We offer a number of bursaries each year for a postgraduate qualification in journalism. Applications are now open for courses starting in September 2025.

The primary aim of these bursary awards is to assist students who face financial difficulty in attaining the qualifications needed to pursue a career in journalism, and who come from backgrounds that are underrepresented in the media. In particular those from a lower socio-economic background, Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, LGBTQ+ and people with a disability.

What You’ll Get

Those who are awarded a bursary get:

• tuition fees for an MA in journalism from a select university;
• at least £6,741 in living expenses;
• paid work placements at The Guardian during your MA;
• a mentor;
• opportunity for a nine-month fixed-term contract at The Guardian starting after graduation.

Past beneficiaries of the bursary awards have gone on to successful careers at a variety of media organisations, including The Guardian. Eminent Guardian journalists include Gary Younge, Pippa Crerar, Homa Khaleeli, Tania Branigan, Poppy Noor and Lanre Bakare. If you are a Scott Trust Bursary alumni we would love to hear from you.

Courses Included In The Scheme

People from any background underrepresented in media can apply for:

• City St George’s, University of London, MA Newspaper Journalism, entry 2:1
• Goldsmiths College, University of London, MA Journalism, entry 2:1
• University of Sheffield, MA Journalism, entry 2:1
• Birmingham City University, MA Data journalism, entry 2:1
• Leeds Trinity University, MA Journalism, entry 2:2
• Manchester Metropolitan University, MA Multimedia Journalism, entry 2:2

Three out of the six places will be awarded to Black aspiring journalists as part of the Scott Trust Legacies of Enslavement programme. The other three places are open to anyone from a background underrepresented in the media.

Find out about your eligibility in our frequently asked questions page.

More Information & How To Apply

Applicants will need to submit:

• a CV
• responses to a questionnaire, providing details of your education, career, motivation and financial situation;
• up to three pieces of work for consideration published or unpublished. We recommend submitting a variety of work in terms of subject matter and style to best demonstrate your range — we accept written work, videos and podcasts. For multimedia pieces please specify a time stamp and link to be considered (max 5 minutes);
• an equal opportunities form (there is the option of selecting ‘prefer not to say’ for all questions);

Applications missing any of these items will not be considered.

For more information about the application process please visit our frequently asked questions page, here and for general tips on how to apply for the bursary see here.

The deadline for receipt of applications is 5pm on 24th March 2025.

Journo Resources also writes a guide to applications for this scheme, which you can read here. Please do mention us when you apply, it really helps us out!