Scholarships
The NFTS awards more scholarships and bursaries to British students, relative to the size of our student body, than almost any other educational institution in the UK.
We are committed to ensuring it is open to students of genuine ability, no matter what their background or financial circumstances.
And, as an institution that develops the next generation of creative talent, we feel a special responsibility to ensure our creative industries reflect the full diversity of our country.
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Eligibility
Candidates must have been permanently resident in the UK for the last three years and hold a British passport in order to be eligible.
Applying for a Scholarship
When you are offered a place on an MA course, and if you are eligible, you will be invited to apply for these scholarships. We will also provide advice about other potential sources of funding.
You cannot apply for or request a specific donor when applying to the fund, however, If you match the criteria for a specific donor, you will be contacted.
Scholarships can provide some (and in certain cases, all) of tuition fee support. They are provided by a named individual or institution that has some connection with the Industry and School. They may have an interest in mentoring you. These awards carry considerable prestige.
Awards to UK MA students for the academic year commencing January 2024 have ranged from £1,000 to £12,000, depending on demonstrated individual need.
About our Scholarships
The NFTS Scholarship programme is made up of a multitude of donors and patrons. We are grateful for the generous assistance of its scholarship donors, such as BBC and Leverhulme, who between them provide more than £350,000 of support for students to help with their fees. Both BBC and Leverhulme monies are targeted at students from diverse backgrounds including those from the regions, nations and from ethnically diverse communities.
Toledo Productions supports diverse new British voices and talent. The Toledo Scholarship was established in 2005 by one of the world’s most successful producers and NFTS governor Duncan Kenworthy (Four Weddings and a Funeral, Notting Hill) to enable talented newcomers from underrepresented backgrounds in the UK to fast-track their ambitions and join the British film industry. Since its inception, over 35 scholars have benefitted from £325,000 of funding including writer/director Shola Amoo (The Last Tree) and producer Kurban Kassam (Ginger and Rosa). More information is available on our Toledo Scholarship page, where you can see how it has helped British Black and Ethnic Minority students successfully train at the NFTS.
In 2022, we announced our new Black British Woman Cinematographer Scholarship Award, in partnership with Netflix, with the first recipient joining the NFTS Cinematography MA in January 2023. For scholarship recipients, Netflix will entirely fund the two year NFTS Cinematography MA in addition to supporting annual living expenses. If you are offered a place on the Cinematography MA and are eligible, you will be invited to apply for the scholarship.
As part of their commitment to local communities, Pinewood and Shepperton Studios offers scholarships to those living in the local area to Pinewood Studios, UK (within a 5-mile radius) and the Borough of Spelthorne, local to Shepperton Studios, UK.
For more information visit: pinewoodgroup.com/pinewood-today/futures-nfts
More than £100,000 is available to support students from the UK on the courses listed below. UK students, subject to meeting eligibility requirements, are invited to apply for available scholarship funding once they have been offered a place. The applications are then means-tested to ensure the funding is allocated on the basis of need. UK Candidates who are offered a place on a diploma course will be invited to apply for any diploma specific scholarships that are available.
Candidates must have been permanently resident in the UK for the last three years and hold a British passport in order to be eligible.
Please go ahead and apply for the course of your choice, if you’re successful at gaining a place, you will be contacted by our funding team with details on how to apply for a scholarship.
Apply now
- Assistant Camera (Focus Pulling and Loading)
- Assistant Directing and Floor Managing
- Cameras for Television Production
- Location Sound Recording for Film and Television
- Model Making for Animation
- Motion Graphics and Titles
- Production Accounting
- Production Management for Film and Television
- Script Development
- Sound for Television Production
- Sports Production
- Vision Mixing for Television Production
- Writing and Producing Comedy
The National Film and Television School is pleased to offer three Humanitarian Scholarships for students fleeing conflict and persecution and who are seeking asylum in the UK, or who hold refugee status in any country, enabling them to continue their education:
- One full fee scholarship and £15,000 living expenses per year on a full-time postgraduate level course commencing in January 2026 (either a Master’s or postgraduate diploma)
- Two free places on our Certificate in Filmmaking Certificate course or our Indie Games Development Certificate course for students holding the appropriate status either inside or outside the UK.
All applications for the MA or Diploma Humanitarian Scholarship must be received by 3 July 2025.
All applications for the Certificate in Filmmaking/Indie Games Development Humanitarian Scholarship must be received by 30 August 2024.
Details of the eligibility criteria and how to apply can be found in our pdf summary.
We are committed to supporting UK disabled talent and being a catalyst for meaningful change to issues faced by disabled talent within the UK screen and games industries. As part of our commitment to making the creative industries more accessible to disabled talent, we are providing dedicated funding to help to support UK students with disabilities to access our world-class training.
Five bursaries will be available for UK students applying to study on full time MA and Diploma courses from September 2024, providing up to £5,000 per annum each. Additional bursary support is also available for UK students applying to study part time Diploma and Certificate courses from September 2024 of up to £1,000 each. UK Students studying courses supported by NFTS scholarship and bursaries will also be eligible to apply for further funding from the School to help with tuition fee costs.
The funding aims to assist UK students who face significant additional costs because of the nature of their disability.
The bursary could be used to help with costs such as:
- Accessible accommodation
- Carers accommodation
- Additional heating and electricity costs
- Travel expenses
- Specialist and mobility equipment
Eligibility
- Candidates must have been permanently resident in the UK for the last three years and hold a British passport in order to be eligible.
