UK Electronics Skills Foundation - UKESF scholarship for electronics or electronic engineering

What the UKESF scholarship gives you

You will receive an annual scholarship of about 1,150 EUR (1,000 GBP) per year for the remainder of your degree. You will also be offered a paid summer placement of at least 8 weeks each year with an electronics or technology company. Some companies offer longer placements of 6 or 12 months instead. A partner company will assign you a mentor – an experienced professional who will advise you and whom you will meet at least twice a year. You will also be offered a free place on a 4-day face-to-face training course at the start of your final year of study. The programme is run by the UK Electronics Skills Foundation (UKESF). This is a not-for-profit organisation founded by businesses and universities to promote skills in the UK electronics sector. Of the scholarship holders who have completed their studies, 93% have found employment in the electronics and technology sector.

Who can apply

• Degree: You will be studying for a Bachelor’s degree with a substantial electronics component at one of the 30 UKESF partner universities (including Cambridge, Imperial, Manchester, Southampton and Sheffield).
• Year of study: You can be in any year of your degree, except the first or the final year.
• Grades: In your last end-of-year appraisal, you achieved an average of at least 60%.
• Residence: You are resident in the United Kingdom (a ‘home student’) or a British national. EU citizens are also eligible, provided they have ‘settled’ or ‘pre-settled’ status in the United Kingdom.
• No double sponsorship: You are not currently receiving any other scholarship funded by a single company (e.g. from the IET Power Academy or the E3 Academy). University scholarships are permitted, provided they are not linked to any paid work.
• No previous withdrawal: You have not yet terminated a UKESF scholarship, unless it ended for reasons beyond your control.

How to apply

You apply online via the UKESF application system. You first select a company you wish to apply to, and then, once your initial application has been reviewed, you can add up to two further companies. The application period begins in September. The application round for 2025/26 has already closed; the next one begins in September 2026. The companies will select which candidates to invite for an interview – usually between November and January – and you will receive a response by mid-February.

How realistic are your chances?

This programme is aimed exclusively at electronics students at the universities listed under 30 who have already completed their first year of study but are not yet in their final year; the pool of eligible applicants is therefore small. If you clearly fit this profile and have a grade point average of 60%, your chances are good. However, you will still need to convince a single company of your suitability during the interview; it is therefore helpful to apply to several companies and prepare thoroughly.