• Undergraduate students may apply for all levels of funding (£250, £1,000, £2000-£5000 or £6,000)
• Integrated masters students may apply for all levels of funding (£250, £1,000, £2000-£5000 or £6,000*)
• Postgraduate taught students and Postgraduate research students may apply for three levels of funding (£250, £1,000, and £2000-£5000**) 
• Students on York Online courses are not eligible fto apply for a York Futures Scholarship
• All £250, £1,000 and £2000-£5000 scholarships should be used during the same academic year (or summer vacation), while £6,000 scholarships are to be used the following academic year.
• Students cannot receive funding during a leave of absence
• Students cannot apply after completing their studies at the University of York.

* Only integrated masters students taking up an eligible activity (such as a year abroad) may apply for £6,000.

** Postgraduate students should seek approval from their academic supervisor before applying for £2000-£5000 scholarships, as summer international opportunities fall within teaching time for postgraduate students. Postgraduate Researchers should also note that the £2000-£5000 level and all YFS levels are not designed to support costs associated with your core research as part of your degree.

The York Futures Scholarships aim to support students to access experiences they would otherwise not be able to afford. Applications from students who demonstrate financial need and meet one or more of the following criteria are prioritised:

• care leavers and care experienced students
• estranged students
• students who have unpaid caring responsibilities for a parent, family member, partner or friend
• students with children
• students seeking asylum in the UK
• students with refugee status in the UK
• home students who were eligible for free school meals in high school and/or sixth form/college (does not include universal infant free school meals)
• students whose student finance maintenance loan allowance indicates household income less than £35,000 
• UK home students whose home postcode falls within IMD (Index of Multiple Deprivation) 1 or 2 areas
• students who are the first generation in their family to go to higher education, (including if a parent went to university as a mature student)

Once students meeting one or more of the priority criteria above have been considered, then any remaining funding is prioritised for students meeting one or more of the following widening participation criteria. These criteria reflect groups underrepresented in higher education who may face disadvantage when accessing professional development opportunities:

• students from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds (including students from Gypsy, Roma or Traveller backgrounds).
• mature students (those aged 21 or over on the first day of undergraduate study at York).
• students with disabilities and long term health conditions - including students with a diagnosed neurodiverse condition, such as Autistic Spectrum Condition, ADHD, ADD, Dyslexia, Dyscalculia and Dyspraxia. 
• students with a gender identity different to that assigned at birth 
• students who identify as LGBTQ+
• students from military families

Applications are competitive, and awards are allocated on evidence of financial need, the eligibility criteria as detailed above, and on assessed application form questions.

York Futures Scholarships Student Privacy Statement (MS Word , 10kb)

If you have no fixed ideas on your future plans yet but are keen to explore some options then apply to a £250 award to help access smaller scale opportunities linked to your career development. Some examples of how you could use the money include: to cover the travel costs of visiting an employer or relevant organisation, taking up work shadowing opportunities or even purchasing business attire for an interview.

You don’t need to have a specific career plan in mind to apply, but you should be able to demonstrate how completing the activity/activities which you plan to use the York Futures Scholarship for, will support you in your personal and/or professional development and employability. 

You can view the application questions for the £250 level below.

Got a specific career development opportunity in mind? Some examples of how this level of funding may be used are: to support travel costs, setup costs for a year long opportunity, pay up-front living expenses, learn a language or support you in accessing work experience or volunteering. This level of scholarship can also be used to cover costs associated with training courses, conferences and remote or virtual internships.

Opportunities should be about participation in activities that develop you personally or professionally. You will need to use your application to show how the opportunity you want the funding to support will genuinely enhance your career ambitions and/or your employability. 

You may apply for funding to support an opportunity you have identified but have not yet secured, provided that you make this clear in your application.

You can view the application questions for the £1,000 level below.

This funding bracket is intended to support international mobility, and will only be awarded to students undertaking international internships or summer abroad programmes. Applications for other activities will not be considered. 

Please note that level of funding is not for students taking part in year long credit bearing opportunities such as a Year in Industry, Year Abroad, Year in Enterprise or Placement Year. Students taking part in these programmes should apply for the £6000 level of funding, or the £1000 level if set up costs are what’s required.

