Undergraduate Bursary Appeal 2020
The Emily Davis Bursary Fund II is our fundraising priority for the next academic year. We rely on this endowment to ensure that no young person is deterred from applying to Girton, or from taking up their place, by financial need or hardship.
Will you give a gift today, to help a student from a low-income family get the financial support they need this year?
“For students like me, receiving an undergraduate bursary allows us to put unnecessary financial worries aside and really enables us to focus on our studies and on getting the most out of our time at Girton”
George Cowperthwaite, Mathematics Graduate 2020 and Undergraduate Bursary recipient.
Former JCR President 2019 and MCR President 2020
Girton was founded for inclusion in the knowledge that no institution can claim to be truly excellent if it is not properly diverse. Widening participation has been, and remains, a core strategic aim. We search widely and admit students entirely on merit – irrespective of background or financial means – and do all that we can to help them thrive.
Today, excellence in diversity is still at the forefront of Girton’s educational mission. Girton is committed to ensure that every promising scholar is supported to realise their potential. Girton supports applicants from all different backgrounds and family circumstances as such diversity enrichens the scholastic and social environment at college.
Over the course of this year, heightened by the Coronavirus pandemic, more students than ever will find themselves struggling to make ends meet: summer placements have fallen through, costs have risen, whole families have experienced growing financial pressure. The need for bursary and hardship funds will undoubtedly rise.
At the same time the investment income generated by Girton’s endowment capital is stretched. Our priority as we near the end of A Great Campaign must be to secure the extra funds we need to fully meet our commitment to the growing number of students who depend on the bursary scheme.
We can only do that with the generosity and compassion of our former students and friends. With your help and despite pandemic constraints, we would like to provide a safety net so that our students will be able to live and study this year without financial worries.
Please consider making a gift below and help students from disadvantaged backgrounds to take up their place at Girton College. Thank you.
“The tremendous thing about a gift to the endowment capital is that your contribution will lend valuable support to Girton’s talented undergraduates not just now, but for generations still to come”
Professor Susan J. Smith. Mistress of Girton College
Why an undergraduate bursary makes a difference…
“The bursaries I have received from Girton have been really helpful in keeping me focused on my degree and not worrying as much about financial stress. They have given me the reassurance that I will be able to pay for my living costs for the whole academic year”
Lara Parizotto. Current Undergraduate Student, Human, Social and Political Sciences
“The bursary has meant that I haven’t had to use money as an excuse for not thriving and participating in college life. I have been able to partake in societies such as Theatre and Dance, which I really enjoy, and pay for all the equipment I need for my studies”
Artemas Nicoll Cowley, Current Undergraduate Student, Geography
Girton stories
Zion Kim
Mathematics
I come from a poor immigrant background, attended a local primary school, and lived in a single room with a family of four. Although my family’s situation has improved significantly … my parents can only dream of supporting me at University. Despite being awarded the maximum student maintenance loan, … I would have had to limit my spending on food and other necessities massively… Granted this bursary I need not worry about this and I am able to focus on academic work. I cannot express my appreciation in words for being allowed to study my subject in stress-free freedom