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I'm a final year undergraduate student and I'm considering studying further. The main issue is well, money. I wanted to ask about the existing public funds - silly questions but what are they exactly? I would like to continue study in the UK but I'm from Bulgaria - does it mean I need to check the public funds from both the UK and my home country?

I know that i.e. there are now loans for masters, but no (not yet) for PhD. I know there are scholarships given from charities and various organisations but already allocated - are they counted as public funds as well?

I found this certain scholarship that I may qualify but only if I'm not eligible for public funds so I want to check all of them before I fill the application.

I'm totally new to this so I really appreciate your help!

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Short Answer: Instead of looking for scholarships yourself, try to find a funding through academics and/or university in the UK. There are always funding available for talented students; and if not you can apply for a scholarship through an academic.

Longer Answer

Ok, I did my fully funded PhD in the UK so I can help on this. Do the following:

  1. Find a Supervisor: First and foremost you need a solid supervisor that can help you through research, at the topic you want to work on; and understand that money is an issue.

  2. Funding Through Supervisor: Then see if the supervisor has some money, he/she might not have 100% of the funding but can afford less say 50%.

  3. Funding Through Research Group/University: Then you need to look into any funding available through the research group or the university. This might cover the rest, or close to 100% of the funding.

  4. Take Classes Through PhD Studies: Academics always help PhD students, if they need some extra cash, they let them to help them in laboratories and/or marking. This is not too much but at least you can get couple of meals out of it.

Note On Location: If you can't find a funding in London or surrounding cities, try the northern cities as well. They are also cheaper to live compare to London and southern cities.

Note On Courage: I had a hard time financially, and so many of my friends. So keep going and you shall find a funding one way or another.

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  • Thanks a lot! I more or less have done what you have listed. While I'm still new to all of this, I found a lab which would be happy to take me in BUT they have clearly stated that they have no funding available and I need to find on my own. So I searched, searched and searched and I finally found this scholarship but they demand 2 requirements: 1. To be in the top 5% of candidates for the PhD position 2. To not be eligible for public funds I would like to check if I really don’t qualify for public fundings but I’m a bit clueless what they are exactly. – HoldenDK Mar 12 '16 at 22:16
  • @HoldenDK Public funding are mainly covering European students. I added a note on the location to the answer. – o-0 Mar 13 '16 at 0:16

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