Fashion student working with a mannequin

Max Mara Opportunity Scholarship in Fashion

Find out how the scholarship might help you, if you are eligible, and how and when to apply.

Introduction

Funding of up to £15,000 for undergraduate fashion designers with Black, Asian or minority ethnic heritage. Check if you’re eligible, and how to apply.

  • Value: £5,000 each year for up to three years.
  • Study level: Undergraduate — new, full-time students in their first year only
  • Eligible courses: BA (Hons) Fashion degree
  • Applications:

You can only apply for this scholarship if we’ve offered you a place at Manchester Met.

Deadlines for applying: 

  • Apply for your course by 31 January 2024.
  • If we offer you a place, you must apply for the scholarship by 15 June 2024.

Aim of the scholarship

The Max Mara Opportunity Scholarship in Fashion recognises the need to provide financial support, clear career pathways and access to professional networks for under-represented communities in the fashion industry.

Check if you can apply

To apply, you must: 

  • be from a Black, Asian or minority ethnic background
  • hold a firm offer to study a new full-time BA (Hons) Fashion degree in 2024/25
  • have a household income of £25,000 or less. We’ll check this against your Student Finance application. Please contact us if you will not be applying to Student Finance for a maintenance loan. 
  • be a UK student (English, Scottish, Welsh or Northern Irish) paying fees of £9,250, and have a UK Student Support Number
  • pay for your course yourself, including through a student loan or a payment from your parents. Your course fees must not be paid by a business, charity or other organisation

Check the terms and conditions

Before you apply, read our terms and conditions.

They explain:

  • what’s expected of people who get scholarships
  • what happens if you leave your course or we withdraw the scholarship
  • how we use your personal information

How to apply

You’ll need to:

  • complete the application form. Applications open on 1 January 2024.
  • add a link to your digital portfolio. You can use your admissions portfolio, but it’s a good idea to update it with your latest work. 

You must apply by 15 June 2024. We will not consider late applications.

If we get a lot of applications, we may ask you to do an interview. The interview will be online in late June or early July.

Application form

Please confirm you meet the elibility criteria for the scholarship described above. Once confirmed the rest of the application form will be displayed for you to complete.
Your details
Supporting information
Please confirm the non-UK commonwealth country you are a citizen of.
When will you be starting your course?
Please tick if any of the following statements apply to you
i.e. from a family where neither your parent(s) or guardian(s) have attended university and obtained an undergraduate degree or equivalent level qualification in the UK or abroad
How would you describe your ethnicity?
How would you describe your ethnicity?
Please confirm which of the following criteria you meet
i.e. from a family where neither your parent(s) or guardian(s) have attended university and obtained an undergraduate degree or equivalent level qualification in the UK or abroad
You can check your postcode at the OfS postcode search. Priority will be for those in the lowest POLAR4 young participation quintile.
I have not communicated with my parents for one year before the start of the academic year that I am applying for student finance or can demonstrate that I am irreconcilably estranged from my parents.
For example, degree, A-Levels, BTEC, or other. List the Qualification level, subject, date taken and grade achieved. Alternatively, you can provide a short list of your industry work experience.
If you have achieved your grades already, please state this.
This might be an outstanding additional academic achievement, activities such as sport, music, managing events, clubs or societies),  achievements gained either in your working life or through volunteering and service to others or overcoming personal barriers to learning.
What was the situation, what did you do and what was the outcome?
Evidence could include your P60s, evidence of student income, a self-employment tax return etc. If you are not sure about what to provide, please call the Student Financial Support helpline on 0161 247 1045 for guidance.
If you encounter any issues uploading your file please email it to SFSAdmin@mmu.ac.uk.
One file only.
10 MB limit.
Allowed types: , jpg, jpeg, png, pdf.
  • If you are a care leaver: please provide a letter from your personal advisor in your local authority confirming your status. 
  • If you are estranged: please provide a letter/email from the Student Loans Company that you should have received whenever your estrangement was accepted during your application for Student Finance. 
  • If you are care experienced: please provide anything that you can to confirm that you spent a period of time living in public care (e.g. a letter from your local authority). 

If you encounter any issues uploading your file please email it to SFSAdmin@mmu.ac.uk.
One file only.
10 MB limit.
Allowed types: jpg, jpeg, png, pdf, doc, docx.

If you encounter any issues uploading your file please email it to SFSAdmin@mmu.ac.uk.
One file only.
10 MB limit.
Allowed types: pdf, doc, docx.

Digital Portfolio

Please provide an edited portfolio of work of no more than 12-15 slides.

We are looking for applicants who show aptitude to develop excellence in the following areas:

  • originality of concepts
  • rigorous research enquiry
  • connection of traditional skills to future applications
  • relevant real world contexts
  • advancement of Textiles as a discipline

Digital Portfolio

Please provide a link below to a digital portfolio of work. This can be the one you used for your application, but we recommend you update it with your latest work.

Digital Portfolio

Please upload a portfolio of no more than 12-15 slides, or a link to a digital portfolio of your latest work.

One file only.
20 MB limit.
Allowed types: pdf.
Please provide the full URL. The site or document should not be password protected.
Declaration
  • I declare that the information provided in this application is true and accurate, and agree that in the event that the information is false, inaccurate or erroneous the University will be entitled to withdraw the scholarship at any time.
  • I have read and understood the terms and conditions of the scholarship programme outlined at 
    www.mmu.ac.uk/study/scholarships/apply/terms and agree to abide by them.
  • I consent to the processing of my personal data for the purposes described in the Student Scholarships privacy notice www.mmu.ac.uk/data-protection/privacy-notices/student-scholarships.
I agree to above declaration

Data Protection

The Manchester Metropolitan University ('the University') is the Data Controller for the personal data you disclose via this form. We use the provided information to assess and manage your scholarship application. If you have consented to receive our marketing communications we will also use your personal data to send you targeted information about relevant services and benefits which we think will be of interest. You can withdraw your consent to receiving any, or all, of the above communications at any point by emailing SFSAdmin@mmu.ac.uk. Your personal data will only be retained for as long as it is necessary in accordance with the University’s Retention and Disposal Schedule, see the privacy notice for student scholarships for more details. For further information about us, how we process your personal data and your rights, please view our privacy notice.

Contacts

Contact us

If you’ve any queries about this or other scholarships, email sfsadmin@mmu.ac.uk or get in touch.

sfsadmin@mmu.ac.uk