FAQ’s.
Students:
Why do some students study in Africa and some in the UK
It’s best to educate people in their home communities where possible, in order to keep the investment in knowledge and skills where it is needed. However there are courses and expertise which aren’t currently available in southern Africa, and by educating people in the UK we can transfer skills as the students return. Scholarships for study in the United Kingdom are awarded for degrees that are either not available in southern African universities or not available at the required level, for example MBAs will not be considered where similar programmes are on offer in southern Africa.
Why do you only supply postgraduate scholarships
Committed to the development of the region's human resources, we aim to give southern Africans the opportunities they need to realise their potential. Our history means that we have developed an infrastructure and expertise related to postgraduate study. We are a small organisation, and we can make the most impact by doing what we do best. We are also one of the biggest providers of scholarships of this kind in the UK. Our impact has been recognised by leaders from Southern Africa as crucial to the development of the region.
"Young people are desperately seeking to equip themselves to play their part in building the future democratic, non-racial South Africa. The Trust is making a crucial contribution which is restricted only by lack of funds. The Trust is an organisation that strove in the past to provide education and a better life for those who stood up to oppression. Now it continues to work for democracy by helping South Africans to get an education that will realise their full potential to build better lives for all South Africans."
Nelson Mandela
Do you cover all a students costs?
Both partial grants and full scholarships are awarded annually. Full scholarships provide maintenance and tuition fees.
How much does it cost to provide a scholarship?
Costs vary mainly depending on the location of the scholarship, and the tuition fees. In southern Africa a typical scholarship will be funded at around £2,000. In the UK costs are much higher, and it can cost up to £20,000 to fully fund a student here. However, as a number of our scholarships are jointly funded by the FCO and universities such as Leeds, we only pay a third of those costs in many cases.
Organisational:
Where does your money come from?
We work in partnership with the FCO and Universities, which provide part funding for some of the scholarships. Other contributors include the sponsors of some of the scholarship schemes, such as Unilever and Deloitte who fund the Nelson Mandela scholarship programme, some Trusts and wealthy individuals who support other schemes such as the James Learmoth Fund, but a large chunk of our general income, without which we couldn’t survive, is from individual supporters who give standing orders and cash gifts.
Why are you based in the UK?
We were founded here in the UK, and in the early years our support was related to aiding southern Africans who had to leave their countries due to apartheid. As apartheid crumbled we were glad to place a foothold in South Africa from where we can now use our experience and contacts to develop education within the region, as well as outside, where relevant.
Why do you only work in the 10 countries in southern Africa?
After the apartheid system fell, the effects on the economic development of the whole region were impacted. Our impact is now most needed on a regional level, whereas before we focused on the particular challenges of apartheid. These countries have organised themselves into a regional economic block, called the South African Development Community, and it follows that we use that to guide our input.
