The Turing Scheme is a truly global programme with no restrictions on which countries or territories pupils may visit, as long as any prevailing Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) travel advice is adhered too.
According to UK Government 40,000 students will be able to study and work abroad thanks to the government’s new Turing Scheme, with universities and schools due to be told this week that their bids for funding have been successful. Over 120 universities, as well as schools and further education colleges across the UK, will be awarded grants from the £110m Turing Scheme – which will see 48% of places go to those from disadvantaged backgrounds.
As part of the new global scheme, Canada, Japan and the United States are amongst over 150 international destinations where UK students will be granted funding to take up work and study placements – alongside popular European countries such as Germany and France.
At the heart of the Government’s post-Brexit vision is an ambition to create a truly Global Britain to learn, work and trade with countries well beyond Europe’s frontiers.
The Turing Scheme, which has replaced the UK’s participation in Erasmus+, gives young people the opportunity to benefit from working and studying abroad, while boosting ties with international partners during the process.
The scheme also aims to improve social mobility across the UK by targeting areas which had previously seen lower uptake up of the Erasmus+ Programme, including across the Midlands and North of England – with universities in the West Midlands set to receive the most funding.
The total number of individual placements supported this year through the £110m Scheme stands at over 40,000 – exceeding the Department for Education’s own estimates. This includes 28,000 placements for university students compared with only 18,300 under Erasmus+ in the academic year of 2018/9.
The Turing Scheme, announced by Education Secretary Gavin Williamson last year, is named after pioneering UK war hero and father of modern computing Alan Turing, who studied abroad at Princeton University before going on crack the Enigma code in World War Two.