Student opportunities funds raises to all-time high
The Student Opportunities Fund (SOF), the College's main source of financial support for prospective Imperial students, has raised a grand total of £130,000 from donations made by Imperial alumni this academic year. Funds were raised through a College run telethon manned by over 70 Imperial students during the course of the year. As a former caller, I spent many evenings during the autumn term working with the SOF team contacting alumni and asking that they part with their hard-earned cash so that future Imperial students could benefit from the education that they had been so privileged to receive. Whilst sometimes difficult to get hold of, due to their high flying lifestyles no doubt, the majority of past students were surprisingly eager to learn more about the fund and many gave very generously.
The South Kensington campusbased fund-raising campaign employs students from all departments and callers are matched, where possible, to alumni within their field. The alumni initially receive a letter with information about the fund, which informs them that they will receive a call from an existing Imperial College student and gives them the choice of opting out before the phone call. Every penny raised goes towards the fund, which supports successful applicants for the duration of their degree, currently providing £5,000 per year for undergraduate students and £10,000 per year for postgraduate students. Scholarships are aimed at prospective students that demonstrate both outstanding academic achievement and serious financial need.
Since its establishment in 2003, the Student Opportunities Fund has awarded 22 scholarships to students and during the current academic year the fund has supported ten undergraduates, four masters students and three students conducting PhD research. Next year the fund will offer even more scholarships to undergraduates in the form of Study Support Bursaries to part finance students from lower income families who are unable to cover rising tuition fees or manage the cost of studying in London. This new initiative, which offers students bursaries of up to £4,000 depending on financial income and academic merit, has been drawn up in response to the growing concern that the best students may be deterred from applying to Imperial College by the ever increasing university top-up fees. Next year's £3,000 top-up fees have already caused a 4 per cent decline in university applications and if Imperial College Rector, Sir Richard Sykes, is correct in his estimations future fees may reach in excess of £10,000. As such, scholarship funds such as the Student Opportunities Fund are of increasing importance to ensure that prospective students who are unable to financially support themselves will not be discriminated against.
