Tuition fees

Before applying for a research degree at Royal Holloway, it’s worth considering how you’ll fund your studies.

We charge an annual tuition fee for all postgraduate research (PGR) degrees. The actual fee depends on the department in which you are studying. Part-time fees are approximately half the full-time fee.

Tuition fees can be paid in full at any time up until you enrol. Find out how to pay your fees.

Alumni discounts

For PGR students who are entitled to a 20% alumni discount, this will be applied in the following way:

The alumni discount is made on the fee amount payable following any other reductions e.g. studentships.
The alumni discount is available on the tuition fees for the first year of study only, whether full or part-time.
The alumni discount cannot be used in conjunction with full fee award studentships (including those with an additional cash award).
The alumni discount cannot be applied to Continuing Professional Development (CPD) courses.

Instalment plans

If you’re paying tuition fees yourself and are not applying for support and loans for fees via Student Finance England or Student Finance Services, you can opt to pay your fees in two equal instalments.

You need to pay at least 50% of the fee by enrolment in the first term. The second payment is then required during the first week of the second term, in January.

Please note that tuition fee instalments are not available to sponsors.

Programme fees

Programme	Home (UK) fees 2025/26**	Home (UK) fees 2026/27**
MSc Biological Sciences by Research	£8,006* (includes the £3,000 bench fee)	£8,238* (includes the £3,000 bench fee)
All other research degrees (including Masters by Research)	£5,006*	£5,238*

*Each year, UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) usually increase their fee levels in line with inflation, based on the Treasury GDP deflator. Minimum fees recommended by the Research Councils are adopted as the Home tuition fee for all postgraduate research at Royal Holloway, University of London. Fees displayed here are therefore subject to change and are usually confirmed in the spring of the year of entry.

Department/programme	Standard international student (including EU) fee 2025/26**	Standard international student (including EU) fee 2026/27**
Biological Sciences	£28,700	£29,700
MSc Biological Sciences by Research	£31,700 (includes the £3,000 bench fee)	£32,700 (includes the £3,000 bench fee)
Classics	£25,500	£26,400
Computer Science	£28,700	£29,700
Drama, Theatre and Dance	£21,500	£22,300
Earth Sciences	£28,700 (May incur additional bench fees of up to £6,000; amount negotiated at project set‑up)	£29,700 (May incur additional bench fees of up to £6,000; amount negotiated at project set‑up)
Economics	£21,500	£22,300
Electronic Engineering	£28,700	£29,700
English	£25,500	£26,400
Geography	£25,500	£26,400
Health Studies	£25,500	£26,400
History	£25,500	£26,400
Information Security	£25,500	£26,400
Law	£19,800	£20,500
Management	£25,500	£26,400
Mathematics	£25,500	£26,400
Media Arts	£21,500	£22,300
Modern Languages	£25,500	£26,400
Music	£25,500	£26,400
Philosophy	£21,500	£22,300
Physics	£25,500	£26,400
Politics and International Relations	£21,500	£22,300
Psychology	£25,500	£26,400
Social Work	£19,800	£20,500

**The UK Government has confirmed that EU students will not be eligible to pay the same fees as UK students. This means you will be classified as an international student.

Royal Holloway reserves the right to increase all postgraduate tuition fees annually. Be aware that tuition fees can rise during your research degree, and that this also means that the overall cost of studying the course part-time will be slightly higher than studying it full-time in one year. The annual increase for international postgraduate students starting their course in 2026/27 is determined as part of our annual fees review, and will be based on the UK’s Retail Price Index (RPI), capped to a maximum of 7.5%.

NB: A 'Writing Up' fee will come into effect in year four (full-time study) or year seven (part-time study).