Gittins Family Charitable Trust Bursary

The Gittins Family Charitable Trust Bursary, also known as the Gittins Bursary, will support students studying specific Nursing and Mechanical Engineering degree courses, who might otherwise find themselves in financial difficulty while studying at the University of Leicester. Applicants must be resident in the UK and commencing a full-time undergraduate degree in September 2024.

It has been made possible to award these bursaries thanks to the generous support of the Gittins Family Charitable Trust.

Award

Successful applicants will receive £1,000 per year for three years (Mechanical Engineering) or four years (Nursing).

If a recipient will be participating in a Year in Industry or Study Abroad year as part of their degree course, they can apply for an additional instalment of £1,000 to support them during the year away from campus. Each application for an additional year of support will be approved and granted on a case-by-case basis.

Three awards each will be provided for Mechanical Engineering and Nursing students this year. The University reserves the right to redistribute this balance based on the number and quality of applications received.

Eligibility

Applicants must satisfy the following criteria to be considered for this bursary:

1. Hold an offer of admission to one of the following full-time undergraduate degree programmes at the University of Leicester, commencing study in September 2024:
   • Mechanical Engineering BEng
   • Mechanical Engineering MEng
   • Nursing with Leadership Dual Registration Mental Health and Adult MSci
   • Nursing with Leadership Dual Registration Mental Health and Child MSci
2. Have been assessed for fee status as a 'Home' student
3. Have a household income below £40,000.

Award criteria

Applicants must give permission for the University to access necessary information to assess if they meet the required household income criterion. If the applicant has requested a student loan and/or maintenance grant through the Student Loans Company, household income information will be obtained from them. If the applicant has not requested a student loan and/or maintenance grant, they must produce alternative evidence of household income upon request. Failure to provide permission and/or necessary evidence of household income will mean an application cannot be progressed.

Priority will be given to applicants whose household income is verified as £25,000 or less. Consideration will be given for applicants with a household income between £25,000 and £40,000 who are in challenging financial circumstances; for example, for an applicant with more than one immediate family member at university, as demonstrated in their personal statement.

Preference will be given to male applicants with an offer of admission to Nursing and female applicants with an offer of admission to Mechanical Engineering, where appropriate.

How to apply

Applications for this academic year have now closed. Starting from late Spring 2025, we will begin accepting applications from applicants who are commencing study at Leicester from September 2025.

Please check your eligibility before making an application. Awards may be withdrawn if we later become aware that successful applicants have not met eligibility criteria or have provided false information. 

As part of your application, you will be asked to provide a personal statement of between 600 and 900 words, which should explain:

• i) how the Gittins Bursary will be beneficial to your studies
• ii) how the Gittins Bursary will help you to achieve your academic goals
• iii) how your university education will benefit yourself, your community and/or society in the future
• iv) what achievements, academic and/or personal, are you most proud of. There is no right or wrong answer; we are just keen to hear your own story.

The deadline for applying for this bursary is 11.59pm BST on Monday 30 September 2024. Applications made after this date will not be considered.

Notification

All applicants will be notified of the outcome of their applications by mid-November 2024.

Questions

If you have any questions about this bursary, please contact the Development and Alumni Relations Team by email at stewardship@leicester.ac.uk.