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Learn about eligibility for the Telles Scholarship and the UCL Undergraduate Preparatory Certificate and how to apply
Entry requirements
To be considered for the Telles Scholarship and the Undergraduate Preparatory Certificates (UPC) you will need to check that you meet the following entry requirements:
- Eligibility
- Academic requirements
- English language requirements
You will then need to complete the four stages of the UPC application process:
- Application and supporting documents
- Entrance tests in mathematics and physics
- Financial assessment
- Interview
Eligibility
To be eligible, you must meet the following criteria:
- Be a Brazilian national domiciled in Brazil
- Meet the below academic and English language requirements
- Be in financial need as assessed by UCL. See guidance on how UCL defines household income.
- Be able to demonstrate enthusiasm in Electronic and Electrical Engineering and want to study the discipline at undergraduate level
If you are not eligible for this scholarship, then please see the other scholarships that UCL has on offer on our scholarships and funding page.
Academic requirements
You must have completed high school in Brazil - within two years of the UPC start date - and achieved the Certificado de Conclusão de Ensino Médio with an overall average of 8/10 with 8/10 in relevant academic subjects.
English language requirements
You can submit an application before you have taken your tests, but please note you must have an IELTS for UKVI (Academic) or Pearson PTE Academic UKVI taken after September 2022 to be eligible for your visa application.
IELTS for UKVI (Academic) Pearson PTE Academic UKVI Listening 6.0 59 Reading 6.0 59 Speaking 6.0 59 Writing 6.0 59 Overall score 6.0 59
How to apply
UPC application
There are four stages to the UPC application process:
- Application and supporting documents
- Entrance tests in mathematics and physics
- Financial assessment
- Interview
You must succeed at each stage to receive an offer.
Application guidance and FAQ
- Application and supporting documents
You should make your UPC application directly to the UCL Centre for Languages & International Education (CLIE) via our online 'Undergraduate Preparatory Certificate for Science and Engineering' application form and selecting 'Telles Foundation Scholarship' in the sponsorship details section.
You’ll need to provide the following:
- a completed application form including a personal statement and a completed financial assessment form (see below).
- a certified (and if available translated) copy of your school transcripts.
- a copy of your English language test score - an IELTS for UKVI (Academic) or Pearson PTE Academic UKVI. You can submit an application before you have taken one of these tests, but please note one of these test results will be required for you to be eligible for your visa.
- a reference on headed school paper, stamped and signed.
Before applying, please ensure you have these documents scanned as PNG or JPEG files, as you will need to upload them to your application form before you can submit your application.
If you don’t upload a reference letter in your application, we will contact your referee directly at the email address provided in your application form. Please note, we require the reference before we can invite you to take the entrance tests.
Please note there is no application fee for Telles Scholarship applicants.
Once we have received and processed your complete Undergraduate Preparatory Certificate for Science and Engineering (UPCSE) application we will ask you to fill out a financial assessment form. Please read our
guidance on how to fill in the financial assessment form and the documents required.- Personal statement
Your personal statement is an important part of the application form and should explain in no more than 500 words:
- Why you chose to study Electronic and Electrical Engineering as an undergraduate degree? Which aspects of the degree interest you the most?
- Which experiences (academic and personal) have shaped your interest in this field? (e.g., reading in the subject area, non-academic projects, useful relevant skills you have)
- How do you think you will fit into the UPC course and what might challenge you during the foundation year?
- What is your single proudest achievement? What did it teach you about yourself, others and the world around you?
- If you have participated in any social, charitable, entrepreneurial or other project where you worked to make a change in your local community or on a wider scale.
- Application deadline
The application deadline for the Telles Scholarship is 12 April 2024.
- Application fee payment
There is no application fee for the Telles Scholarship.
- Entrance tests
Once you've submitted a complete application, including all required documents, our Admissions team will check it. If you meet our requirements, we’ll contact you about the entrance tests.
If you have submitted a completed application, you will be invited to sit entrance tests in mathematics and physics, as these are the two optional subjects you will take on the UPC.
The entrance tests will be taken online on 20 April 2024. There will be no other dates offered to take the tests.
Learn about our entrance tests including how you will take them and how to practice with sample papers.
- Interviews
If you achieve 50% or above in each entrance test, a UPC Admissions Tutor will assess your application. We’ll review your high school results, academic transcripts, personal statement, reference, English language level as well as your entrance tests. Our decision regarding an invitation to interview will consider all aspects of your application. You’ll hear from the UPC Admissions team within a week from taking the entrance tests..
