Spike in demand for bursaries
MORE than 20 mature students have been awarded bursaries worth a total of £20,000 to study at Scotland’s Rural College this year.
The 24 successful students were selected from an ‘unprecedented’ 84 applications for the ‘Change Your Path’ bursary scheme, which aims to ease the transition for those returning to study as mature students aged 25 or older.
More than half of the successful applications were from students studying Wildlife and Conservation Management, which is offered at HNC, HND, Degree and Postgraduate level.
Other applications for bursaries, which are worth £1000 for full-time students or £500 for part-time students, were from those studying Animal Care, Garden Design, Horticulture, Professional Golf, Management and Veteriwho nary Nursing.
Most of the applicants are studying HNC or HND courses, and the bursary awards were evenly distributed among SRUC campuses in Aberdeen; Barony, in Dumfries and Galloway; Edinburgh; Elmwood, in Fife; Oatridge, in West Lothian; and Glasgow Queen’s Park, as well as distance learning students.
HNC Wildlife and Conservation Management student Samantha Mein, from Gifford,
was awarded a bursary last year, said: “The Change Your Path bursary helped me throughout my course.
“I used it to buy some new walking boots and trousers which were great as we did a lot of physical work outside and I also took them on our study trip to the isle of Rùm.
“I’m really thankful for the extra help as I also managed to get things like new safety gloves and some stationery to help me along the way.”