award (January fast-track students become eligible when they start year two in September). Sponsored students are excluded because RGU scholarships are for self-funding students only.
Verified 24 Oct 2026: daadscholarship.com/robert-gordon-university-vice-chancellors-scholarship-2027-in-scotland-open-for-international-students/ — full first-year tuition, international/EU undergraduates, September 2027, June 2027 deadline, separate application expected, offer conditions except deposit, ambassador role, not a cash stipend, no living-cost cover; mastersportal.com/scholarships/8100/vice-chancellors-undergraduate-scholarship.html — merit-based, multiple awards, full first-year tuition, Year 1/direct Year 2, September intake, conditions except deposit, ambassador role; youapply.com/universities/united-kingdom/robert-gordon-university — September 2027 applications open in the New Year, June 2027 shown as deadline month; collegedunia.com/uk/university/783-robert-gordon-university-aberdeen/scholarship — tentative January 2027 opening, typical first-year international fees roughly £15,910–£18,760, £2,000 discount as separate recurring award. Exact closing day not published in the official notification checked.
