Diversity in Tech Scholarships

The University of Birmingham and the West Midlands Combined Authority Digital Skills Training Fund are providing a ‘Diversity in Tech’ scholarship scheme to contribute to fees for the University of Birmingham Coding and Data Analytics boot camp programmes.

Coding Boot Camp

The University of Birmingham Coding Boot Camp is a substantive non-degree course teaching full stack web development that successfully prepares adult learners and working professionals for careers in Coding/Web Development and represents one of a range of programmes at the University set up to respond to the developing needs of the modern workforce.

Data Analytics Boot Camp

During the Data Analytics Boot Camp students learn the fundamental and specialised skills necessary to land a job or advance in the booming field of data analytics, including Python, JavaScript, Intermediate Excel, SQL Databases and more.

The boot camps are offered in partnership with Trilogy Education, a leading workforce accelerator that helps top universities around the world offer intensive, skills-based training programmes. Trilogy, based in the United States, has a strong track record of working with a range of prestigious global universities, including Harvard, Columbia Engineering, and UC Berkeley to deliver high quality, career-oriented technology boot camps.

Find out more about our boot camps

The Diversity in Tech Scholarship will be available to groups who are underrepresented in the tech industry. The funding will provide support for:

• Unemployed people moving into digital employment
• Those in employment looking to re-train (working in low paid, insecure employment to retrain to move into digital employment)
• Low-waged residents to enable them to enter new digital occupations and careers (household income is below the national average - below £42,875)
• Enhancing BAME presence in boot camp cohorts and supporting Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic students to enter or progress within employment in the digital sector.

The Diversity in Tech Scholarship will only be available to students who are:

• A resident from the West Midlands - learners resident in the West Midlands are eligible, provided that they meet the other eligibility criteria
• Self funded - You must be self-funding your tuition fees or applying for a study loan to pay your fees and living expenses
• Applying to a University of Birmingham Data Analytics or Coding Boot Camp Programme - Learners must intend to be enrolled as a part-time student in a University of Birmingham Data Analytics or Coding Boot Camp Programme in the 2021-22 academic year. 

To be considered for the award, applicants must have:

• Made an application to their intended University of Birmingham Boot Camp programme
• Completed the Diversity in Tech Scholarship application form. Applicants should enter the application ID number that they were given during the application to the Boot Camp programme. 
• Please read the Diversity in Tech Scholarship guidance notes before applying

The awards will be allocated on the basis of merit – simply meeting the eligibility criteria will not guarantee that an application is successful. We will support up to 200 Diversity in Tech learners between November 2021 and October 2022. Applicants are considered on a rolling basis until the £800,000 in funds are distributed.

Selection will be determined by a University Boot Camp scholarship panel based on the following criteria:

• Aptitude and Skills - Diversity in Tech Scholarships are primarily awarded on the basis of performance in the applicants’ Boot Camp aptitude test. Learners will be ranked by the Boot Camp Scholarship Panel based on performance in our on-line aptitude test
• Notable Achievements - Personal and Professional achievements will be taken into account
• Student motivation/Strength of the personal statement - The personal statement and interview with a course advisor are your chance to make the application stand out. It should, amongst other things: outline the student’s interest in the subject, demonstrate that their background has sufficiently prepared them for the boot camp, mention any relevant experience and outline how the course will fit into their future plans