Top Banker Funds Economics Scholarships
Monday 10 December 2012
Chairman of Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM), Jim O’Neill, has announced a life changing annual scholarship programme for students at the University of Surrey during a return to the School of Economics for a special guest lecture.
O’Neill has committed to providing one undergraduate student at the University £3,000 a year for the full three years of their economics degree course. He will continue to fund an undergraduate each year for the next five years.
Dr O’Neill completed a PhD at Surrey in 1982 and has since had a successful career in banking. Together with colleagues, he has published much research about the term he coined ‘BRICs’, which refers to the emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India and China.
This significant award has been given in the first instance to Sophie Gwilliam, a first year student from south London, who will receive £3,000 a year for three years to help with her studies.
Speaking at the event at the University she commented: “This is really going to help me to achieve my aspirations. I’m the first member of my family to go to university and now I won’t have to worry about getting a part-time job and can focus on my studies. ”
Jim O’Neill has been Chairman of GSAM since 2010, he was previously Head of Global Economics, Commodities and Strategy Research at Goldman Sachs, having joined the company in 1995 as a partner, co-head of Global Economics Research and chief currency economist. He is passionate about education and has a strong track record in educational philanthropy, including as co-founder of SHINE (Support and Help in Education), a trust which aims to help disadvantaged young people at school. The new scholarship sees him extending his educational philanthropy into the realm of higher education.
Describing his own background as “pretty modest,” O’Neill is the son of a postman and grew up in Gatley in Manchester, where he went to local state schools. “From my own background and development and everything I’ve observed, you cannot grow productivity, which is key for economic growth, unless you improve educational outcomes, particularly for those who don’t come from a privileged background.”
The Scholarship is indicative of the strong links that the University of Surrey has with business and industry, other initiatives include the Santander Universities Global Division, where each year the new deal will provide the university with a range of initiatives including scholarships for graduates and postgraduates, along with international and national mobility grants for students and staff of the university.
Such strong links are reinforced with the University’s popular and highly regarded Professional Training Year which has led to an unrivalled track record for graduate employment – Surrey has been ranked consistently as one of the highest in the country for over a decade.
The University already has existing awards for students such as the Chancellor’s Scholarship which gives a £3,000 cash award and membership of Surrey Sports Park to fee-paying students who achieve certain grades and have selected Surrey as their first choice.
