The well-known British University of Cambridge has ended the practice of applying for admissions on paper - for the first time, overseas applicants and those applying for a music scholarship can now apply online.

The Cambridge Online Preliminary Application (COPA) has been launched as part of the University’s commitment to a user-friendly application process and its introduction means that all undergraduate applications can now be made online, a university release said.

The online application system, COPA, replaces the Cambridge Overseas Application Form (COAF), and the Choral and Organ Award Application Form.

"Whilst there's something to be said about the ritualistic apprehension of trying to fill in a crisp blue form in your best handwriting - and trying not to smudge, crease or fill it in incorrectly - online applications allow for easy editing; painless, receipted submission and improved legibility," a university spokesperson said.

The COPA enables the collegiate university to collect additional details to those captured by the Universities and Colleges Application Service (UCAS) application for applicants studying outside the EU, and those who would like to be considered for an organ or choral scholarship, the release said.

This includes information such as passport number and whether an overseas interview is requested.

In the case of those applying for a Choral Award and/or Organ Scholarship, the COPA allows information about vocal range and musical experience to be collected.

The COPA will bring a number of benefits, including a more streamlined process for applicants and no worries about forms getting held up or lost in the post. It will also lead to greater accuracy in data entry as the need for manual entry of information on paper forms into the University's systems is eliminated.

The only paper forms that now remain are the additional application form for the Graduate Course in Medicine and the form relating to the Cambridge Special Access Scheme, through which applicants whose education has been disrupted or who face particular personal hurdles can provide additional information setting their academic results in context, the release said.