Cardiff Met students win ‘life changing’ scholarship
Two Cardiff Metropolitan University students have won the Santander Universities Scholars Programme and will receive £10,000 funding a year towards their studies for three years.
Anna Davidge, 20, an Education, Psychology and Special Educational Needs student, and Xhevilta Rizani, 23, a Banking & Finance student, will both receive the funding from Santander as well as a mentor and training and networking opportunities through the Scholarship.
The Santander Universities Scholars Programme is a new initiative aimed at supporting students who are facing challenges when attending university.
Originally from Albania and living in the UK for over six years, Xhevilta received the news during her first year of studies that Student Finance Wales had rejected her application. With no other financial support, Xhevilta was left with the tough decision to frequently miss lectures to work to be able to pay her tuition or to withdraw from university altogether.
Aware of her situation, a friend of Xhevilta’s encouraged her to apply for the Santander Scholarship, although she never really believed she could win.
Xhevilta said: “The idea of dropping out of university was very sad, as I’d worked hard to pass all my exams and achieve a place on the course. Thankfully, it didn’t come to that. When I received the news that I’d won, I was over the moon. It didn’t feel real. It means I don’t have to worry about paying tuition fees anymore, I can just focus on my studies now. It’s changed my life.”
Cardiff Met’s second winner, Anna, only decided to fill in the short form for the Santander Scholarship on the closing date knowing there was no harm in trying. Once she was over the initial shock of winning, Anna came to terms with the impact the funding would have on her life.
Anna said: “I don’t have financial support to see me through my education, so coming to university took a few years of planning and saving. I travel back home to London a lot to look after my mum and was starting to think I would need to transfer closer to home to reduce my travel costs. The Santander Scholarship has enabled me to stay at Cardiff Met, one of the few universities I found that offers Special Educational Needs as part of the course, which is what I’d eventually like to pursue a career in. The funding really will make a huge difference to my life.”
100 students from 72 universities received the Santander Scholarship, and as a partner of Santander Universities, Cardiff Met was guaranteed at least one winner.
The Santander Scholarship stipulates that a portion of the funding should be spent on personal development, which Anna is putting towards driving lessons. Meanwhile, Xhevilta has put this towards a Diploma in Public Service Interpreting (DPSI) course and exam to support her part-time job as an Albanian-English interpreter which she does alongside her studies.
Matthew Taylor, Cardiff Met’s Director of Innovation, said: “In the 11 years I have been responsible Cardiff Met’s relationship with Santander Universities, there have been many great examples of how our students have directly benefited from Santander’s support. However, the life-changing impact that this initiative has had for Anna and Xhevilta really is the best example to date of the value of our partnership.”
Matt Hutnell, Director, Santander Universities UK, said: “Education isn’t everything, but it’s almost everything. Through the Santander Universities Scholars Programme, we’re working with our partner universities to support students from underrepresented backgrounds to overcome barriers and achieve their ambitions.”
Students at Cardiff Met have more opportunities to win prizes from Santander, including through its £100k Giveaway competition where the bank will give out 200 lots of £500. Students can apply before the 30th November 2023 and will win £500 in cash to spend on anything they wish as they start the new academic year, including rent, bills, groceries, study resources and books.