Could our gifts enable LSE students to dream of better lives?

I had overcome a number of barriers to get to LSE; by 12 I had been taken into care. I think a combination of not wanting to be defined by my circumstances, and dreaming of better, drove me to do well in school. I used to think that “if I can make it to university, things will be better”. But with only 4% of care leavers attending university in the UK, the odds of my demographic attending an elite university, let alone getting a degree, have always been very low. My first year studying Economics at LSE was a culture shock – I didn’t really meet anyone like me — and some of my classmates were from very different socio-economic backgrounds. I felt discouraged and took a year out to work, pursuing an internship. It made me appreciate the role education could play in my life, and with renewed vigour I resumed my studies at LSE.

Thanks to the New Futures Fund scholarship, I now have the financial support to continue my education and be exposed to better career opportunities and different people.”

– Sinan Haji (BSc Economics 2022)