We recognise that international experiences vary greatly in cost, and so this funding level has been changed to be between £2,000 and £5,000 dependent on need. Applicants must make clear when applying the level of funding required to the nearest £500 between £2,000 and £5,000 selecting one amount from: £2,000, £2,500, £3,000, £3,500, £4,000, £4,500 or £5,000. Please note that students can only apply for one level of funding per application cycle, and no alternative offers will be made.

Applications should relate to activities which show significant ambition above and beyond the scope of your core academic study. You will need to use your application to show how the international opportunity you want the funding to support will genuinely enhance your career ambitions and/or your employability.

You don’t need to have fully secured the opportunity to apply but a clear commitment to a specific activity is required. Should you subsequently fail to secure the opportunity applied for then you will not be able to receive the funding.

You can view the application questions for the £2,000-£5,000 level below.

Thinking of taking a year away from York on an academically accredited option? This level of funding can only be used by students undertaking activities organised by the University of York which carry academic credit, including Year Abroad (study and/or work option), Year in Industry (paid and unpaid), Placement Year (paid and unpaid) and Year in Enterprise. Applications for other activities will not be considered.

Please note that successful applicants for this level of award will receive a decision in principle in the academic year 2023/24. No funding will be released until we have received full confirmation that the opportunity is going ahead. The date of this final approval will depend on factors specific to the opportunity. 

You don’t need to have fully secured the opportunity to apply for the funding but its final payment is dependent on gaining a formal contract of engagement for your year away, which is approved by the University.

You will need to use your application to show how the year long opportunity you want the funding to support will genuinely enhance your career ambitions, professional development and/or employability.

If you are preparing for a year-long opportunity, and are applying for a scholarship to cover up-front costs (such as travel or living expenses in the first month), you should apply for a £1,000 scholarship to cover these costs.

You can view the application questions for the £6,000 level below.

Students should clearly demonstrate how the funding could support access to career-related activity which would otherwise be unattainable, as well as how completing the opportunity/opportunities will support their personal and/or professional development.

The higher the level of award applied for, the more detailed plans will need to be. It is worth noting that students can apply for a lower level award initially to help gain the insights they may need to later apply for a higher level of funding. 

It is important to consider the application questions carefully when applying and provide sufficient detail. Links to the application questions are included below.

When applying please consider what the assessors are looking for:

• For a £250 award the applicant will need to show they have thought about personal and professional development opportunities and now want to explore future career options. Detailed plans on this process are not required

For the £1,000, £2,000 - £5,000 and £6,000 awards, the assessors are looking for:

• a clear link between the opportunity that you are seeking to take and your longer term career plans/employability.
• an indication that the award is needed to take full advantage of the opportunity; for example, that it is located in a city other than York or your hometown.
• evidence that the experience offers potential learning for you.
• where the experience is wholly unpaid this should be in line with what might reasonably be expected of the organisation or industry involved; for example, it is a charity or voluntary organisation

Please note: at all levels, the York Futures Scholarships are not designed to support the furtherance of academic work, such as dissertation research, unless you can make a clear case that supports your longer term career ambitions.

The application form asks for the following information:

• Student details and personal characteristics (see eligibility criteria section)
• Application questions on your reasons for applying for a York Futures Scholarship, details of your plans for the funding and how this will support your personal/professional development. Application questions are linked for each level of funding below.

Personal characteristics data will be used as part of the application process, but will not be shared with the awarding panel members.

Application questions 2023/24

We encourage all applicants to read the questions carefully and provide as much detail as possible. The planned application questions for each level of YFS are listed below. Please note that these may be subject to change, so applicants should ensure they read the application form clearly when it goes live. 

• York Futures Scholarships questions £250 level (MS Word , 16kb)
• York Futures Scholarships questions £1,000 level (MS Word , 17kb)
• York Futures Scholarships questions £2,000-£5,000 level (MS Word , 18kb)
• York Futures Scholarships questions £6,000 level (MS Word , 19kb)

Check out the bursaries and scholarships webpage to find out what other financial support is available at the University of York.