Sanctuary scholarships

What are sanctuary scholarships?

Sanctuary scholarships are a financial support package for students who may have difficulty accessing home fees due to their immigration status. They are for any students living in the UK (however, priority is given to individuals living in the Plymouth area). Each Faculty offers one scholarship per year, meaning there are three scholarships available annually. Each scholarship includes:

• a full fee-waiver for the entirety of the undergraduate course, 
• £1000 per year toward study costs (for the first three years),
• a fully-funded pre-sessional English course (to ensure scholars meet IELTS 6.0 requirements).

Who can apply?

To be eligible for the Sanctuary Scholarship you must fall into one of the following immigration status groups:

• asylum seeker – a person who has made a claim in the UK for refugee status;
• refugee status OR humanitarian protection without access to home fees and student finance;
• a person who has limited leave to remain (formerly discretionary leave to remain) this could include, for example, unaccompanied asylum seeking children who have reached majority age;
• the dependants of any of the above status groups in recognition that they are also from asylum-seeking or refugee backgrounds.

Any applicant residing in the UK can apply, however the University of Plymouth will give priority to applicants already residing in the Plymouth area.

Which course can I do?

Sanctuary scholarships are available on full-time undergraduate courses with the following exclusions:

• Medicine and Dentistry courses (unless you are already enrolled on a foundation year)
• any courses which include paid work placements/right to work checks
• any courses which require overseas placements.

If the course you choose includes an optional work placement then you can still do this course as long as you are not paid for your placement (if 'right to work' checks need to be completed). If the optional placement is paid then you can still complete the course but cannot take part in the placement and this will not bear any impact on your overall grade.

Courses that are longer than three years (including a foundation course) will have fees waived, but the living bursary is only available for the first three years of study. All scholars will have access to other forms of financial support provided by the University the same as all other undergraduate students whether they are in recipient of the living bursary (for the first three years) or not (after three years).

What about previous qualifications?

Applicants must prove their competency to study on their selected course. This will not require proof of academic qualifications from their home country but will be assessed through the application process.

All successful applicants will be required to sit a 6–8 week pre-sessional English course at the University’s English Language Centre. There will be no cost for this course, however, it is a mandatory requirement of the scholarship.