Placement Opportunity Fund

Applicants must be UK Home students enrolled on a full-time undergraduate BU course and meet the following criteria:

• Household income of £25,000 or below (as calculated by Student Finance England/Wales/Scotland/Northern Ireland)

OR

• Household income over £25,000 (as calculated by Student Finance England/Wales/Scotland/Northern Ireland) and one or more of the following:
  • Mature students - HESA benchmark 21 or over at start of course
  • Additional learning needs/disability
  • Care leaver
  • Students from low participation neighbourhoods
  • Black Asian or Minority Ethnic
  • Female students taking STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)

• Placements must be recorded in MyHub and approved by Faculty Placement Coordinators
• Students on the following courses are not eligible to apply for this fund for UK based placements:
  • BSc Nursing (all branches)
  • BSc Midwifery
  • BSc Occupational Therapy
  • BSc Physiotherapy
  • BSc Operating Department Practice
  • BSc Paramedic Science
  • BA Social Work

However, students on the above courses who undertake an official placement abroad (up to 4 weeks) may apply for support from this fund for costs relating to their placement abroad, subject to meeting the eligibility criteria.

IMPORTANT - Students on the above courses who require help with vaccinations, visas and/or insurance costs for their placement abroad should claim this through the NHS in the first instance: www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/nhs-learning-support-fund-lsf/travel-and-dual-accommodation-expenses

• Channel Islands/EU/International students are not eligible to apply for this fund
• Postgraduate students are not eligible to apply for this fund.

Prior to applying to the Placement Opportunity Fund, students going on an official placement abroad should check whether they are eligible for funding through the Turing Scheme, as placements abroad funding should be accessed from the Turing Scheme in the first instance. 

Any funding that cannot be covered through the Turing Scheme can then be considered through the Placement Opportunity Fund for students meeting the standard eligibility criteria listed above

Students cannot be funded through the Turing Scheme and the Placement Opportunity Fund for the same specific costs.

Awards from the fund will be made on a first-come, first-served basis to those meeting the standard eligibility criteria listed above. Visit MyCareerHub to complete the online form.

If you have already made an application to the Placement Opportunity Fund in this current academic year and you require further support or have additional evidence, please do not complete a further application, but email the Student Money Advice Team at [email protected] with your name and ‘Placement Opportunity Fund’ in the subject field.

You can apply for this fund before the start of your placement (e.g., if support is needed for interviews) or during your placement. You cannot apply after your placement has finished.

We would recommend that, where possible, students pay for costs upfront and submit full evidence for these costs to be reimbursed, in line with the published criteria. This allows BU to provide a more accurate award based on the expenses the student has incurred into.

Please note: It can take up to 20 working days to process your application.

The Placement Opportunity Fund will assist students meeting the eligibility criteria with the following costs up to a maximum award available to any individual student of £3,000.

All evidence must clearly show your name (where possible), items purchased, payment date and amount.

*The minimum payment amount will be £10 for those students meeting the eligibility criteria.