School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London Programs: Tuition fees, Ranking, Scholarships, Application Deadlines & Entry Requirements

SOAS University of London fees for Indian students use the Indian rupee (INR) conversion, with tuition set in pounds sterling. Postgraduate (PG) tuition ranges from £25,320 (INR 32.74 Lakhs) to £28,840 (INR 37.30 Lakhs) annually. Undergraduate (UG) tuition is £23,780 (INR 30.75 Lakhs) per academic year. The Master of Science (MSc) course, MSc Global Development, costs £25,320 (INR 32.74 Lakhs) for one year.

SOAS, short for the School of Oriental and African Studies, operates from central London. Its 2026/27 benchmark spans £425 (INR 54,961) to £591.92 (INR 76,547) weekly, mainly because room choice changes the total. International Hall is five minutes from campus on a 40-week contract. Private housing needs separate bills, deposits, transport, and lease calculations.

The representative MSc Global Development route needs INR 63.05 Lakhs to INR 74.27 Lakhs in its first academic year. That range includes tuition, 12 months of living, the Student Visa fee, and a one-year Immigration Health Surcharge comparison.

Exchange rate used for every conversion: £1 = INR 129.32, using the 1 September 2026 open.er-api.com rate. INR means Indian rupee.

Next action: Review SOAS admission requirements and the January 2027 LLM deadline.

SOAS University of London Tuition Fees by Programme

SOAS has 10 postgraduate rows below, grouped by published Finance and Management, Law, International Studies and Diplomacy, and other-subject bands. The table includes Master of Arts (MA), Master of Science (MSc), and Master of Laws (LLM) routes. Current one-year full-time pages publish 180 credits, including a 60-credit dissertation.

SOAS University of London Postgraduate Fees: 2026/27

Ten postgraduate programmes cost £25,320 (INR 32.74 Lakhs) to £28,840 (INR 37.30 Lakhs) for one year of full-time study. SOAS charges annual overseas tuition, and each row uses its programme-specific fee.

• Band 1 includes Development Economics, Economics, Global Development, Politics and International Relations, Translation, and Violence, Conflict and Development.
• Finance and Management routes use £26,000 (INR 33.62 Lakhs) annually.
• The Master of Laws (LLM) route starts in January or September 2027, unlike the other listed campus courses.
• International Studies and Diplomacy costs £28,840 (INR 37.30 Lakhs) and includes a four-day Geneva tour in its course description.
• Tuition excludes living costs, deposits, Student Visa charges, and the Immigration Health Surcharge.

Source: SOAS postgraduate tuition schedule and current programme pages.

SOAS University of London Undergraduate Fees: 2026/27

Five undergraduate programmes carry £23,780 (INR 30.75 Lakhs) per academic year. Bachelor of Arts (BA) and Bachelor of Science (BSc) routes normally take three years, with optional fourth-year pathways.

• The standard three-year tuition total is £71,340 (INR 92.26 Lakhs) before living expenses.
• The published industry-year fee is £1,425 (INR 1.84 Lakhs), while the outgoing year-abroad fee is £11,770 (INR 15.22 Lakhs).
• Four-year totals add the published industry or outgoing year-abroad fee to three standard years.
• Undergraduate applications use the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS).
• For September 2027 UG entry, the UCAS equal-consideration date is 13 January 2027. The cutoff is 18:00 UK time, equal to 23:30 Indian Standard Time (IST).
• All featured undergraduate routes start in September, not January.

Indicative full-course figures use current published rates at unchanged current rates. They are not future-fee forecasts.

Source: SOAS undergraduate tuition schedule and current programme pages.

Next action: Compare SOAS programme routes before fixing a tuition budget.

SOAS University of London Fee Trend by Year

SOAS publishes a 2026/27 UG overseas fee of £23,780 (INR 30.75 Lakhs), while the next overseas figure remains unpublished. The fee policy permits increases up to 5% in later study years, but that ceiling is not a 2027/28 quote.

