Cambridge is extremely competitive, with an overall acceptance rate of ~21 percent (Class 2028), and slightly lower for international students. Subject-specific: Medicine MB/BChir ~14%, CS ~10-12%, Math ~25% (with an extreme STEP requirement), NatSci ~22%, Humanities ~22-30%, Law ~20%. For Romanians: predicted grades A*A*A-A*A*A* (equivalent to BAC 9.7 plus and 9.7 plus on the profile) as a minimum, a mandatory admissions test (ESAT, TMUA, STEP, LNAT or UCAT) and an interview in December (2 intense academic ones, 25-45 min). The critical rule: you cannot apply to both Cambridge and Oxford in the same year. Plus a mandatory My Cambridge Application separate from UCAS (deadline 22 October).

Post-Brexit 2021, Romanians pay Overseas rates. Tuition 2026-27: £25,734-£70,554 per year. Humanities/Law/Education ~£25,734-£29,052, Math/Economics ~£29,052-£32,000, NatSci/CS/Engineering ~£35,000-£42,000, Medicine clinical years ~£64,000-£70,554. Plus the additional unique Cambridge college fee: £11,160-£14,880/year on top of tuition, a fee that no other UK university has (Oxford does not). Living costs in Cambridge ~£12,000-£15,000/year. Total for a 3-year BA for a Romanian: ~£170-200k Humanities/Law, ~£190-220k Math/Econ, ~£210-260k NatSci/CS/Engineering. 4-year MEng: ~£240-330k. 6-year Medicine: ~£350-450k.

Cambridge offers very limited options for intl undergrad: the Cambridge Bursary only for UK home students; the Reach Cambridge Scholarship (limited, country-specific, check Romania's eligibility); Cambridge Trust Scholarships (PG focus, some for UG); the Gates Cambridge Scholarship (postgraduate only, there is a Gates eligible route for Romanians); college-specific awards (Trinity, St John's have more). Strategy for Romanians: apply to Cambridge undergrad with your own funding, then target the Gates Cambridge Scholarship for a PhD. Check cambridgetrust.org each year for updates.

Both are in the global top 5, but with important differences: (1) you cannot apply to both in the same year, the decision is made in the 11th grade; (2) cost: Cambridge has an additional unique college fee of £11-15k/year that Oxford does not have, over 3 years the difference is ~£33-45k; (3) application: Cambridge requires a My Cambridge Application separate from UCAS (deadline 22 October), Oxford does not; (4) tests: Cambridge has the STEP test for Math (extremely difficult), Oxford does not; (5) iconic courses: Oxford PPE, Cambridge Math plus Natural Sciences (unique Tripos); (6) atmosphere: Cambridge is a smaller and more rural town, Oxford is more urban; (7) heritage: Newton, Darwin, Hawking, Turing, Crick plus Watson (Cambridge) versus Tolkien, CS Lewis, Tim Berners-Lee (Oxford); (8) IELTS: Cambridge is stricter (7.5 overall, no band below 7.0), Oxford 7.0-7.5 depending on the course.

Cambridge has 31 constituent colleges: Trinity (the largest and wealthiest, Newton was here), King's (iconic King's College Chapel, Turing was here), St John's (Prince William was here), Christ's (Darwin was here), Pembroke, Peterhouse (the oldest, 1284), Clare, Gonville and Caius, Magdalene, Selwyn, Churchill (sciences focus), Jesus, plus 19 others. Every student is at the same time a member of the university and of a specific college. The college provides accommodation (guaranteed 3-4 years), catering (formal halls with academic gowns), dedicated supervisors (weekly small-group sessions), its own library, societies and sport, a chapel, an intimate community (~300-700 students per college). On UCAS you specify a preferred college or an Open Application. Pooling system: if your preferred college does not make you an offer, you can be pooled to another college (1 in 5 offers come through the pool).

Cambridge is globally renowned for: Mathematics, the iconic course, considered the hardest undergraduate mathematics programme in the world (Newton heritage, Tripos system, mandatory STEP test). Natural Sciences (NatSci): a unique Cambridge Tripos that lets you combine Biology/Chemistry/Physics/Earth Sciences/Material Science/Pharmacology in the first year, then specialise. Engineering 4-year MEng. Computer Science (Alan Turing heritage). Medicine MB/BChir 6 years. Law (Jurisprudence) with LNAT. Economics (Keynes heritage). English Literature and Classics top in the world. History and Modern and Medieval Languages. In total, 30 plus undergraduate courses across 65 plus subject areas.

Cambridge is a historic medieval town on the River Cam (which is where the name comes from), with gothic architecture, parks and iconic meadows (The Backs). ~24,500 students in total, ~40% international from 147 plus countries. A unique collegiate system with an intimate community (~300-700 students per college), formal halls with academic gowns, intercollegiate sport (intense rivalry with Oxford through The Boat Race) and the Cambridge Footlights (a comedy society with alumni such as Hugh Laurie, Stephen Fry, Sacha Baron Cohen). Iconic landmarks: King's College Chapel (perpendicular gothic, Christmas Carols broadcast globally), Trinity College Great Court (the largest university court in the world), the Cavendish Laboratory (29 Nobel Prize winners worked here, DNA, the electron and the neutron discovered here), the Mathematical Bridge (Queens'), the Bridge of Sighs (St John's). Punting on the Cam is an iconic summer tradition. Train to London King's Cross 50 min, Stansted Airport 30 min.

Yes, through the Graduate Route visa. After graduating from Cambridge (BA, MEng, MMath, MChem, MB/BChir, LLB) you are automatically entitled to 2 years on the Graduate Route (3 years for a PhD) without a sponsor. Visa cost: £822 plus £1,035 per year IHS. Cambridge graduate employability is exceptional, with global recruiters (Big 4, Goldman Sachs, McKinsey, BCG, Bain, Google, Microsoft, DeepMind, Apple). Graduate salaries: Math £45-90k tech/quant finance/AI research; NatSci £35-60k research/biotech/pharma/finance; Engineering £35-55k; CS £40-80k tech; Medicine MB/BChir £33-37k FY1 NHS; Law £50-70k starting City of London Magic Circle; Economics £40-65k consulting/finance; Humanities £30-50k publishing/journalism/civil service/academia. Alumni network 250,000 plus, 15 UK PMs, 121 Nobel laureates. The option of the Gates Cambridge Scholarship for a PhD after undergrad.