Has anyone managed to secure funding for postgrad studies?

Juanalacubana
Juanalacubana Online Community Member Posts: 3 Listener
edited November 2021 in Education and skills
Hello all, has anyone managed to secure funding for postgrad studies? I'm not eligible for a student loan (age discrimination!) and need to fund my MA.

Comments

  • Ross_Alumni
    Ross_Alumni Scope alumni Posts: 7,611 Championing
    Hello @Juanalacubana

    Welcome to the community.

    I'm sorry to hear that you are having trouble with securing your funding, that must be very frustrating for you.

    I am unsure of what to advise in your current situation, however I have moved your query over to our education category so I hope that others will be able to provide suggestions :) 
  • Juanalacubana
    Juanalacubana Online Community Member Posts: 3 Listener
    Thanks for that. I don't particularly want advice, more interested in hearing people's success stories to find out which charities etc are worth applying to.
  • L_Volunteer
    L_Volunteer Community Volunteer Adviser, Scope Member Posts: 7,922 Championing
    edited November 2021
    Hello @Juanalacubana

    Thanks for reaching out to us. Assuming you have already contacted Student Finance, the next best recommendation I have for you is Crowdfunding. The most common type is GoFundMe but this is certainly not the only type. For more information about this, please see https://www.prospects.ac.uk/postgraduate-study/funding-postgraduate-study. It might also be worth checking to see if the university you are hoping to study at provides scholarships, bursaries, and grants  :D
  • Juanalacubana
    Juanalacubana Online Community Member Posts: 3 Listener
    I am not looking for advice or suggestions thank you.
  • Alex_Alumni
    Alex_Alumni Scope alumni Posts: 7,538 Championing
    edited November 2021
    Hi @Juanalacubana, when I studied my MA I was able to get a specific bursary from the college "based on individual need", because I was able to evidence the extra costs of being a disabled student, and working part-time during my studies. Essentially the majority of my earnings were going towards course costs at the time. 

    The bursary itself was funded by the college (it's charitable foundation) and didn't come from a charity outside of that. It covered part of the cost for 1 year, so I had to reapply for year 2.

    Can you tell us what you're hoping to study? Sometimes there are specific grants for certain subjects. You can even get grants if you live in certain areas, are a certain age or gender. Knowing what course you want to do is the first point to research possible funding.
  • L_Volunteer
    L_Volunteer Community Volunteer Adviser, Scope Member Posts: 7,922 Championing
    Hi @Juanalacubana

    No worries at all. Hopefully, you will find @Alex_Scope's response really useful for a personal story! In terms of myself, I was fortunate enough to access Student Finance England postgraduate funding but it did not cover the full tuition fees. To cover the full tuition fees, I received a scholarship for academic excellence based on my previous grades. I hope you find some comfort in our responses  :D