How to fund your degree in process engineering?

Process engineering is a fascinating research area with many job opportunities in both industry and academia. In my previous articles, I answered the questions of what is process engineering and why to study process engineering rather than chemical engineering.

However, I believe there is still one important question that I left unanswered. As the course director for MSc in Advanced Process Engineering at Cranfield, I often get asked about the available funding options.

I truly understand this as I was there before! When I was getting my education in the UK, I had to find ways to fund it myself.

I managed to get partial funding for my studies through the Erasmus programme to do my MSc in Carbon Capture and Transport at Cranfield. It was based on the former Process Systems Engineering MSc. I say partial because the Erasmus pays (paid...) only the difference between the cost of living between your home country and your host country.

I also approached the industry in my home country with a request for funding. I wanted to stand out. So instead of sending emails, I found the HQ address for the key energy companies in Poland and send them letters. I remember I sent approx. 150-200 letters and received 2 replies. One rejection and one invitation for the interview. Unfortunately, I didn't get funding via this route. Therefore, I had to be creative in balancing my funding and savings.

Before I even started my MSc at Cranfield, I knew that I want to do PhD afterwords. This meant that I had to do really well in my MSc to get accepted for the PhD programme and get funding. I pushed really hard and it was worth it! Having finished with the overall score of 84/100, I managed to get a full scholarship for my PhD via EPSRC DTP.

Let me tell you this. I know it's hard to get a scholarship for your degree. But it isn't impossible, right?

Never give up! Don't take rejections as failures, but as feedback to improve your next application. If you can get at least a partial scholarship, that can make a difference!

Each one of us has a fascinating story to tell. Each one of us can contribute to solving global challenges. Let's work together to make the world a better place for all!

To help you out, I thought I'd share some ideas for funding your process engineering degree in 2021/22. Feel free to reach out to me if you want to discuss!

Scholarships available for 2021/22

GREAT Scholarships 2021: https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/funding/funding-opportunities/cranfield-university-great-scholarships

British Council Scholarships for Women in STEM: https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/funding/funding-opportunities/british-council-scholarships-for-women-in-stem

Net Zero Industrial Scholarships: https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/funding/funding-opportunities/netzero-industrial-scholarships

Santander Master’s Scholarships Programme: https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/funding/funding-opportunities/santander-masters-scholarships

Cranfield University GREAT Scholarship 2021 – China: https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/funding/funding-opportunities/great-cranfield-university-scholarship-china

Cranfield University GREAT Scholarship 2021 – India: https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/funding/funding-opportunities/great-cranfield-university-scholarship-india

Cranfield Scholarships: https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/funding/funding-opportunities/cranfield-scholarships

Delta Foundation Chevening Scholarship Taiwan: https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/funding/funding-opportunities/delta-foundation-chevening-scholarship-taiwan

British Chevening Scholarships: https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/funding/funding-opportunities/british-chevening-scholarships

Commonwealth Scholarships: https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/funding/funding-opportunities/commonwealth-scholarships

IGEM Postgraduate Master’s Scholarship: https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/funding/funding-opportunities/igem-postgraduate-masters-scholarship

ScottishPower Mastetr’s Scholarship: https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/funding/funding-opportunities/scottish-power-masters-scholarship

Institution of Mechanical Engineers Postgraduate Master’s Scholarship: https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/funding/funding-opportunities/institution-of-mechanical-engineers-postgraduate-masters-scholarship

CONACyT (Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnologia) – Mexico: https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/funding/funding-opportunities/conacyt-consejo-nacional-de-ciencia-y-tecnologia

The TAQA Arabia Scholarship: https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/funding/funding-opportunities/the-taqa-arabia-scholarship

Masters Compare Scholarship: https://www.masterscompare.co.uk/pgscholarship/

Marshall Scholarships: https://www.marshallscholarship.org/apply

The Australia Day Foundation Trust: https://www.theaustraliadayfoundationuktrust.co.uk/

General Sir John Monash Foundation: https://www.johnmonash.com/

Student loans available for 2021/22

Cranfield Postgraduate Loan Scheme: https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/funding/funding-opportunities/cranfield-postgraduate-loan-scheme

Future Finance Student Loans: https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/funding/funding-opportunities/future-finance-student-loans

Postgraduate Loan From Student Finance: https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/funding/funding-opportunities/postgraduate-loan-from-student-finance-england

Lendwise Postgraduate Student Loan: https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/funding/funding-opportunities/lendwise-postgraduate-student-loan

About the author

Dr Dawid Hanak, a Senior Lecturer at Cranfield University and an Academic Coach at Motivated Academic, aspires to bring a step-change in fighting climate emergency by academic leadership in research and teaching, and coaching future energy leaders. Dawid’s transformational research was published in prestigious journals and awarded, among others, by the Engineer, the EPSRC, and the Royal Society of Chemistry. Follow Dawid’s work on LinkedIn and read his academic blog.