Name: The Scholarship Hub
Based: Hatfield, Hertfordshire
Website: www.thescholarshiphub.org.uk
The introduction of £9,000 a year university tuition fees and the prospect of debts of over £50,000 on graduation, have left students increasingly concerned about the cost of a degree.
My research showed that there were thousands of pounds worth of scholarships available, but students were largely unaware of their existence – they had to visit every individual university website to find and compare them.
The Scholarship Hub provides a searchable database of scholarships for UK undergraduates. Since its launch in February 2013 it has gained significant national media coverage. The website now receives around 30,000 visits a month.
Having established the site, the next aim was to approach companies to create new scholarships, showing them how they can be used to achieve corporate and marketing objectives. The problem was, with no track record, how would I convince them to work with me?
I approached the biggest player in the US scholarship industry and proposed a partnership, whereby I could outsource any business to them and they could benefit from my knowledge of this embryonic market in the UK. Within three months of an agreement we won our first client, a major European bank, and have worked with them to set up, run and promote a new scholarship programme for undergraduates.
Still working from home I can liaise between the States and clients here, providing a service that is unique to the UK.
Karen Kennard is the founder and managing director of The Scholarship Hub