If you are successful, a UPC Admissions Tutor will contact you to schedule an online interview in the following weeks. All interviews will take place before 3 May 2024.
In the interview, we’ll discuss your interest for Electronic and Electrical Engineering and your wider interests, as well as your expectations and future plans. It’s also a chance for you to ask us any questions.
Your performance in the interview is important in our decision to offer you a place. The UPC Admissions Tutor will decide within a few days of your interview.
- Financial assessment
If you are successful at the interview stage, you will be notified that you have been pre-selected. UCL’s Student Funding Office will review the documents you have provided in support of your application.
How do we determine financial need?
Applications are overseen by UCL’s Student Funding Office based on several factors including:
- Household income (incl. number of dependents who rely on that income, financial circumstances, exceptional household expenditure e.g. medical bills)
- Personal background (e.g. from single-parent family, previous scholarship support, welfare provision, other special needs)
- Family circumstances (e.g. parent/guardian occupation(s), state/welfare support)
- The financial assessment form and documents you submit as part of your application.
- Selection panel and final decision
A Selection Panel composed of UCL staff will assess your application and consider your academic and personal achievements, your academic plans as well as your financial circumstances.
You will be informed of the result by 10 May 2024 and receive a formal offer to enrol on the UPC course as a Telles Scholarship recipient. You will need to confirm that you accept the offer and the award of the Scholarship by 31 May 2024.
- Applying for UCL accommodation
Once you have accepted your award and UPC place you can apply for UCL accommodation. You should apply for this before 10 June to be prioritised for a room.
- Under 18s
If you’re under 18 at the start of the course, please read UCL's essential information for students under the age of 18 before applying.
- How we use your data
UCL’s privacy notices for current and prospective students set out how any personal data we collect will be processed. The full notice for current students can be found here. The full notice for prospective students can be found here.
The information provided in your application will be processed by UCL Centre for Languages & International Education and the UCL Electronic and Engineering Department for the purposes of determining your eligibility for a place on the award scheme. The information you provide may also be shared with other UCL departments for information verification purposes.The financial support to be provided to successful applicants for the purpose of the Telles Scholarship is offered in collaboration with an external funder, Telles Foundation. UCL will consult with the Telles Foundation regarding the pool of potential candidates for the Telles Scholarship but UCL will be responsible for selecting successful recipients of the Scholarship. UCL may share the following personal information about applicants and successful recipients of the Telles Scholarship with Telles Foundation: name; contact details such as email address; personal details such as gender, nationality; course particulars; and academic progression.
If you are successful in your application for the Telles Scholarship, then at the end of each academic year of your UPC and your EEE BEng programme, UCL will also ask that you complete a feedback form, which UCL will share with Telles Foundation and which will include questions relating to your academic progression, and if you are studying on the EEE BEng programme, questions relating to your extracurricular activities (e.g. participation in community service, exchange programmes, etc), and professional experience inside or outside of UCL (e.g. internships, trainee experience, etc, if applicable). Telles Foundation will process your personal data in the manner and for the purposes described in their privacy policy available at https://tellesfoundation.uk/privacy-policy/.
You acknowledge that by UCL or you transferring your personal data to Telles Foundation, your personal data may be transferred to and processed in Brazil.
Any data sharing by UCL will be carried out with due regard to UCL’s duties as a ‘data controller’ within the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Our legal basis of processing this disclosure of information will be for the purposes of performance of a contract or in order to take steps prior to entering into a contract
Application and progression to BEng Electronic and Electrical Engineering during the UPC
In term one (September-December) of the UPC, you will submit your UCAS application for UCL Electronic and Electrical Engineering BEng.
You will receive a conditional offer for BEng Electronic and Electrical Engineering if you are predicted to meet its entry requirements (and have a clearly relevant personal statement).
If you complete the UPC successfully and meet the entry requirements of UCL BEng Electronic and Electrical Engineering you will progress automatically. If you fail to progress to BEng Electronic and Electrical Engineering at UCL, you will lose the right to receive the remainder of the Scholarship. You will be able to apply to other degrees in the UK using the Undergraduate Preparatory Certificate qualification.
Next steps
- Contact the Telles Scholarship Admissions team (clie-tellesscholarship@ucl.ac.uk) for any questions or support with your application
- Review the UPC website and videos
- Practice with sample papers for the UPC entrance tests