The Martingale Scholarships provide fully funded support to exceptional postgraduate students from low-socio-economic backgrounds, enabling them to pursue world-leading research at top UK universities, including the University of Oxford. The scholarships cover tuition fees, research costs, and a tax-free living stipend, and include access to a tailored development programme offering mentoring, leadership training, and academic network-building opportunities. Applications for 2026 entry are now open https://martingale.foundation/partner-universities/university-of-oxford/.
Since the Foundation launched in 2022, over 100 Scholars have been supported across ten UK universities, with more than one-third studying at Oxford or Cambridge. At Oxford, the Martingale programme has already supported students in Mathematical Sciences, and new opportunities are emerging in high-demand areas such as Artificial Intelligence, nuclear research, and biomedical data science.
The expansion is underpinned by over £25 million in donor funding, including major contributions from XTX Markets, Google DeepMind, UK Atomic Energy Authority, Alzheimer’s Research UK and The University of Manchester’s SATURN doctoral programme. XTX Markets, the founding donor, has pledged an additional £10.5 million to support more than 100 Masters and PhD Scholarships, including a new focus on AI. Martingale’s AI Scholarships —launched in partnership with Google DeepMind—has attracted intense interest, with a 16:1 applicant-to-place ratio in its first year.
Oxford’s MPLS Division welcomes the announcement, which strengthens national efforts to broaden participation in research and aligns with the UK’s Industrial Strategy.
Professor Jim Naismith, Head of the Mathematical, Physical and Life Sciences Division at the University of Oxford, said: "The Martingale Foundation’s mission is helping to unlock some of the brightest minds in the country—regardless of background— a vision we share. We’re proud to partner with them. Scholarships support individual students and strengthen the UK’s research capacity in critical fields such as AI, mathematical sciences, and carbon free energy. Their expanded investment in postgraduate talent is an extraordinary gift to the whole nation."
Oxford-based Martingale Scholar Freddie Truman-Williams, currently completing a Masters in Mathematical Sciences, credits the programme with transforming his academic trajectory:
“The Martingale programme gave me the confidence to connect with leading researchers around the world. I’ve gone from presenting summer projects to authoring papers with top academics and securing PhD offers. Just being part of the Martingale Foundation opens doors.”
Applications for the 2026 round are now open. Full details can be found at: https://martingale.foundation