Turing Scheme benefitting disadvantaged students

Research into the government’s Turing Scheme, which replaced Erasmus, has shown that the scheme is helping to strengthen partnerships across the globe, beyond Europe, as well as reaching more students from disadvantaged background or underrepresented groups.

Now in its third year the scheme has gone from strength to strength with the latest figures showing that more than 40,000 students are set to benefit in 23/24 academic year, 60% of which are from disadvantaged background or underrepresented groups. This includes around 1,800 additional students from disadvantaged backgrounds in the further education sector alone compared to last year.

The report also highlights how the scheme has supported universities, colleges and schools across the country to strengthen existing partnerships and develop links with a wider range of countries such as the USA, Japan and Canada, not just EU countries. Students reported benefits including a significant improvement in both skills and academic knowledge, and the opportunity to experience different cultures, fostering a richer international outlook that goes beyond traditional classroom learning.

The Touring scheme allows students to study and work in a wide range of areas including healthcare, the environment and construction at over 160 countries including Canada, Japan and the United States – alongside popular European destinations like Spain and France. 

Students from Bellahouston Academy in Glasgow got a better understanding of the environmental concerns highlighted by the United Nations’ COP26 summit by visiting the forested outskirts of Reykjavik, whilst student nurses at the University of Bradford gained an entirely fresh perspective on healthcare after undertaking work placements across Africa.

A group of T Level students comprising of nursing, construction and IT students from Somerset also gained valuable knowledge and skills during a two-week Turing Scheme placement in Mississippi. 

Jon Harding, International and Education Projects Manager at the college, said: "Some of these students are on support funding on their courses and there were probably 5 or 6 who had never had a passport, hadn’t travelled out of Somerset and it was their first time on a plane.

"That impact for us was huge. We are in an area that, demographically, has a high level of families with low incomes and it was a big win for us that we could integrate students that probably wouldn’t have undertaken this, or similar trips, if the Turing Scheme funding wasn’t there. They wouldn’t have been able to afford to go."