Grants from the Bursaries Fund are available to former prisoners of conscience to assist with tuition fee payments for post-graduate study or professional conversion courses in the UK. Applications are considered by our trustees on an annual basis.
**The next deadline is 21st May 2025 for course fees due from autumn 2025 onwards.**
Who can apply to the Bursaries Fund?
To be eligible for a grant from our Bursaries Fund applicants must satisfy the following criteria:
1. Applicants must be a prisoner of conscience, the definition of which is an individual who has suffered persecution for their conscientiously-held beliefs, provided they have not used or advocated violence or supported a violent organisation or have willingly served in the armed forces. The fact that the applicant is seeking asylum or has been a victim of a civil war is not in itself sufficient. A degree of personal persecution for a conscientious act has to be established.
2. Applicants must have previously completed an under-graduate degree, not necessarily in the UK.
3. Evidence must be provided of acceptance onto the post-graduate or conversion course at the time of application.
If successful, funding will be provided towards tuition fees for one academic year. A commitment for funding subsequent years cannot be given but applicants can re-apply to be considered again the following year. No retrospective funding can be given.
As a small charitable organisation with limited funds, it should also be noted that eligibility does not necessarily guarantee a successful outcome. The final decision on any grant application will be made by the Trustees of the Fund and will be dependent on sufficient funds being available.
You can read about some of our past bursary holders here.
If you would like to apply for a Bursary grant, please contact our Grants Officer on grantsofficer@prisonersofconscience.org