Alternative Guide to Postgraduate Funding

What if the money to fund your Master’s or PhD was hiding in plain sight?

Every year, thousands of students abandon their postgraduate dreams because they believe funding simply doesn’t exist. Universities offer only a handful of scholarships. Government loans barely scratch the surface. And research council funding is fiercely competitive.

But there is another world of funding, largely invisible, rarely discussed, and surprisingly accessible.

The Alternative Guide to Postgraduate Funding exposes this hidden landscape. Drawing on their own experience of winning more than 50 charity awards, the authors reveal how students can tap into hundreds of charitable trusts and foundations that distribute millions of pounds in grants every year—often to applicants who simply know where to look.

Inside this bestselling guide, you will discover:

• How to locate over 500 funding sources overlooked by most students
• Proven strategies to secure grants for fees, living costs, research travel, and conferences
• Step-by-step guidance on writing winning applications and personal statements
• Real examples of successful funding proposals
• Techniques for building a portfolio of smaller awards that can collectively finance an entire postgraduate degree

Unlike traditional scholarship guides, this book focuses on the vast voluntary sector of charities and trusts, a world where eligibility criteria are often unique, competition can be lower, and opportunities are far more plentiful than most students realise.

Whether you need a few thousand pounds for research travel or a strategy to finance an entire degree, this guide provides the roadmap.

Because sometimes the difference between abandoning postgraduate study and achieving it is not talent, grades, or ambition.

It is simply knowing where to look.