Gateway To Work Experience Bursary scheme

The Gateway To Work Experience Bursary is open exclusively to Birmingham Scholars that are under-graduate, home students and meet one of the following criteria:

• In receipt of a P2B (Pathways to Birmingham) or A2B (Access to Birmingham) offer
• A care leaver or care experienced
• Registered as disabled / in receipt of Disability Student Allowance
• Of black or Asian ethnicity*

*Applications are particularly encouraged from students of Asian Bangladesh, Asian Pakistan, Black Caribbean and Black African backgrounds who are underrepresented on UoB’s internship programme and bursary scheme.

We encourage students who are not certain about their Birmingham Scholar status to get in touch via bhamscholar@contacts.bham.ac.uk for verification.

If you do not meet any of the above criteria we would recommend reviewing our ‘Alternative sources of funding’ webpage and the Undergraduate Funding Database to explore other funding options that may support you.

The Bursary is designed to support students in covering the costs associated with unpaid or low-paid work experience, they are not designed to be a wage substitute. Eligible students can apply for up to a maximum of £2500. The amount you apply for will depend on the individual circumstances of your proposed work experience up to the maximum amount. In the past bursaries have supported in covering expenses including:

• Accommodation
• Travel
• Living costs
• Utilities bills
• Insurance
• Childcare
• Disability support services

We have compiled a webpage to support you in understanding what types of work experience you can use the bursary towards. Please note the Bursary cannot be used to support work experience or internships considered to be in conflict with the principles or policies of the University or the student’s charter. More information on these can be found at:

• Student’s charter 
• University charter and statutes 

The Gateway To Work Experience Bursary is open all year round and will close once all funding has been allocated.

To apply for the Bursary students will be required to submit one application form which primarily asks for the following:

• Your personal details (e.g. name, ID number, email address, etc)
• Your work experience opportunity details (e.g. organisation name, location, etc)
• Summary of your work experience opportunity (max 50 words)
• An application question (max 400 words): How will the proposed work experience contribute towards your personal and professional development, as well as your future career aspirations? 
• A budget outlining how much funding you will require
  • As part of this budget it is vital that applicants undertake some research into the costs included to support in justifying the amount being requested

Please note that if you require £100 or less from the bursary, you will not need to answer the application question highlighted above in your form.

To support you with answering the application question to the best of your ability please find some guidance below:

Question title: How will the proposed work experience contribute towards your personal and professional development, as well as your future career aspirations? 

You are encouraged to identify the types of skills you will develop and how the experience will help you achieve your career goals. If you do not have a specific career goal at present, how will your work experience help you to develop your skills and employability? How will this internship build on any previous work experience?

If you have undertaken work experience in the past, tell us how this opportunity will enable you to develop different and additional skills and experiences. If you have received a work experience bursary previously, please state how this opportunity is different and builds upon any previous skills & experience. Please include specific and detailed examples to reinforce your answers

Application support

Careers Network hosts a wide range of resources to support with answering application form questions, as well as other stages of the recruitment process. We would strongly encourage you to explore these resources prior to submitting your application and if you would like your answers reviewing you can either email us or book an application advice appointment with an adviser.  You can find all our recruitment resources on the Careers Network website.

• Apply here

The Gateway To Work Experience Bursary is open all year round and will close once all funding has been allocated.

Once your application has been received, it will be reviewed by the Work Experience Team in Careers Network. We will aim to respond within 4 weeks after your application has been submitted. The quality of your application and the information that you provide is used to determine if you would receive an award.

If you are awarded a bursary you will be sent a form to complete to provide us with your bank details to enable us to process your payment. You will also be required to complete the following:

• A form to be completed before your work experience which will allow you to capture your skills, knowledge and confidence levels prior to beginning your experience.
• A Work Experience evaluation form which will support you in reflecting on your work experience and articulating skills and strengths to incorporate in future job applications.

Undertaking work experience can gain you points on the Personal Skills Award (PSA). Doing work experience and securing this Bursary will gain you even more points.

If you are successful in receiving a bursary, you will be automatically enrolled for the bursary to be added to your enhanced transcript. If you would like to opt-out please email the team on the email address below.

If you have any queries about any of the above, you can contact workexperience@contacts.bham.ac.uk.

If your internship is overseas, you must consult the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website (www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice) and read the appropriate foreign travel advice and safety and security advice for your destination. In particular, you must consult the guidance in relation to COVID-19 and the location of your proposed work experience, as well as take into consideration the below points:

Consider risk factors such as your health, safety and wellbeing, the eventuality of having to self-isolate whilst on your trip or upon your return and the possibility of becoming ill whilst you are abroad.

Research the support available pertaining to your health, safety and wellbeing from your host organisation.

Download the GlobalRiskManager app for travel advice, security information and to receive alerts for any incidents occurring in your destination country or region. You need to have registered on the Risk Monitor Traveller website before logging into the app. Alerts can be configured by country, proximity, severity and/or category to ensure that you receive the alerts that you need. Please find more pre-travel information and how to download the app on our insurer's pre travel advice pages.

The University reserves the right not to fund any student it deems is travelling to an unsafe destination. In the event of safety and/or security concerns arising after the initial bursary offer has been made, the University reserves the right to revoke its offer of bursary funding which has not been spent or which can be recuperated via refunds or insurance claims.

If you have any queries or concerns, please email the team at workexperience@contacts.bham.ac.uk.

Gateway To Work Experience Bursary applicants may also be eligible to apply for funding via University of Birmingham’s Turing Scheme, which provides funding for international opportunities in education and training across the world. It can also be used toward international internships you have sourced yourself (including experiences organised by a third-party organisation). If you have any queries regarding the Turing Scheme please contact turingscheme@contacts.bham.ac.uk.