A friendly and supportive environment for mature students
Hughes Hall is a different type of Cambridge College. Our undergraduates are all mature students so are 21 or over at the start of their course. Some are taking their first degree, whilst others are studying a new subject either for the full three years or as a two-year affiliated student (for those taking a second undergraduate degree). All mature and affiliated students taking undergraduate degrees are offered College accommodation throughout their course, including for the summer vacation if they wish.
The College has a friendly atmosphere, promoting academic and extra-curricular activities for all students. As well as our undergraduates we have around 800 full and part-time graduate students, and we actively encourage all students and Senior Members to interact through our events.
The College is situated alongside Fenner’s Cricket Ground and around the corner is lively Mill Road, known for its cafes, restaurants, bars, vintage clothes, and international supermarkets. We are halfway between the railway station and market square, a 10-minute bike ride from most university departments and 5 minutes from punting on the river Cam, with some of the best accommodation at Cambridge.
You can find out much more on our website in the Life at Hughes section including Meeting our Students and our Fellows and Senior Members. We also have a range of scholarships open to new students.
Please email us for more information and to discuss applying to Hughes: ugadmissions@hughes.cam.ac.uk.
Further information
For further information on how the application process works, please see the pages in the sections, including Who can apply, Subjects, How to apply, and Interviews and assessments.
For details of the mature colleges’ Programme supporting UK mature undergraduate applicants, see our Cambridge 21+ page.
You might be interested in reading the University’s Undergraduate Prospectus 2024.
The University also runs a STEM SMART initiative to support state school students through their A-levels in STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering and maths).
The University has a great deal of other information for undergraduate applicants including a Virtual Tour site.
Undergraduate Applications Timetable
There are two rounds of applications in each cycle. Applicants may apply for one round only in any cycle. If you are applying for Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, Computer Science, Engineering, Graduate Medicine, History of Art, Music, Natural Sciences, or Philosophy you must apply in the October round.
- 15 October, closing date for the first round of applications.
- Mid-November, applicants notified whether they are invited for interview or unsuccessful.
- First two weeks of December, first round interviews take place.
- 1 March, closing date for the second round of applications.
- Mid-March, applicants notified whether they are invited for interview or unsuccessful.
- Last week of March/first week of April, second round interviews take place.
- 31 August, deadline for receiving outstanding documents from offer holders.
Please note that Hughes Hall does not admit undergraduates to study Veterinary Medicine or Architecture. We only admit students to study Medicine through the Cambridge Graduate Course in Medicine.