University News Last updated 01 November 2023
Birmingham City University (BCU) has renewed its partnership with Santander Universities to ensure students are given even more opportunities to access life-changing funding.
The partnership has already provided £223,500 in scholarships and grants to support 242 students at BCU since 2019. Now it is pledging to build on that commitment until 2025 at least.
Professor David Mba, BCU's Vice-Chancellor, said: “The University is passionate about providing transformative opportunities for students from all backgrounds, and this partnership with Santander Universities is hugely valuable in achieving that goal.
“BCU and Santander Universities is a great fit because we share many of the same values. I’m delighted we will continue to work together and I want to thank Santander for their considerable support for, and investment in, our incredibly talented students.”
The funding will help support BCU students in several ways, from paying rent and tuition fees to helping them bring business ideas to reality.
- Two students have been awarded scholarship funding of £10,000 per year to assist in their academic journey, from books and digital equipment to rent and tuition fees.
- A minimum of three business start-ups will receive equity-free seed funding up to a maximum value of £5,000.
- Ten students will each get £1,000 per year to pursue training and personal development.
- And a further 15 students will receive £1,000 to undertake employability experiences.
Matt Hutnell, Director of Santander Universities UK, said: "At Santander Universities, we believe education is today’s solution to a prosperous tomorrow. We’re proud to continue our partnership with Birmingham City University and provide even more opportunities for students, staff and the local community to develop skills to build a brighter future and achieve their future potential.”
BCU student Stephen Cujoe said the Santander scholarship had proved invaluable to him because he had been struggling to pay his rent.
“Mentally and emotionally, the scholarship was a real blessing and I am extremely grateful to have received it,” said the 21-year-old biomedical scientist, who plans to work in the NHS when he completes his degree. “Getting it allowed me to focus on my studies rather than worry about whether I could afford to pay my bills.
“I was living in accommodation quite a distance from university, so I had to wake up very early to be able to walk to campus and get to my classes on time. The scholarship from Santander allowed me to find somewhere to live a little closer and pay the fares for buses and trains. I was also able to buy a laptop and textbooks, which can be quite expensive.”
Fine Art student Danni Barkers is equally indebted to the partnership with Santander Universities.
“The scholarship has allowed me to make the most of my university experience through access to materials, skills and opportunities I wouldn't have had otherwise,” she said.
To mark the continuation of this key partnership, BCU invited representatives from Santander to its iconic STEAMhouse – a fitting venue for a project that has entrepreneurship at its heart.
STEAMhouse is a £70m innovation hub on the edge of BCU’s City Centre campus, built purposely to house university academics, researchers and students alongside local businesses, entrepreneurs and influencers in order to promote collaboration and the sharing of ideas.
In attendance were:
- Professor David Mba, Vice-Chancellor, BCU
- Professor Peter Francis, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic), BCU
- Matt Hutnell, Director, Santander Universities UK
- Dr Brooke Storer-Church, Director of Strategic Academic Engagement, BCU
- Nicholas Davies, Deputy Relationship Director, Santander Universities UK
- Jonathan Powell, UK Partnerships Director, Santander Universities UK