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STUDENT FiNANCES
FINDING A SCHOLARSHIP TO STUDY
ABROAD THE RIGHT WAY.                                                                                                   EVERYONE WANTS A SCHOLARSHIP TO STUDY
ABROAD – THERE’S A LOT OF COMPETITION! BUT
HOW DO YOU ENSURE YOU GO ABOUT SECURING
ONE THE CORRECT WAY? READ OUR GUIDE TO
THE CORRECT QUESTIONS TO ASK A UNIVERSITY,
INCLUDING HOW HOTCOURSES ABROAD CAN
HELP YOU
So you want a scholarship to study overseas and
you discover that the institution you’re interested
in is offering on which meets all your needs (and
which you’re eligible for) – great news!
But what’s your next step? Take a look at our
guide to searching for and securing that life-
changing scholarship...
Searching for a scholarship
Firstly, you need to properly research what options
there are for financial aid which you are eligible
for. Luckily most universities offer some form of
financial aid to students – not all students know
about this and therefore each year many
scholarships go to waste (a huge shame).
Universities offer scholarships for many reasons:
to diversify their student body; to attract students
with high academic potential who might not be
able to afford to study at university level or
overseas; and also simply for the good press and
publicity it brings.
Most universities will publicise these financial aid
opportunities on their website and in their
prospectus. You can read our guide to the various
forms of financial aid available . Remember, you
can download official prospectuses from
universities , in full, directly from us here on
Hotcourses Abroad – find a prospectus for an
institution you’re interested in, download it and
search for a scholarship. You can also click on the
‘Download Prospectus’ button wherever you see it
here on Hotcourses Abroad, like on an institution’s
profile.
You can contact an institution and ask about scholarships they offer by
clicking the 'Contact Institution' button on their profile
If you still can’t see a scholarship or form of
financial aid for you, don’t despair! You should still
ask directly to make sure you’re not missing out.
Plus it’s very beneficial to become known to the
university and specific members of staff in the
admissions or international offices, as they can
help you further later, provided that you
demonstrate that you’re a serious applicant (i.e.
you have the required English language test scores,
you meet the entry requirements, you have other
ways of funding your studies aside from
scholarships etc). You can get in touch with your
questions or queries by clicking on the ‘Contact
Institution’ button wherever you see it on
Hotcourses Abroad.
But how do you ask about scholarships in the right
way?
Asking about scholarships: The proper way
Universities receive enquiries from international
students everyday regarding scholarships –
everyone wants to study abroad, especially at top
institutions. Just like when employers need to
quickly sort good CVs from bad ones when hiring
someone, university admissions staff need to
distinguish between the serious enquiries and the
rest, prioritising those which are likely to result in
an admitted student.
That’s not to say that you can’t ask about
scholarships. Scholarships are there for a reason
and many international students study overseas
with help from these each year – these include
full-scholarship students from disadvantaged
backgrounds as well as those from middle class
families who simply need a little extra financial
help. Universities will appreciate that prospective
students will have questions about these. However
you need to effectively communicate that you are
not enquiring on a whim; that you meet the other
entry requirements; and that in some cases you do
have a back-up plan to finance your studies.
So how do you ensure that your enquiry is
considered seriously? Here are few tips:
Don’t just ask about scholarships
University staff will look for enquiries which are
not just-scholarship driven. They receive a lot of
these from students are missing the other criteria
which they’ll need to study abroad. Plus it’s hard
to form an attachment to or paint a picture of a