A group of Old Members of University College Oxford has made an historic £10m gift to endow graduate scholarships, to be known as Oxford-Radcliffe Scholarships. It is the largest single gift received by the College in modern times. The donation will be used to support postgraduate study and research across a range of subjects.

Sir Ivor Crewe, Master of University College, said: “Our graduate students are a vibrant part of life at Univ and make a critical contribution to the outstanding research and scholarship accomplished at Oxford. This munificent benefaction will transform the College’s provision of scholarships for our graduates, enabling the College to arrange within the next five years for a large majority of its graduates to be fully supported and to attract the most academically talented students from across the world – students who will lead and shape the future.”

The gift will lever an additional £6.7m from the University under its recently announced graduate funding scheme. And because the benefactors wish to inspire additional donations for the support of Univ graduates, their gift incorporates a challenge to the College to attract a further £8m over the next five years, which in turn will be eligible for £5.3m from the University. The College is determined to meet this challenge, and if it does so a total of £30m will be available for the permanent creation of fifty graduate scholarships.

The benefactors are motivated to ensure that more talented graduate students than ever before will have an opportunity to work with both Univ’s and Oxford’s leading academics to pursue their ambitions, contribute ground-breaking research, advance understanding and realise their full potential – regardless of their financial circumstances – focusing on today’s challenges and advancing tomorrow’s solutions.

Published: 29 November 2012

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