Frequently Asked Questions

Accommodation is not provided as part of the fellowship. However, Imperial offers some summer accommodation. More details about Summer accommodation at Imperial can be found here: Summer in halls

Note that you may be asked to pay for the accommodation before you receive your bursary.

You may also wish to consider private accommodation.

There will be multiple in-person events in London every week during the fellowship. We therefore expect fellows to be in London (or nearby) for the majority of the fellowship. 

We expect the fellows to be working roughly full time on the fellowship for the duration of the 10 weeks (except any pre-agreed holidays).

We expect the fellowship to be your main occupation during the 10 weeks. You may do some part time work as long as this does not interfere with your ability to engage with the fellowship. We recommend a maximum of 10-15 hours of part time work per week, with a hard upper limit of 20 hours per week. Failure to comply with this may require repayment of (some of) your bursary.

To get the most out of your fellowship, we expect you to be working on your project for the majority of the 10 weeks. If pre-agreed with your supervisor and the program director, you may take a maximum of 2 weeks holiday during the fellowship. This includes time off to attend graduation ceremonies etc. Failure to comply with this may require repayment of (some of) your bursary.

To be eligible for this programme you must identify as a woman who is currently on the third year of an undergraduate degree in the academic year 2025-2026, and plans to go on a Master’s degree (integrated or stand-alone) in the academic year 2026-2027. Your degree will be in mathematics, statistics, or a closely related subject such as physics or computer science, and you will be interested in exploring the possibility of undertaking a PhD in mathematics or statistics. You will be on track to receive at least upper second class honours, with a strong preference for candidates on track for a first class degree and you meet one of the below:

1. Undergraduate student at Imperial College London, including international students.

2. Undergraduate student, regardless of nationality (subject to immigration requirements where a student is in the UK on a Student Visa), enrolled at other UK universities (institutions of higher education).

3. Undergraduate student of overseas institutions of higher education and is a UK or Ireland national, or have pre-settled or settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme and would remain registered at their home institution for the whole duration of the research experience at Imperial.

The fellowship will be conducted entirely in English. Therefore, we expect a good level of English. The English language competency level required for the Mary Lister Fellowship is Standard. Details on the requirements to meet the level can be found on the Imperial language requirements webpage here: English language requirements. 

You will receive a bursary of £460 per week during the fellowship (for summer 2026) to cover accommodation and living costs etc. This is typically paid in two instalments, the first about a week after the start of the programme and the second about halfway through. 

Bursaries may be considered to be tax-free when certain conditions are met. To find out more, check the Legal and tax basis for student bursaries section on the webpage here: Bursary administration