Financial help with audition fees

Find out if you can apply for an audition or interview fee waiver and travel expense reimbursement.

We want the people we train to reflect the society we live in. We seek those who have raw talent, passion and ability to learn, regardless of their background, education or family income.  

​​​​​We believe this is a fairer system as only those who benefit the most from the process will pay the full fee. Receiving a free audition or interview will not affect the outcome of an application in any way; the panel will not know if an audition fee has been paid or not.

If you are a member of our Pathways Programme, you’ll be entitled to a free first-round audition.

You do not need to apply via UCAS, and instead will apply directly through us. You will have been sent information on how to request a fee waiver through your Pathways Partner organisation or after attending a Pathways event.

If you are unsure if you are eligible or have any questions, please email [email protected].

The Pathways fee waivers are currently the only application fee waivers for first round auditions.

The criteria for a recall fee waiver are. 

You have applied for your first-round audition as a ‘Pathways’ applicant. This will automatically entitle you to a free recall, as well as payment of your UK travel and accommodation costs if appropriate. 

Some applicants may also be eligible for a bursary to help with their travel costs for recall please see below for more information  

Or 

Applicants must; 

  • Be attending a recall audition/interview for the BA, MFA, MA course 

  • Be auditioning in the UK 

  • Be current UK residents  

  • Be from a household whose annual income is less than £43,000  

  • Have attended a UK state school  

In addition, applicants should meet, at least one of the following criteria:  

  • Have a declared disability  

  • Be a care leaver  

  • Be an estranged student (i.e. not supported by a family)  

  • Be from a Global Majority background  

  • Be from a neighbourhood with low participation in Higher Education, as categorised by POLAR4, Quintile 1or 2 (you can find this out here, or we will check this ourselves) 

  • Be from a household with an annual income of under £25,000  

We will need supporting information and documents from all applicants who are applying for a recall fee waiver and/or a travel bursary. 

Travel/Accommodation bursaries 

Help with travel and/or accommodation costs will be for varying amounts, dependent on the distance travelled. You’ll be able to claim for travel and/or accommodation expenses within the UK and up to £100. Travel/accommodation bursaries are only available to applicants auditioning in London. 

Applicants must 

  • Be attending a recall audition/interview for the BA, MFA, MA course 

  • Be auditioning in the UK 

  • Be current UK residents  

  • Be from a household whose annual income is less than £25,000  

  • Have attended a UK state school  

We will also consider applications from applicants who have a family income of below £43,000 and are from a neighbourhood with a low participation in Higher Education, as categorised by POLAR 4, Quintile 1 or 2. 

Applicants who are Care Leavers are eligible for a travel/accommodation bursary. 

Please note that we do not cover the cost of travel for applicants who ordinarily reside in London. LAMDA will only consider travel bursary applications for travel within the UK in standard class. 

Please email [email protected] for more information. 

We will send you further guidance and an application form if you are invited back for a recall audition.  

If you are applying to us through one of our Pathways programme partner organisations such as Open Door, they will advise and help you through the process.