The 1916 Bursary Fund: an evaluation of the initiative and its impact from the awardees’ perspective

Cummins, Annie; Brennan, Rebekah; Horgan, Aoife; Leane, Máire; McGovern, Sheila; McGrath, Patricia

The 1916 Bursary Fund: an evaluation of the initiative and its impact from the awardees’ perspective

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Box-2.-PDF-SOAR-Project-1916-Bursary-Fund-Evaluation-Report.pdf(821.89 KB)

Published Version

Date

2025

Authors

Cummins, Annie

Brennan, Rebekah

Horgan, Aoife

Leane, Máire

McGovern, Sheila

McGrath, Patricia

Publisher

SOAR Project, Access UCC, University College Cork

Abstract

In December 2017, the 1916 Bursary Fund was announced by the Department of Education and Skills to commemorate the centenary of 1916. It is funded under PATH Strand 2 and is designed to support students from under-represented groups to participate in higher education. Students awarded the 1916 Bursary Fund receive €5,000 per annum for the duration of their full or part-time undergraduate course. This report evaluates the impact of the 1916 Bursary Fund on the lives of the 2017 and 2018 awardees from the South Cluster. The South Cluster includes Cork Institute of Technology; Institute of Technology Tralee; Institute of Technology Carlow; University College Cork and Waterford Institute of Technology. The South Cluster is allocated 35 bursaries each year. The purpose of the 1916 Bursary Fund is to encourage educational participation and success for the most economically disadvantaged students from communities significantly underrepresented in higher education. The 1916 Bursary Fund is awarded to students who present with greatest need in terms of economic disadvantage and who are from specific target groups, namely: students with disabilities; students from under-represented socioeconomic backgrounds; lone parents; the Irish Traveller community; ethnic minorities; firsttime mature entrants; QQI entrants; and part-time students. Lone parents must account for 20% of awardees. The purpose of this evaluation is to assess the adequacy, impact and usage of the 1916 Bursary Fund from the perspective of awardees. Using a mixed methods design and informed by Yosso’s (2015) ‘strengths-based approach’, which highlights the ‘cultural based capital’ awardees possess coming into higher education and other forms of social capital they subsequently develop, this research considers how the 1916 Bursary Fund impacted on the awardees’ experiences of higher education.

Keywords

1916 Bursary Fund , Under-represented groups , South Cluster , Communities underrepresented in higher education

Citation

Cummins, A., Brennan, R., Horgan, A., Leane, M., McGovern, S. and McGrath, P. (2025) The 1916 Bursary Fund: an evaluation of the initiative and its impact from the awardees’ perspective. Cork: SOAR Project, Access UCC, University College Cork.