• The 2026/27 figure is the current published overseas UG benchmark.
• The 2027/28 overseas amount cannot support a numeric YoY calculation yet.
• January 2027 LLM applicants use the current 2026/27 law fee of £27,840 (INR 36.00 Lakhs).
• September 2027 UG applicants should obtain the next overseas quote before accepting a final budget.

Source: SOAS undergraduate fee schedule.

Cost of Living in London for Indian Students

SOAS’s 2026/27 London benchmark starts at £425 (INR 54,961) weekly. The upper published room option raises the combined benchmark to £591.92 (INR 76,547) weekly.

The figures combine SOAS’s room, board, books, transport, and personal-cost categories. Accommodation uses official SOAS hall prices from Wood Green Hall to International Hall.

• International Hall is catered except for its double studio and sits five minutes from SOAS.
• SOAS halls publish 40, 41, 50, or 51-week contracts, so lease length changes upfront cash needs.
• Wood Green Hall is a university housing option, not a private-rent comparison.
• Full-time students with a firmly accepted offer can apply for SOAS accommodation.
• Private housing needs its own rent, utility, deposit, and transport calculation.

Monthly values divide 52-week figures by 12. They are budget conversions from SOAS categories.

Source: SOAS Cost of Attendance and accommodation pages.

The £4,000 (INR 5.17 Lakhs) CAS deposit arrives before the first large tuition balance. Keep it separate from the housing contract and living reserve.

Total Cost of Studying at SOAS University of London

The representative MSc Global Development first academic year costs INR 63.05 Lakhs to INR 74.27 Lakhs. The range uses low, average, and high living assumptions.

This total uses one year of tuition and 12 months of living. It includes the Student Visa fee and a one-year Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) comparison.

• Tuition is the one-year MSc Global Development fee for 2026/27.
• The £4,000 (INR 5.17 Lakhs) deposit reduces tuition and is not added again.
• The table uses 12 months of living, not the shorter undergraduate academic-year basis.
• The one-year IHS comparison is £776 (INR 1.00 Lakh). The actual surcharge is paid upfront for the full visa duration.
• Airfare, loan interest, passport costs, test retakes, and private-housing deposits remain excluded.

At unchanged current rates, the full MSc Global Development budget is INR 0.63 Crore to INR 0.74 Crore. This includes the table’s visa and IHS comparison.

An education loan of INR 50 Lakhs has an equated monthly instalment (EMI) of INR 65,000 to INR 70,000. The estimate uses 10 years and 10.5% interest.

Source: SOAS tuition, Cost of Attendance, accommodation, and GOV.UK fee pages.

SOAS University of London Scholarships for Indian Students

Zero SOAS awards currently show an open status for these routes. The January 2027 LLM and September 2027 UG options have no published award amount or deadline.

SOAS scholarship deadlines for 2026/27 closed by 28 August 2026. Target-intake deadlines for September 2027 remain pending.

Source: SOAS scholarship pages and current scholarship status listings.

No external Indian provider currently publishes an award with a September 2027 deadline.

Source: Inlaks Foundation, Tata Trusts, K. C. Mahindra Education Trust, and Narotam Sekhsaria Foundation pages.

• Inlaks applications for 2026 closed, and its next postgraduate scholarship deadline is pending.
• The J. N. Tata Endowment 2026/27 cycle is closed. Its overseas loan scholarship can reach INR 20 Lakhs.
• K. C. Mahindra’s 2026 overseas postgraduate scholarship cycle is closed. Published awards reach INR 10 Lakhs for the top three fellows and INR 5 Lakhs for other awardees.
• Narotam Sekhsaria’s 2026 postgraduate application closed on 23 March 2026. Its support is repayable and interest-free.
• These funding options are not available awards for the current target intake.

Next action: Review SOAS admission and funding deadlines for the chosen intake.

SOAS University of London Tuition Deposit and Payment Options

SOAS uses one standard Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) deposit of £4,000 (INR 5.17 Lakhs). The deposit applies to students needing a Student Visa.

The deposit counts toward tuition and is usually non-refundable. The published rule applies to CAS-required on-campus degree routes.

