Scholarships & funding opportunities

Scotland's STEM Bursary for Initial Teacher Education

The STEM Bursary scheme is open to individuals wishing to undertake a one-year secondary PGDE course leading to the award of registered teacher status in the hardest-to-fill STEM subjects.

A bursary of £20,000 per student is available to those starting the PGDE in Secondary Education for Mathematics, Computing Science, Technological Education, Physics with Science, Chemistry with Science or Home Economics in August 2022.

The bursary is an incentive to ease the financial transition for career changers to undertake initial teacher education and will be over and above any normal student support provided by Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS), as long as students meet the SAAS eligibility criteria. Students eligible for the bursary can also apply separately to SAAS to have tuition fees paid by the Scottish Government.

The closing date for applications to the 2022/23 STEM Bursary scheme has yet to be announced but applicants are advised to submit as soon as possible to avoid disappointment. For the 2022/23 academic year, there are 150 bursaries available in Scotland, and applications are considered in the order that they are submitted.

  • Number of scholarships 150
  • Value £20,000 per student
  • Opens 28 March 2022
  • Duration One year

Eligibility

  • Applicants need to have been in paid employment for at least 36 months out of the last 84 months (including career breaks and any periods of furlough). Applicants who can evidence they have been in receipt of Carer's Allowance for 36 months out of the last 84 will also be deemed to meet the employment eligibility criteria.
  • Applicants need to hold a 2:1 degree or meet the minimum initial teacher education (ITE) entry requirement with a relevant masters qualification, the content of which would make them suitable to teach Maths, Computing Science, Technological Education, Physics, Chemistry or Home Economics.
  • Normal entry requirements for PGDE ITE also apply. Including exceptions, applicants ordinarily need to have been out of full-time education since 30th September 2019.
  • Applicants must have an offer of a place on a PGDE ITE programme at a Scottish university before applying.

Eligibility criteria, terms and conditions and flow charts can be found on the STEM Bursary Scotland website, where there is also an FAQ section.