HELP SURREY STUDENTS SAY YES TO THEIR FUTURE
An industry placement or summer internship should be an easy “yes”, not a painful choice between a student’s finances and their future. Your support can change their answer.
PLACEMENTS
Getting students industry ready
For many alumni, Surrey was where you developed the skills needed to start your career. Maybe you are one of the many graduates who benefitted from an industry placement year as a part of your studies.
Today, students are facing financial barriers to those same experiences. The unseen costs of a placement can put these opportunities out of reach, with talented students turning down offers they have worked hard to secure. What should be an exciting step towards their career becomes a painful choice between their finances and their future.
A placement bursary allowed me to cover commuting, housing and essential expenses. Coming from a background where financial stability has always been a challenge, securing a placement with a leading tech firm meant a great deal and let me focus on building my skills without constant financial stress.
Trevor, Business Management student on placement with Microsoft
THIS IS WHERE YOU CAN MAKE A DIRECT DIFFERENCE
Paying for travel to and from placement
Covering rent or relocation
Supporting with essential expenses
Buying suitable work clothing
Through The Forever Surrey Fund, you can support the Professional Training Year Support Award, which provides £4,000 to UK undergraduate students from disadvantaged backgrounds during their placement.
This year, 36 eligible students applied. Because of alumni like you, we’ve been able to support 13 – enabling them to say yes to placement years that help launch their careers.
SUMMER INTERNSHIPS
Earning real-world credibility
Pressures outside university life, such as caring responsibilities or health challenges, can put a year-long industry placement out of reach, even for the most motivated students.
Real-world experience is critical for future employability and for building the confidence students need when they graduate.
92% in employment
92% of Surrey students who took part in a placement were in graduate-level employment and, on average, earned over £1,800 more than students who do not undertake a placement (Graduate Outcomes Survey 2026).
£2K
Each Summer Internship provides £2,000 to a Surrey student and will open high-quality work experience to students who might otherwise miss out. For many, it will be their first chance to work in a professional setting, contribute to a team and give clear evidence of their skills for future applications and interviews.
4-week placements
This summer, thanks to donors to The Forever Surrey Fund, Surrey is launching a new Summer Internship Scheme , providing paid, four-week placements for 15 students from disadvantaged backgrounds.
Job ready
For a student juggling part-time work or caring responsibilities, your support today can help them say yes to a first step into their chosen profession - making them job ready.
I’m excited to begin my internship and hope the opportunity will help me gain hands-on experience, build my confidence in a professional environment, and apply the skills I have developed as a Surrey student.
Yezan, Chemical and Petroleum Engineering student
SURREY ABROAD
Global Experiences. Career-ready Graduates.
86% of Surrey students who go abroad say they could not have done so without funding, risking lost international opportunities that boost their career prospects.
ISA’S STORY
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FROM SURREY TO TORONTO
The world of work is constantly changing. Employers increasingly expect graduates to think globally and communicate across cultures. International experiences help Surrey students develop exactly these skills.
But some Surrey students are turning down places on international programmes because they cannot afford to take part.
The Forever Surrey Fund supports students from disadvantaged backgrounds to take part in international programmes. In 2024/25, 21 students were supported to go abroad.
Isa spent a semester at Toronto Metropolitan University in Canada. Coming from a background where studying abroad would not have been financially viable, Isa’s experience was only possible because alumni like you chose to give to The Forever Surrey Fund.
I was fortunate to receive support from The Forever Surrey Fund that significantly eased the financial burden of studying abroad. This support was crucial as it allowed me to complete my studies while also diving into the Canadian experience.
Your donation to The Forever Surrey Fund can turn an international opportunity from out of reach into a realistic option for a student like Isa – so more students can go abroad, boosting their chances of securing a professional-level graduate job, without having to worry how they will afford them.
You can make the next generation
UNSTOPPABLE
For today’s students, opportunities like placements, summer internships and global experiences help build confidence, skills and networks – but they are not equally accessible to everyone.
Through The Forever Surrey Fund, alumni like you are already helping students to:
• Take up an industry placement year.
• Complete a paid summer internship.
• Participate in international study and placement programmes.
£50 £500 £100
could help a student buy suitable clothing for a placement or internship.
can contribute towards travel costs for a student on their professional training year.
could fund one week of a four-week summer internship.
However you can support, you will help Surrey students build the experience and confidence they need to launch their careers, rather than have to turn down the opportunities they’ve worked so hard to secure.
You can open doors for the next generation of Surrey students –and help them feel unstoppable in whatever they choose to do next. HOW CAN YOU GET INVOLVED?
Donate to The Forever Surrey Fund. Offer a paid placement or internship.
DONATE TO THE FOREVER SURREY FUND TODAY