Students who are now unable to travel to the UK for their studies hope to improve their communities after beginning online Masters degrees with University of Northampton (UON).
This September intake, UON welcomed two new students to study MA Education via Distance Learning through the Mosaik Scholarship, a collaborative initiative launched by Mosaik Education.
Along with eight other participating institutions, including King’s College London, University of St Andrews, and Cardiff University, the scholarship provides a full tuition fee waiver for remote postgraduate study for international students impacted by the UK Government’s “visa brake” suspension.
The two students awarded scholarships for UON were Khu Paw from Myanmar (pictured, left) and Akam Edwine Aba, from Cameroon (pictured, right).
Khu has been working in education for several years and hopes to develop her career by taking on a greater leadership role in the development of community-based education programs in Myanmar.
She said “I felt extremely happy and grateful when I found out I was successful in my application. It is what I have dreamt of for the past few years. It gives me hope and an opportunity to develop my knowledge and skills so that I can contribute more effectively to education in my community.”
Akan is currently a secondary school teacher and hopes to one day start his own in-person and online secondary school in Cameroon where schooling has become very difficult for many children because of the Anglophone crisis.
He said: “Receiving a full tuition waiver felt like a door opening that I could not have opened on my own. It reminded me that someone believed in my vision, and it has strengthened my commitment to make the most of this opportunity.”
Becky Bradshaw, UON’s Interim Vice Chancellor, said: “Although they are only a few weeks into the programme, both students are already rising to the challenge and engaging fully with their studies.
“For Khu and Akan, this scholarship is far more than access to a degree. It is a potentially life-changing opportunity to gain the knowledge, confidence and professional networks that can help them realise their ambitions and, in turn, create lasting benefits for the communities they serve.
“At the University of Northampton, our global partnerships and diverse community enrich the learning experience for everyone. We are immensely proud to welcome Khu and Akan into that community and grateful to the Mosaik Scholarship for removing a barrier that might otherwise have put this opportunity beyond their reach.”
Visit the UON website to find out more about distance learning courses.