SSE launches £194,000 Scholarship Fund for STEM students
Funding expected to support around 60 first-year students through higher education .
APPLICATIONS are now open for the 2026 SSE Scholarship Fund, offering £194,000 in financial support to first-year students pursuing STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) courses in higher education.
Now in its twelfth year, the Scholarship Fund is supported through community benefit funding from SSE’s major wind farms in Northern Ireland. Since launching in 2014, the fund has provided over £1.6 million in support to help improve access to higher education for students across the north-west.
This year, funding of £194,000 is expected to support around 60 new full-time students as they begin their higher education journey.
This brings the total number of students supported by the SSE Scholarship Fund since 2014 to around 630.
The fund is open to students living in Counties Tyrone, Derry-Londonderry, Fermanagh and Donegal and provides funding covering up to 50 per cent of tuition fees for eligible students studying at Ulster University, South West College and North West Regional College.
The Scholarship Fund is backed by SSE’s Regional Fund for Slieve Kirk Wind Park and Tievenameenta Wind Farm, alongside Slieve Divena II Wind Farm, which is owned by Greencoat Renewables.
Vicky Boden, Community Investment manager at SSE Renewables, said: “We know that the cost of higher education can be a significant challenge for many young people and their families.
“Through the SSE Scholarship Fund, we're helping reduce some of those barriers and ensure talented students across the north west can pursue their ambitions and realise their potential.
“For more than a decade, our scholarship programme has helped open doors to higher education and STEM careers for students from communities close to our wind farms.
“We're proud to continue investing in opportunities that support young people, strengthen local skills and deliver lasting benefits for the communities where we operate.”
Applications are now open, with completed submissions to be sent to the applicant's chosen institution by Friday, November 13.
For more information and details on how to apply, visit:
https://www.sserenewables.com/communities/scholarships-and-skills-funds/.