A new fully funded scholarship has been established at the University of Oxford thanks to a gift from Lifelines International Fund for Education. The scholarship, which forms part of the Academic Futures programme, furthers Oxford’s mission to make graduate study more accessible to talented students from under-represented backgrounds.
Launched in 2020, Academic Futures is a pioneering initiative to improve equality, diversity and inclusion across Oxford’s graduate student community. Its initial focus was increasing the number of UK Black and Mixed Black graduate students, later expanding to support students with experience of the UK care system, as well as those who are refugees or who have lived experience of displacement.
The Oxford-Lifelines Scholarship will support a student in any of these under-represented groups, allowing them to complete a one or two-year master’s course linked to education, mental health or community integration. It will cover the recipient’s course fees and living costs for the duration of their programme, enabling them to pursue their studies without the burden of financial stress.
The recipient will also benefit from an enhanced programme of support coordinated by the Academic Futures team, including welcome sessions, regular social and networking events, and pastoral care to ensure they are able to thrive both academically and personally while at Oxford.
Professor David Gavaghan, Chair of the Oxford University Graduate Access Subcommittee, said: ‘Our graduate access programmes aim to open up Oxford to all graduates who have the potential to benefit from the world-leading learning and research environments that we provide to our students. Funding such as that given by Lifelines will provide the financial support needed to allow these students to thrive here.’
Lifelines International Fund for Education is a UK-based charitable fund that finances and helps scale up the efforts of charities that are fighting social injustice through access to education and employment.
Lifelines CEO Madhavi Vadera said: ‘We are all so excited about this initiative, the collaboration with the University of Oxford, and most importantly offering access to education to students who may not have considered pursuing this path.’
Academic Futures has had a significant impact since launching five years ago. Following the announcement of the first strand of the programme, the University saw an immediate 25% increase in applications from eligible students. In this short film, Academic Futures Scholar Bayo Osobe explains how it helped him turn an aspirational dream into reality.