Pegasus Scholarship Trust: Incoming Scholarships

Benefits & funding

• Most routes provide six or eight weeks in England, made up of two chambers placements — a third for scholars on the eight-week programme — of two to four consecutive weeks each; the United States route lasts four to six weeks.
• A stipend from the Trust toward accommodation and living costs in London; hosting chambers carry no cost.
• Visa and application fees paid by the Trust for eligible scholars.
• Court programme: the Royal Courts of Justice, the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom and the Old Bailey, each followed by discussion with the judge, plus library tours at the four Inns of Court.
• Regional trips: Parliament House and the Faculty of Advocates in Edinburgh with a trial observation, and the Laganside Courts in Belfast including a meeting with the Lady Chief Justice.
• Inn events during the placement: the Pegasus Trust autumn dinner at the Inner Temple, the Temple Bar reception hosted by the American Inns of Court at Lincoln’s Inn, and the Call to Bar ceremony.
• On the United States route the American Inns of Court adds lodging, usually a shared London flat, and a modest stipend covering meals, the flight and public transport.

Eligibility

• For lawyers already admitted in their own jurisdiction and still early in practice; the Trust’s partner organisation in each country runs the selection, not the Inner Temple.
• Applicants must apply through a partner jurisdiction, but the Trust does not state a nationality requirement. Current application routes cover residents of Australia, Bermuda, Canada, India, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates and the United States; named partners include the American Inns of Court, the Ontario Bar Association, the Crown Law Office in Wellington and The Law Society of Singapore.
• The experience bar is set by each partner. On the United States route applicants must have been bar members for at least two years and no more than seven; the Inner Temple does not publish a single figure covering every route.
• Scholars who are not UK citizens and hold no existing visa need a Temporary Worker – Government Authorised Exchange visa, sponsored by the Bar Council and then applied for through UK Visas and Immigration.
• French applicants go through the separate Paris Bar Exchange rather than this scheme.

Application process

1. 1
   Find the Pegasus partner organisation that recruits in your jurisdiction on the Trust’s international partners page.
2. 2
   Apply to that partner on its own timetable; the Inner Temple runs no shared application form for incoming scholars.
3. 3
   On the United States route, submit a one-page application, a résumé, a narrative explaining your interest in the English legal system and two letters of recommendation, one of them from a Master of the Bench; a selection committee reviews the file and may interview.
4. 4
   Once selected, complete the Bar Council sponsorship form with your eligibility documents to receive a sponsorship letter and code, then apply to UK Visas and Immigration — allow around eight weeks, and note that applications are accepted no earlier than three months before the start date.
5. 5
   Arrive for the chambers placements and the arranged court, Inn and regional programme; afterwards scholars write a short article on the placement and complete a survey.

Program timeline

1. Applications close on the United States route (American Inns of Court)

   Jan 26, 2026

2. United States selections announced

   Late May 2026

3. Chambers placement weeks offered to host chambers

   Late June to late November 2026

4. United States route programme begins

   Sep 30, 2026

5. Edinburgh and Belfast court visits

   First week of November 2026