- A learning difference (e.g. dyslexia, dyspraxia, or AD(H)D)
- A visual impairment uncorrected by glasses (e.g. blindness or partial sight)
- A hearing impairment (e.g. D/deafness or partial hearing)
- A physical impairment or challenges with mobility (e.g. climbing stairs or uneven surfaces), or dexterity (e.g. using a keyboard or laboratory equipment)
- A social, behavioural or communication impairment (e.g. an autistic spectrum condition or Tourette’s Syndrome)
- A long-term illness or health condition which may involve pain or cause fatigue, loss of concentration or breathing difficulties – including any effects from taking associated medication.
- We cannot accept applications from individuals who only experience a mental health condition, challenge or disorder (e.g. anxiety or depression).
- We will require medical confirmation of your disability. This may be a letter from your health care provider, doctor or consultant, confirming your stated disability.
How To Apply
On receiving an offer of a place on one of our courses, you will be given further information on how to apply, if you are eligible.
Applicants will need to provide medical evidence of their disability (from a GP, consultant or specialist practitioner) and provide information on how the funding will be used. Applications will be assessed by a panel comprised of NFTS representatives and the School’s Disability Advocate.
Find out more from Hamish, our Disability Advocate, in this video:
Left Bank Pictures - The Crown Scholarship programme
The Left Bank Pictures – The Crown Scholarship programme, fuelled by a once-in-a-lifetime auction of 450 props, furniture, and costumes from all six seasons of The Crown, will give a host of new students the opportunity to receive world-class training and follow in our alumni’s footsteps. When you are offered a place on an MA or Full-time Diploma course, and if you are eligible, you will be invited to apply for the available scholarships.
Thanks to Left Bank Pictures, Netflix and Bonhams.
BAFTA UK Scholarship Programme
If you are applying to a number of NFTS MA and Diploma courses, you can apply for the BAFTA UK scholarship programme. It is open to British citizens in need of financial assistance to take a post-graduate course in the UK. You can apply to BAFTA before you are offered an NFTS place, however they will require a letter confirming that you have submitted an application to us.
Each BAFTA Scholar undertaking postgraduate studies can receive up to £12,000 towards their annual course fees (up to a maximum of £20,000 across 2 years if studying on a two-year MA)
Find eligible courses and apply online on BAFTA's website.
Applications are currently closed for 2024/25 but will open in the Spring and a deadline will be published on their website.
The Snowdon Trust Master's Scholarship
The Snowdon Trust Master's Scholarship has been designed to identify and accelerate exceptional Disabled Students through their higher education, creating the influences of the future. We are searching for individuals who choose to use their lived experience of disabling barriers to make a difference. To create change.
The award will provide up to £30,000 for exceptional Disabled Students applying to study a master’s degree. We are investing in the influencers of the future. This consists of up to £15,000 towards course fees and a maintenance allowance of £15,000 for the duration of your course.
The eligibility requirements are as follows:
· You are applying for master’s level study at a UK institution
· Your course will start in 2024/25
· You are a UK national, hold UK residency or have completed your Undergraduate BA Degree in the UK
· You identify as Disabled. Please note that if you identify as experiencing a mental health condition, challenge or disorder (e.g. anxiety or depression) you can only apply if you also identify as living with one or more other disabilities.
Applications open at 2pm on 15 January 2024. For more information and to apply, visit the website: https://www.snowdontrust.org/
Regional Screen Agencies
Some of the remaining UK Regional Screen Agencies offer scholarships to students from within their region. Some are arranged through the School as NFTS Scholarships, while others must be applied for direct, in competition with students at other institutions. Please contact the Registry, or your local Regional Screen Agency, for more information.
Pinewood and Shepperton Studios
As part of their commitment to local communities, Pinewood and Shepperton Studios offers scholarships to those living in the local area to Pinewood Studios, UK (within a 5-mile radius) and the Borough of Spelthorne, local to Shepperton Studios, UK.
For more information visit: pinewoodgroup.com/pinewood-today/futures-nfts
Aziz Foundation Scholarships
The NFTS and the Aziz Foundation are pleased to be offering a range of scholarships to talented British Muslim students keen to excel in the creative industries on NFTS MA and full-time Diploma course.
For more information visit: nfts.co.uk/article/aziz-foundation-scholarships-now-available-nfts
All3Media
Andy Harries
Amazon Prime
Aziz Foundation
BAFTA
BBC
Beaconsfield Film Society
Betty Willingale Scholarship
British Society of Cinematographers Scholarship
Carol Wiseman Scholarship
Chelsea Arts Club Trust
Columbia TriStar
Creative Scotland
Curtis Brown
The David Lean Foundation
David Frank Scholarship
David Yates
De Mouilpied Charity Trust
Des Hamilton Casting
Devoniaroad
Dimension Studio
Freddie Francis, BSC Scholarship
Freddie Young, OBE, BSC Scholarship
Hamilton Hodell Ltd
IMG
Ink Factory
ITV
James Walker Legacy
Jim Garrett Scholarship
John Sargent Scholarship
Sir John Terry Memorial Fund
Kodak Entertainment Imaging
Left Bank Pictures - The Crown Scholarship
The Lesley Land Scholarship
The Leverhulme Trust
The Lew Grade Foundation
The Louis Malle Scholarship
Mark Baker
Mark Farley
Mike Frankovic/Columbia TriStar Scholarship
Musicians Union
NEOM
Netflix
New Name Entertainment
Nik Powell Scholarship
Northern Ireland Screen
Pinewood Studios Group
The PRS for Music Foundation
Richard Dunn Scholarship
Royal Mail Special Stamps
Sargent-Disc
ScreenSkills
Spotlight
Sue Bruce Smith Scholarship
Toledo Productions
UK Cinema Association
United Agents
Warner Bros.
42 M&P Limited