The Alternative Funding
An interesting approach.
The notion of obtaining a master’s degree sounds intriguing. It is no longer just a fascination in today’s world; it is a requirement. Every year, 40 million people in India complete their undergraduate degrees. This figure has been steadily climbing for the past decade. A decade ago, the figure was 30 million. Today, it has surpassed 40 million. This necessitates the acquisition of extra degrees and abilities in order to progress professionally and economically. Undergraduates are almost always underpaid. (In mechanical Engineering sector at least!)
While the possibility of obtaining a master’s degree appears attractive, the expenditures connected with it may be prohibitively expensive. In today’s recession-hit world, the impact of debt could be much more crushing if you don’t get a job after finishing your degree. All of these make pursuing higher education a significant risk. All of these factors make greater education a substantial danger. There are always sources of funds available. Most well-known scholarships provide full or partial assistance. These are very competitive and difficult to break. In my attempt to support my suggested master’s degree, I discovered an intriguing option. It was less of a discovery but more of a recommendation or suggestion by my choice of university. The university subscribes to this book and recommends all it’s students to explore the avenues mentioned in this book.
The Alternative Funding.
It started as a story of two PhD graduates raising more than £ 50,000 during their PhD using unconventional sources of funding. They raised this amount over the duration of their PhD. The avenues of their success lay the starting point of the alternate funding. You can find their website here!
I’ve read this book once in the past. A few months ago. Back then I came across an older version of the book and cruised through it in a single sitting. Some of the sections, for example, the financial sheet section did not make much sense to me back then, but today I am very clear about all sections of the book. It is small book with just 160+ pages to go through. The reasoning and details presented in the book are just amazing.
One can choose the funding strategy based on one’s situation.
Based on your category you could choose one of the three strategies mentioned in the book
- Industrial Approach: This approach has a potential to yield a sum of £ 4000 — £ 10000 per year. This approach is kind of a consistent hunt for opportunities and avenues.
- Targeted Approach: This approach is kind of a narrow search and strike. we focus on the avenues that are most likely to fund us and stick to them. This approach has a potential to yield a sum of £ 500 —£3000 per year.
- Mixed Approach: This is a mix between the above two approaches. This approach has a potential to yield a sum of £1000 — £7000 per year.
Combined with these approaches, these approach to these avenues also differ from the big guns. Most of them are need based as opposed to the big ones which are always almost merit based. You have to prove your need and eligibility to be able to have a good shot at getting one of these grants.
This book also provides a list of charities from which students in the past have gained a good amount of funding in alphabetical order. Most of them are for UK citizens and residents of a specific location, But some of them are open to International students. Here’s a list of grants open to International students from India.
The benefit of getting a big scholarship does not end with your tuition fees being fully taken care of, you can get a free accommodation at such facilities!
There are many more granting bodies and organizations that may be suitable to your circumstances. Check the guide to find a grant that your are eligible for!
These grants may not be the biggest or the grandest but they do cover a modest amount. Every pound you receive, takes you closer toward your master’s degree!
Apart from these traditional organizations, the guide also speaks about crowd funding. You can find the case studies of students who have successfully crowd funded amounts close to £ 15000 and succeeded in their pursuit of higher education.
Check out the guide and website for more information.
Happy funding!
That’s it from me.
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