Digital Hardship Fund 2024

USW students who are studying on an eligible full-time undergraduate or postgraduate course in September 2024 and are based at a USW campus. The campuses are:

• Pontypridd (Treforest & Glyntaff)
• Cardiff
• Newport
• Sport Park

Cohorts that are ineligible:

• Partner College students
• Pre-sessional English
• Part-time students
• Courses taught solely online

The Fund is now closed to general applications.

New eligible students enrolling for the first time in the 2024/25 Spring or Summer term will be contacted directly via their Uni email address and given the opportunity to apply to the scheme within a month of their enrolment.

If you believe you may be eligible but you have not had an email, then please contact [email protected].

Applicants are reminded that they are solely responsible for ensuring that their application form has been submitted correctly and cannot make changes to applications or resubmit, so please check your answers before submitting.

The University reserves the right to request further evidence from applicants to verify their circumstances.

No, not everyone who applies will be awarded support. Applications will be assessed against criteria to ensure that those most in need of equipment/financial help receive support.

If required, the university will request evidence from you to support your application, and you will have a week from the requesting date to provide this information. If all the information required is not provided within this time, your application will be automatically declined.

Decisions are expected to be available within one month of the closing date and will be sent to your university student email account.

Successful students will be awarded a voucher which is to be exchanged for a refurbished laptop with a 3x year warranty. The laptop spec is as follows:

Lenovo ThinkPad T480, i5 8th Gen 32GB and 256 SSD

Product - LENOVO ThinkPad T480
Condition - Grade A
Memory Size - 32GB
Hard Drive Capacity - 256GB NVMe
Operating System - Windows 11 Pro
Keyboard - UK Keyboard (QWERTY)
Processor - Intel Core i5 8250U
Graphics - Integrated/On-Board Graphics Intel HD Graphics
Colour - Black
Screen Size - 14.1" Widescreen FHD Display

Vouchers are limited and applications will be judged on a case-by-case basis.

The decision of the University is final, and no appeals will be considered.

If you are an international student and successful with your application, then you can be assured that receiving this support is not considered as ‘public funds’ and therefore will not impact on any future visa applications that you may make. If you have any queries, please email [email protected].

No, students can make only one application per term.

No, students cannot make changes to their application after submitting. Applicants are reminded that they are solely responsible for ensuring that their application form has been submitted correctly, so please check your answers before submitting.

No - if you are studying at a Partner College, you should contact your college to see what support is available.

If you are experiencing IT issues accessing or submitting the application form, please take a screenshot of the issue that has occurred and email it to [email protected].

If you have any other queries about the scheme, please contact [email protected].

Please see options available to students: Options for Students | University of South Wales

Open Access suites: You can access computers in your campus library, check out the library opening times to see when they're available. There are also open access computer labs all over campuses available for you to use.

Laptop Loans: Laptop Loans | University of South Wales - All our campus libraries now offer a self-service laptop collection service. The laptops are offered on a first-come, first-serve basis and can be borrowed for a 1-week loan period.

Competitive Rates: IT Services have secured rates for students who have the means and wish to purchase their own equipment from Stone Technologies. Equipment can be purchased through their website Refurbished Laptops and Desktop PCs | Stone Refurb using the following discount code: SRISW-Q22024 (10% discount, no minimum spend).

Disabled Student Allowance: UK Students with long-term health conditions, disabilities, mental health or specific learning difficulties (e.g. dyslexia) may be eligible to apply to their funding authority for Disabled Students Allowances to pay for disability specific study-related support services and equipment including a laptop. The Disability team can assist you with this.

Healthcare Students on NHS Bursary Registered Courses: A grant of £200 toward IT equipment may be available for those students who are Welsh domiciled and have a home address within a WIMD 1 and 2 decile areas. This grant is administered by the faculty automatically following enrolment. All home students will receive an email from the faculty in October stating whether they are or are not eligible. There is no appeal process - the only eligibility factor is your home address when you enrolled. Please refer to your course page for further information Courses - University of South Wales

Student Support Fund: The university has a Student Support Fund for home (UK) students studying at a USW campus.

If you are a USW student at a partner college, then please contact your partner college for advice and guidance.

International and EU students experiencing financial difficulties are advised to contact the International Advice team and/or Student Money Advice Team to discuss their individual circumstances.