The EmbRACE Award

The University of Leicester, courtesy of the generous support of Race Forward, a CIC founded by a 2020 Leicester Law graduate, are providing an award to support applicants with Black African or Caribbean heritage from socio-economically challenged backgrounds.

Applicants must be ordinarily resident in the UK and commencing a full-time undergraduate degree at the University of Leicester in September 2024

Award

The embRACE Award will provide one successful applicant with an award of £2,000 per year during a three-year degree course (£6,000 overall). One embRACE Award is available for applicants commencing study in September 2024.

The award is intended to support a successful applicant from a socio-economically challenged background. To this end, priority will be given to applicants who have verified household income of £25,000 or less, as indicated by information from the Student Loans Company or alternative evidence produce upon request.

Applicants must consent to use of information from the Student Loans Company or alternative evidence to confirm their eligibility for the award; without this consent, their application cannot be progressed.

Payments of the award will be made annually in February each academic year.

Eligibility

Applicants must satisfy the following criteria to be considered for the embRACE Award:

1. Applicants must identify as belonging to one of the following categories of ethnicity:
   • Black African
   • Black Caribbean
   • Any other Black, Black British or Caribbean background
   • Mixed or multiple ethnic groups including White and Black African, White and Black Caribbean, or any other mixed or multiple ethnic background that includes Black African, Black Caribbean, Black, Black British or Caribbean background
2. Be in receipt of an offer from the University of Leicester to study your first undergraduate degree course, and start your course in September 2024
3. Be studying full time and campus based
4. Have been assessed for fee status as a 'Home' student.

Please note that the total award of £6,000 will be provided in three annual instalments during the successful applicant’s degree course. Applicants on courses of more than three years may still apply but should be aware that no additional payments will be made during Year 4 and beyond of their course. Similarly, no payments of this award will be made during years when you are away from campus-based study, such as Study Abroad, Year in Industry or other forms of leave; payments of the award will resume when you return. 

A successful applicant who later transfers to a different university will not be expected to return any payments of the embRACE Award they have recieved, but will not receive further payments once they have left the University. Successful applicants who later choose to defer their studies to the following academic year will be considered on a case-by-case basis as to whether they can receive the award during the following year.

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:

• how the award will be beneficial to your studies
• how the award will help you to achieve your academic goals
• how your university education will benefit yourself, your community and/or society in the future?
• 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 award 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 award, please contact the Development and Alumni Relations Team by email at stewardship@leicester.ac.uk.