Uni to fund scholarships for refugee students

The University of York has announced it will fund three student scholarships for refugees fleeing the crisis in Syria, North Africa and the Middle East.

The scholarships, part of a £500,000 programme to support refugees, will be available to three undergraduate students per year for three years, beginning in 2016.

The students must either be asylum seekers or have been granted leave to stay in the UK while their application is being processed, and will receive a full fee waiver and a maintenance grant.

Along with this, the University is offering scholar rescue status to academics from these areas as part of a scheme to offer fellowships to academics who are threatened in their home countries. Two academics will be joining the university soon.

Professor Koen Lamberts, Vice-Chancellor, said that these initiatives demonstrate “the university’s core values of justice and equality.”

He said: “The University of York will play its part in providing a safe and secure environment for displaced people to study, research and prosper.”

Along with York Minster and the City of York, the University is organising a series of events in the city to raise awareness of the refugee crisis, including a focus day during the 2016 York Festival Of Ideas.

The initiative is part of the Equal Access Campaign taking place across the UK encouraging universities to subsidise places for refugees, organised by Student Action for Refugees.

Alongside the University’s commitments, YUSU and RAG will also be holding events to raise money for the refugee crisis this term, so keep an eye out for how you can help.