Scholarships

Unless you have savings or generous parents, you will probably have to rely on a student loan as your main source of financial support. Winning a scholarship can be an effortless way of boosting your income. Though the competition for all of the following scholarships is high it is definitely worth applying.

RUK Scholarships

If you are a student applying from England, Wales or Northern Ireland you may be entitled to financial support through our Access and Merit scholarships below.

The University of Aberdeen is committed to attracting the very best students, regardless of financial circumstances, which is why we offer a large number of scholarships to undergraduate students. These are designed to provide assistance to help students support themselves during their time at university and also aim to reward academic excellence.

Our Scholarships, for those classified as Rest of UK (RUK) Fees, are available based on two criteria “Access” and “Merit”.  Scholarships based on “Access” are there to support those who may otherwise struggle to meet the cost of studies while “Merit” scholarships are designed for those who have shown considerable academic potential in their A Level results.  Students meeting the criteria of both scholarships are entitled to receive both payments, potentially £6,000 per annum. Students meeting the criteria of both scholarships are entitled to receive both payments, potentially £6,000 per annum.  The scholarships are not available to graduate students undertaking further study.

These scholarships are available in addition to applicable Government loans and grants.The University will use the residual household income figure calculated by the Student Loans Company (SLC) when assessing your bursary entitlement.  Further details will be made available in due course.

Access Scholarship

This is a means tested scholarship with two bands:

Band 1: residual household income of less than £20k: £3k a year for 3 years
Band 2: residual household income of between £20k & £30k: £2k a year for 3 years

Merit Scholarship

Merit scholarship of £3k for 4 years would be awarded to Rest of UK (RUK) entrants with AAB at A level or equivalent (with the exception of Medicine). AAB at A level equivalents can be found by clicking here. 

RUK Scholarships: Frequently Asked Questions

Accommodation Bursaries

All new students from England, Wales and Northern Ireland entering in September 2013 are entitled to £2,000 in part payment of their accommodation fees for their first year of study at Aberdeen.  This will be credited to your university account. If you are not staying in University accommodation then a payment of £2,000 will be paid to you to pay your accommodation provider.

Undergraduate Entrance Scholarships

As we recognise that being a student can be costly, we have scholarships for every year of undergraduate study for the length of your degree. Awards are split between merit awards, for students with exceptional academic qualifications, and access awards, for students who might find it difficult to enter higher education without financial support.

All UK-based applicants for a full-time undergraduate degree at the University can apply. More information on our Entrance Scholarships is available.

We also operate a number of scholarships in the following areas:

Music Scholarships

There are several awards made each year to outstanding musicians, including organ, choral or instrumental scholarships. For further information on any of these, please click here

Derek Ogston Music Scholarship

Students commencing a BMus full-time degree at the University of Aberdeen in September 2013 are eligible to apply for the Derek Ogston Scholarship. The scholarship is valued at £1,000 per annum.

Aberdeen Future Fund Sports Bursary Scheme

The Alumni Sports Bursary Scheme runs on an annual basis and exists to assist talented individuals to maintain their high sporting standards while in full-time study, supporting up to 20 Scholars competing at or close to National level per year. For more information please visit Sport and Recreation Services.

Charles Sutherland Scholarship for Agriculture, Engineering and Economics

Students are invited to apply for the Charles Sutherland Scholarship. For an application form please contact the School of Biological Sciences.

Jim Duncan Scholarship

The Jim Duncan scholarships are open to anyone who has decided to go to University to undertake an undergraduate degree after having had a break in their education, or who are resuming their undergraduate studies at the University after an interruption, and require financial assistance.

The scholarships shall initially be awarded for a two year period of the undergraduate course in order to give security to the scholars awarded.  Thereafter, the scholar may apply to have the scholarship renewed on an annual basis. The scholarships will be awarded on the basis of financial need and hardship, and academic potential. Applications from medical students would be particularly welcome.

The two scholarships are valued at £1,500 each per annum. The scholarships will be awarded in time for the academic year 2013/14, which begins at the end of September. Conditions apply and full information can be found in the Application Form and Guidelines detailed below.The closing date is 22 April 2013.

Funding Database

For the fastest way to look for sources of funding search our Funding Database.