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The University of Exeter’s Independent Student Newspaper
Since 1987
Tuesday 29 October 2013 • Issue 614 • www.exepose.ex.ac.uk • Twitter: @Exepose • www.facebook.com/Exepose
University hands out over £18.5m in scholarships EXCLUSIVE Owen Keating News Editor
• 49.1% overall increase since 2009/10 • 54.9% increase in means-tested bursaries in same period • Over 60% of funds go towards postgraduate research scholarships AN INVESTIGATION by Exeposé has revealed the amount awarded in scholarships by the University has increased by 22.5 per cent since 2011/12. This figure, in excess of £18.5million, has risen from just over £12.4m in 2009/10, an increase of 49.1 per cent. The figures, obtained using the Freedom of Information Act, cover from the start of the academic year 2009/10, while using the first eleven months of the last academic year, 2012/13. £6.2m of the scholarships were handed out to undergraduate students in 2012/13, a 47.8 per cent increase on 2011/12. There has also been a 54.9 per cent increase in means-tested bursaries
Alex Louch, VP Academic Affairs
2012/13 was 87.1 per cent less than what was offered in 2009/10. £33,323 was offered for this form of bursary last year, as opposed to £258,412 in 2009/10. In terms of scholarships for taught postgraduate degrees, the amount being offered in scholarships has steadily decreased in the past few years, with the £1,118,549 being offered in 2012/13 constituting a decrease of 45.8 per cent since 2009/10. As part of this, there has also been a drop of 90.1 per cent in the funds offered as part of academic merit scholarships in this area, as well as a massive increase in the amount of maintenance offered to Home and EU fee-paying postgraduate taught students. The amount paid in maintenance has gone from £150 in 2009/10 to over £100,000 in the last academic year. The University could not be reached for comment. Alex Louch, VP Academic Affairs, said: “I am pleased to see the University investing more in scholarships in line with increasing student numbers. The precise allocation of scholarship funding is affected by complex factors but I am delighted to see that the overall value of awards made has increased strongly this year after a period of modest growth”. Megan Furborough, a third year English Literature student said: “As a recipient of the means-tested bursary, I think that it’s fantastic that the number of people who are receiving this and other scholarships has increased. The cost of living and learning at university is more expensive than ever before, so this monetary aid can go a long way in alleviating some of that pressure.”
and Graduate Research Assistants. The amount of money offered for this in
Additional reporting by Harrison Jones, Online News Editor
since 2009/10; last year, the University handed out over £5.5m worth of means-tested bursaries to undergraduates. Figures also indicate a 19 per cent decrease in academic merit scholarships handed out since 2011/12, with £256,000 being awarded in this way in 2012/13. The biggest portion of the University’s scholarship fund goes towards postgraduate research, with 60.4 per cent of the £18,517,635 awarded going towards postgraduate research projects. Just under £11.2m went towards postgraduate research scholarships in 2012/13, a 15.9 per cent increase since 2011/12. This also represents an 85.4 per cent increase since 2009/10, the first year which the Freedom of Information request covers. The University of Exeter joined the Russell Group in 2012, and the Russell Group website cites Exeter’s abilities to combine “world class research with high student satisfaction”, as well as stating that the Russell Group is “committed to maintaining the very best research”. Also evident is a significant decrease in the amount of money offered in bursaries for Graduate Teaching Assistants
I am pleased to see the University is investing more in scholarships in line with increasing student numbers
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