Source: SOAS CAS deposit and tuition payment pages.

Methods of payment:

Four payment routes are available for the tuition balance.

• Bank transfer or telegraphic transfer, with bank charges paid separately.
• Flywire is SOAS’s named international payment provider for supported payment routes.
• A forex card or Flywire may save 2-3% against a raw wire, depending on the provider spread.
• Education-loan disbursement can fund the balance after lender approval.

Steps to pay the tuition fee for international students:

1. Accept the SOAS offer and complete the Applicant Portal tasks.
2. Pay the £4,000 (INR 5.17 Lakhs) CAS deposit.
3. Receive the CAS after SOAS records the required payment.
4. Pay the balance using the published instalment schedule.
5. Keep every payment receipt for the Student Visa file.

SOAS permits full payment at or before online enrolment, or two equal payments. Students with approved Masters or Doctoral Loan support may use three equal payments. The January 2027 route has no dated instalment schedule in the published payment guidance.

Next action: Review the SOAS offer, deposit, and visa document sequence.

Hidden Costs of Studying at SOAS University of London

The January 2027 LLM course deadline is 30 November 2026. Keep deposit and visa cash ready before that date.

• The Student Visa application fee is £558 (INR 72,161).
• The student Immigration Health Surcharge rate is £776 (INR 1.00 Lakh) per year.
• A one-year postgraduate visa can require a full IHS payment above the one-year comparison.
• International Hall requires a £500 (INR 64,660) booking deposit.
• IELTS retakes, document courier fees, passport costs, and bank charges have no single SOAS-published amount.
• Airfare remains outside the verified minimum because its price depends on route and booking date.

For the representative MSc Global Development route, Cash Needed Before Arrival combines four items. They are the CAS deposit, Student Visa fee, full IHS, and International Hall booking deposit.

Source: SOAS accommodation and Cost of Attendance pages, GOV.UK visa guidance.

Budget approximately INR 8.05 Lakhs for first-year hidden costs before airfare, test retakes, and variable setup spending.

Fee Saving Strategies for Indian Students

The most urgent January 2027 saving is protecting the £4,000 (INR 5.17 Lakhs) deposit from avoidable transfer charges.

• Use the official hall prices to choose a contract length before comparing private housing.
• Full-time degree-level Student Visa holders can work up to 20 hours weekly during term time.
• Section 80E allows eligible individuals to deduct qualifying education-loan interest from taxable income.
• Compare the £25,320 (INR 32.74 Lakhs) Band 1 rate with the £26,000 (INR 33.62 Lakhs) Finance and Management rate. Use that comparison before shortlisting.
• A Graduate visa application made on or after 1 January 2027 lasts 18 months under the current rule.

Part-time students cannot rely on term-time work because the current Student route rules prohibit employment for part-time study.

Section 80E covers interest paid on eligible higher-education loans for the initial assessment year and seven succeeding assessment years. It does not deduct principal repayments.

Is SOAS University of London Worth the Cost for Indian Students

SOAS’s MSc Global Development costs INR 0.63 Crore to INR 0.74 Crore. Its QS subject rank is 2 for Development Studies.

The Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings by Subject 2026 place SOAS second in Development Studies. The ranking supports subject positioning, but it does not guarantee employment or repayment capacity.

Discover Uni reports typical earnings of £25,500 (INR 32.98 Lakhs) after 15 months. This covers a broader SOAS Sociology, social policy and anthropology group. The figure is not specific to MSc Global Development.

That broader annual figure equals about INR 2.75 Lakhs monthly before tax. An education loan of INR 50 Lakhs has an EMI of INR 65,000 to INR 70,000 monthly. The estimate uses 10 years and 10.5% interest.

The current Graduate visa rule gives 18 months for applications made on or after 1 January 2027. Salary, rent, and visa status can therefore change the repayment timeline.

Source: QS subject rankings, Discover Uni earnings data, and GOV.UK Graduate visa guidance.

Next action: Review SOAS subject rankings before comparing the total cost.