Supporting Students on their Year Abroad: International Study Fund

In order to study a language at Selwyn, students must undertake a year abroad. As well as being a compulsory part of the degree, the experience is extremely valuable, not only for the experience of full language immersion, but also for valuable personal and professional development. Many students require additional financial support whilst on their year abroad, in order to meet the costs of living in cities such as Paris and Barcelona, or to undertake work placements or internships which are not well paid.

The UK’s departure from the EU means that we have lost access to the Erasmus+ programme, which provided valuable support for a majority of our students during their year abroad. The University receives only a limited allocation from the replacement Turing Scheme and that funding is targeted to support students who are in greatest financial need. The University recognises, however, that a wider group of students is left with a significant shortfall in funding for year abroad activities.

We therefore hope to offer our languages students extra security by providing funding from Selwyn, to support them in their year abroad. The benefits of a year abroad include experience of other cultures, greater linguistic fluency, enhanced employability and an openness to international opportunities. You are able to support our languages students by donating to the International Study Fund. This will enable all of our students at Selwyn to make the most of their year abroad without worrying about financial pressures, by fully immersing themselves in the local culture and enjoying their placements. It will also ensure that students can undertake the personal or academic pathway of interest to them without worrying about incurring additional costs.