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Santander Universities Scholarships - Broadening Horizons

Santander Universities International Scholarships

Santander Universities Research & Travel Awards

New for 2011 - Santander Universities Entrepreneurial Awards Scheme

Santander Universities Community Awards

In 2007, within a month of moving into our new purpose-built campus, Queen Margaret University was the first Scottish University to team up with Santander Group, through its UK subsidiary Abbey, on the internationally renowned Santander Universities programme.

Santander Universities, pioneered by Santander, one of the largest financial groups in the world, is a scheme which establishes various spheres of collaboration including teaching and research, international cooperation, transfer of knowledge and technology. Since 1996, Santander Universities has been the keystone of the Group’s Corporate Social Responsibility policies and has given over 400 million euros on the programme. Santander Universities Global Division has signed co-operation agreements with 600 universities in Spain, America, Portugal, Russia and the United Kingdom.

Santander gives more support to the University community than any other bank in the world. Santander Universities Director in the UK, Luis Juste, said: “ Queen Margaret University has a very clear vision of serving the community and improving the quality of life through education and research. At Santander, we believe that investing in education is the most powerful means to reducing social differences and promoting the development and prosperity of our society. We are delighted to add Queen Margaret University to our list of prestigious UK universities we are working with.

From 2007, Santander has annually donated £40,000 to the University. The three areas of funding have been:

• Santander International Scholarships within the Institute for International Health & Development
• Santander Research & Travel Awards
• Santander Community Awards

Santander International Scholarships

Keven Bermudez (Spain/Cuba), Martha Beltran (Colombia), Blanca Haddad (Spain)	Martha, Blanca, Samira Guachalla (Brazil), Luis Matias Hernandez (Spain), Yankari Moreno (Venezuela)

The agreement with Queen Margaret University has focused on the university’s prestigious Institute for International Health and Development (IIHD) providing scholarships for international students from Latin America or the Iberian Peninsula countries applying for the IIHD masters programme. Pictured above are some of the successful students whose academic work has included research into:

• El Sistema, the youth orchestra which operates in many poor areas of Venezuela, examining the role El Sistema plays in violence reduction
• psycho-Social support for refugees
• migrant support work in Catalonia, Spain
• the role of Cancer organisations in Bogota, Colombia
• the procedures, challenges and resources available for child adoption in Venezuela
• the impact of "health brigades" (travelling groups of traditional healers) on the well being of remote indiginous communities of the Amazonian region of Colombia

The quality of the teaching and research undertaken at IIHD is exceptional. The approach of IIHD is characterised by an emphasis on social and organisational development. Working with a wide range of partner institutions and agencies – international and local – IIHD seeks to promote the study of key issues impacting international health policy and practice.

Professor Barbara McPake, IIHD Director, explains: “IIHD has benefitted greatly from the opportunity of expanding its work in Latin America and the Iberian Peninsula that the scholarships from Santander have provided. We know that the UK is an attractive destination for students from those areas, but the costs of studying here are often prohibitive. This assistance has enabled some extremely talented students to benefit from first class learning in an innovative interactive environment that they otherwise would have missed. ”

Oonagh O'Brien, Lecturer & Admissions Tutor IIHD, is also very positive about the valuable contribution made to the University by the International Students. Speaking of Blanca she said "She has brought a very dynamic energy to the class with that particular Latin American approach of critical analysis of politicial and power structures. It has been very refreshing to have her perspective."

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