UK Scholarships tailored to support ethnic diversity in construction

Getting the education to achieve your career aspirations can be expensive, especially in construction, engineering or architecture. University degrees can saddle graduates with huge loan debts to repay. Studying architecture, for example, takes seven years, with five years of university tuition fees.  

Help is at hand, however. There are a variety of scholarship programmes available in the UK that can provide financial support, with some schemes having a particular focus on students from black, Asian and ethnic minority communities. Here are just a few currently open for applications. 

The Black Heart Foundation Scholarship

The Black Heart Foundation’s mission is to improve educational access, quality and outcomes for children from underprivileged backgrounds and those who may struggle to afford the cost of higher education. Its primary goal is to remove the barriers to the aspirations and achievement of young people. The Foundation supports a number of community initiatives that improve children’s educational outcomes, focusing on physical and mental health, well-being, sport and the arts.

The Black Heart Scholarship Programme was launched in 2013. It awards several annual bursaries to qualified candidates to support their educational progress. Applications are open to anyone, regardless of ethnicity.  

• Find out more about the Black Heart Foundation Scholarship   

The Santander Universities Scholars Programme 

Santander Universities is a global programme that has invested over €1.8m in academic initiatives since 2002, delivering 430,000 university scholarships, travel awards and grants. It is part of Santander’s more general commitment to improving educational, entrepreneurship and employment opportunities.  

Amongst its initiatives is the Santander Universities Scholars Programme, which aims to make higher education a more affordable possibility. The programme supports 100 current full-time undergraduates who will graduate in 2025. Each successful candidate will receive £30,000 of funding over three academic years, as well as mentorship, employability training and development. To apply candidates should self-identify as belonging to 1 of 10 under-represented groups.  

• Find out more about the Santander Universities Scholars Programme 

The Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust Scholarship

The Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust Scholarship at De Montfort University in Leicester provides three students annually with support in the first year of their degree courses. Students must be studying Architecture, Journalism, Law or Law and Criminal Justice. The scholarships were established in 2016 in honour of Stephen Lawrence, who was murdered in London in 1993 at the age of 18. Lawrence’s ambition was to be an architect.  

Each of the three scholarships provides 50% off the cost of tuition fees and a £3,500 cash bursary for each academic year. Applications are invited from students from disadvantaged backgrounds.  

• Find out more about the Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust Scholarship 

Scholarships at the University of Westminster

Several scholarships are open to students from a black, Asian or ethnic minority background at the University of Westminster. These may vary between academic years, but currently, they are the Landsec Postgraduate Scholarship, offering £10,000 for a home fee Master’s student with an offer for the Real Estate Development MSc course at the University. The Level-Playing Field Scholarship (Postgraduate) supported by PlayStation Career Pathways Program also offers the same amount of financial support to black, Asian or ethnic minority students in the University’s School of Computer Science and Engineering.  

• Find out more about scholarships at the University of Westminster