We are delighted to announce that the Sodexo Student Aspiration Funds are now available to all students, to provide support with your career aspirations.
There are two strands of funding:
Strand 1: Kickstart Your Business Fund
YSJ Kickstart Fund can help kick-start your entrepreneurial journey.
The Student Kickstart Your Business Fund is funded by generous donations from Sodexo as part of their commitment to supporting Innovation in their supply chain. The fund is aimed at pre-start up and early start up student businesses, and can provide you with seed funding of up to £500 to progress an initiative to start or develop an entrepreneurial activity. Successful recipients will be assigned a mentor and the fund will be supported by a programme of business start-up master classes which will provide additional training.
The money could be used for:
Research
Creating prototypes
Market analysis
Travel
Or anything else the scheme considers relevant to forming or developing a new business
How It Works
Strand 2: Sodexo Career Aspiration Fund
Aim:
- To provide all students with financial support to enable them to take paid Internships in London or Overseas or unpaid or low paid Internships in Yorkshire/NE region.
- To help remove financial barriers limiting career goals and aspirations
- To help first and second year undergraduate students apply for Company Insight days/weeks. As these Insight days tend to be in London, the grants can support students in need of financial assistance. The benefit of participating for students, if they go well could be invited to participate in the company’s summer internship or industrial placement scheme at the end of the second year.
Grants can support:
-
-
- Cost of living expenses
- Travel Expenses (Including Visas)
- Vaccinations
- Other relevant expenses
- Cost of travel and accommodation for participation in Insight Days ( Examples of insight days and summer Internships are detailed in App 1)
Application Process for Career Aspiration Fund:
Students are selected based on their submitted proposal, which must include a budget, a back-up plan, and evidence of employer interest. Students will also need to demonstrate how the experience will enhance their professional goals. Students who receive funding are required to undertake York St John Careers Badges and share their experiences with York St John University upon return. Sector Priorities and diversity of projects will also be taken into account.
How to apply
Students can get application forms for both strands by dropping an email to Jess Popplewell at j.popplewell@yorksj.ac.uk or to careers@yorksj.ac.uk.
-
