Sixty summer school students at the University of Dundee have successfully completed their intensive summer programme and have been offered places to start degree courses in October.
Sarah Al-Saffar is the first student ever to secure a place to study dentistry through the summer school. Sarah (18) originally from Iraq and a former pupil of Grove Academy is delighted to be embarking on the degree course she always wanted. Sarah: "I came to Dundee in 1996 and couldn't speak English. Thanks to the summer school I have now secured a place to study dentistry and am looking forward to starting my course in October."
Vice Principal Professor David Swinfen will present the successful students with their summer school certificates at a special ceremony tomorrow night which will be attended by the Lord Provost and University teachers. Lord Provost John Letford: "It is a pleasure to visit the University of Dundee to mark the success of these students. The Wider Access summer school is an excellent initiative which succeeds every year in recruiting some of the City's most talented youngsters who need a little extra support into their studies."
The summer school at the University of Dundee puts school pupils who expect to fall short of University requirements in their exams through an intensive ten week programme of lectures, seminars and assessments. The summer school is also a transition to education for mature students who have been out of the habit of study for many years. The Wider Access Centre at the University of Dundee which runs the programme has been recognised at UK level as a model of best practice for recruiting students from non-traditional higher education backgrounds to degree level studies.
Sir George Mathewson, Chairman of the Royal Bank who sponsor the summer programme said: "Our support for the summer school at the University of Dundee is part of our long term commitment to education and to social inclusion. The Royal Bank recognises that financial and social factors can prevent many young people from fulfilling their educational potential and that the best and brightest come from all sections of the community. Our funding for the summer school is an effective solution to the problems of financial support while studying and will make a big difference to the lives of many young people who are considering going to university and gaining the benefits that this offers."ENDS