University of Essex launches new international health bursary to support Masters students around the world
New Delhi : The University of Essex is offering extra support for Indian Masters students by launching a new health bursary to cover the cost of the UK’s immigration health surcharge for the duration of their postgraduate course.
The international health bursary is designed to ensure international students are not deterred by the surcharge which increased to £766 each year from 6 February 2024. This extra financial support will be available to Masters students starting their courses in October 2024 or January 2025 and is in addition to the University’s Academic Excellence Scholarship for India residents, which is worth between £3,000 and £4,000.
Vice-Chancellor Professor Anthony Forster said: “We feel it is very important to make sure every student who can benefit from an Essex education can do so. We do not want an increase in the immigration health surcharge cost to be an additional barrier for someone keen to come to study at Essex.
We’ve launched the international health bursary during my visit to India as we want to send a clear message that the University of Essex remains an incredibly welcoming place for Indian students and we’re doing everything we can to support Indian students.
Alongside this extra financial support, we have lots of other initiatives including preparation programmes, extracurricular opportunities, and extensive careers support to ensure Indian students get the most from their studies in the UK.”
The immigration health surcharge was introduced in 2015 as a way for migrants to make a financial contribution to the cost of NHS care they may require while in the UK.
The international health bursary is a cash bursary which covers the cost of the surcharge up to the value of £766 and is available to postgraduate-taught students only. The bursary will be reimbursed to the student upon successful completion of the health bursary application form and providing they meet the eligibility criteria. Terms and conditions apply.
Full details for the health bursary and scholarship options are available on the University’s website at www.essex.ac.uk.