Course costs

Please note: Every effort has been made to ensure that the course costs given below for courses within the Natural Sciences Tripos were accurate at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to review and revise the costs without prior notification and you are advised that their publication here serves only as an indicator of course costs for current and future years. The publication of this information does not form part of any contractual arrangement of costs associated with studying at the University.

General Costs

Essential

University-approved calculator

approx £25

Essential
for some courses

labcoat
Safety spectacles

approx £13-£16
approx £4 - £7

Essential

a laptop
It is recommended not using a Chromebook as they do not support some software used on the course, including digital assessment.

cost, if purchased new, will depend on choice, e.g. £400+, but existing laptops, if less than 4 years old, are likely to be fine.

Non-essential

books etc., as advised in course documentation

at student's discretion
library books are available

Non-essential

specialist equipment

can be borrowed if necessary

Costs for individual courses

The following courses have direct additional costs to students associated with them:

Part IA Earth Sciences

 

Essential

One-week field course (Arran: Easter Vacation)

Estimated Cost: £135

Part IA Evolutionary Biology

 

Non-essential, but desiarble

One-week field course, Slapton Ley in Devon or Dale Fort in Pembrokeshire. Easter Vacation Mar/Apr).

Estimated £50 + travel costs

Part IB Earth Sciences A and B

 

Essential

Ten-day mapping course (Cumbria: Long Vacation before course)

Estimated cost: £140

Essential

Ten-day field course (South West England: Easter Vacation)

Estimated cost: £140

Part IB Ecology & Conservation

 

Highly desirable

Ten-day field course, Juniper Hall in Surrey. Long Vacation (Jun/Jul) to work on an individual project.

£100 + travel costs

Part II Earth Sciences

 

Essential

Twelve-day mapping course (Skye: Long Vacation prior to course)

Estimated cost: £150

Essential

Seven-day mapping course (France: Easter Term)

Estimated cost: £150

Essential

Eight-day tectonics field course [same as Physics Part III below] (Greece: Christmas Vacation)

Estimated cost: £195

Essential

Two week (Environmental Geochemistry) or one month (Mapping) individual field work project in the Long Vacation prior to the course.

Total cost depends on choice of location. Students are eligible to apply to the Department (up to £450) and college travel funds to support the costs of this trip.

Part II Zoology & Plant Sciences

 

Non-essential

Two-week field course, Kota Kinabalu and Sabah in Borneo, Malaysia or Gamboa, in Panama. Long Vacation (Sept) to work on an individual project.

£600 but students on a full Cambridge bursary will not be charged. Travel grants often available from colleges.

Part III Earth Sciences

 

Essential

One-week field course (Spain: Easter Vacation)

Estimated cost: £175

Part III Physics

 

Non-essential part of a Major Topic

Eight-day tectonics field course [same as Earth Sciences Part II above] (Greece: Christmas Vacation)

Estimated cost: £195