The Student Employability Fund, created in 2018, financially supports students from households with an income of below £62,377 per annum to develop skills, attributes and experiences that will help them to progress into their chosen destination.

The Careers & Enterprise Centre works to promote employability for all Durham students and graduates, to enable them to succeed in an increasingly competitive labour market. Through the provision of the Student Employability Fund, it aims to support students to develop the skills, attributes and experiences that will help them to progress into their chosen careers. 

If you have secured a recruitment, work experience or employability development opportunity*, you may apply to one, two or all bursary categories (travel, clothing and expenses) in a single claim. Please note that once the current annual fund is exhausted, no further allocations will be made within that year. 

Travel Bursary

• A one-off payment of up to £150 (one return journey) OR a weekly travel pass (£25 maximum) OR a monthly travel pass (£100 maximum) for eligible students. Only one of these options can be selected per application.
• Limited to two successful applications per academic year.
• Please note the travel bursary does not cover fuel costs.

Clothing Bursary

• A one-off payment of up to £150 for eligible students. This relates only to the purchase of appropriate footwear and clothing to undertake the secured opportunity.
• Limited to one successful application per academic year.

Expenses Bursary

• A one-off payment of £50 for eligible students, providing a contribution towards the cost of food, equipment or other expenses associated with the secured opportunity.
• Limited to two successful applications per academic year.

*Applications will be considered for activities such as:

• In-person and online recruitment activities (interviews, assessment centres)

• In-person and online/remote work experience (volunteering, part-time and vacation jobs, internships, vacation schemes, placements)
• In-person and online employability development opportunities (networking events, conferences, insight days, job shadowing, employer/opportunity provider workshops)

Durham University makes every effort to ensure that the information published or contained on its website is accurate. However, the University cannot guarantee the information may not subsequently be altered owing to circumstances beyond the University's reasonable control. Such circumstances include (but are not limited to) changes in Government policy or change of law. Whilst any changes will be incorporated into the University's website any person wishing to clarify the details of a particular scholarship/s should contact the University at scholarships.advice@durham.ac.uk.