Are you a UK citizen planning to study a postgraduate degree in the U.S? Are you desperately searching for top-up funding to support your studies? Perhaps you’re already studying a postgraduate degree, but you’ve run out of money or need a bit more cash to support your time in America.
If ANY of the above apply to you… then you should definitely apply for the BUNAC BEST Award.
(See my article here for a deeper dive into funding a Postgraduate degree in America).
What is the BUNAC/Jenza?
For those of you who don’t know, JENZA is an organisation that supports travel and cultural exchange between the UK and the US. You might already know them for their popular working holiday, volunteering, or Summer Camp USA packages, where they often help with funding flight placements and visas. They are all about promoting travel, global work experience, and cross-cultural activity.
However, what many people don’t know is that they also administer a fantastic funding pot specifically for British postgraduate students: The BUNAC BEST Scholarship (BUNAC Educational Scholarship Trust).
What is the BUNAC BEST Scholarship?
The BEST scholarship is essentially a “top-up” fund designed for UK passport holders who have already secured a place on a postgraduate course (Master’s or PhD) at an American or Canadian university but are facing a funding gap.
It is funded by the BUNAC Educational Scholarship Trust - a registered UK charity focused on education through travel. Each year, they have a total pot of around £60,000 and individual students can request up to £15,000 to help cover their tuition/living costs during their postgraduate degree. It’s easily one of the most substantial and flexible top-up awards available for transatlantic study.
Also… nobody really knows about it so it’s definitely worth applying to!!!
The Application Process
Applications usually open at the end of January or start of February and they close pretty quickly - normally in early March. Hopefully by early January you should have a rough idea of what school/university you’re going to (even if you haven’t been accepted) which means you’ll also have an idea of how much your time in America is going to cost (spoiler alert: it ain’t gonna be cheap). Understanding your degree/living costs for the year is crucial because the BEST Scholarship is a ‘top-up’ fund so they really want to see:
A gap in your funding that they can potentially fill.
That you have other funding in place (you can’t just rely on the BEST Scholarship. They want to see that you have other funds and that they are simply ‘filling a gap’).
Let’s be real: the application is dense. In some ways, I’d say it’s more comprehensive than the Fulbright scholarship application (which is crazy because Fulbright is seen as really competitive). But, while Fulbright focuses heavily on your academic study and why America is the only place you can do your research, BUNAC focuses much more on your day-to-day life in North America, what you’ll do while you’re there, and how you will personally benefit from the cultural exchange.
I actually found the application process really helpful. It forces you to consider practical questions about living in the U.S. It also asks you to state exactly how much money you need, so if you haven’t made a detailed budget by this stage… I highly suggest you do.
The application consists of the following:
1) The Financial Breakdown
First, you’ll need to input the financial basics:
The University (or universities) you are planning to go to and their annual tuition cost.
Your estimated annual maintenance/living/health costs. (Combined with your University costs, this gives your total cost for the year).
Any additional funding or personal savings you have already secured.
The remaining financial “gap” and exactly how much you’re requesting from BUNAC.
2) The Essay Questions
You then have to answer six essay questions and you have a strict 250-word limit for each:
Why do you feel you should be awarded a BEST Scholarship?
What factors influenced your decision to choose North America for your course of study?
What do you think are the demands of living & studying in North America? How do you feel you will respond to them?
What are your immediate post-graduation plans and longer-term career intentions? How will the experience of studying in North America help you?
How do you feel your time in North America will contribute to transatlantic understanding in both the short and long term?
What will you do if you are not successful in your efforts to obtain adequate funding for your proposed course in North America?
3) References
You submit your answers via an online portal. Alongside your answers to the above questions, you must submit two references. A word of warning: your referees have to fill out specific BUNAC BEST scholarship form, so it’s not just a simple case of them uploading a standard letter of recommendation. Make sure you contact your references early so they have time to do this. However, you are the one to upload the references onto the portal so that gives you a bit of control over the process e.g they don’t have to submit through the portal (they just send the form to you).
The Long Wait and the In-Person Interview
The deadline for applications is usually around the 7th of March. After that, you don’t hear anything for a long time. It wasn’t until April 29th that I finally got invited for an interview. You have to accept the invite within 10 days of them notifying you.
WORTH NOTING: If they offer you an interview, it is normally on a Saturday and they WILL NOT change the date. If you can’t make it, you forfeit your chance at the scholarship. My understanding is there is no flexibility. There’s also zero financial support for attending the interview which takes place in London so be ready to fork out travel and accommodation costs if you’re travelling from afar (yello from the Highlands of Scotland). I had to pay for my own flights from Inverness to London, plus accommodation (luckily I had lovely friends I could stay with, but my point is it’s expensive and no travel costs are covered).
My interview was on the 30th of May. I would strongly suggest keeping the end of May and the start of June free if you apply for the award, because - I’LL SAY IT AGAIN - you have to attend the interview in-person in London - there is no Zoom option.
Additional Interview Documents
Prior to the interview, they will ask you to submit a comprehensive breakdown of your budget (which is why having that budget ready early on is a lifesaver). I have advice on writing a comprehensive budget here. They’ll also ask for a copy of your official university acceptance letter so you need to have a place at a University in America/North America to qualify (I think if you’re still waiting to hear back from your University then that’s okay but check with BUNAC).
The Interview Experience
They don’t tell you much about what to expect during the interview. I did email them a week before asking if I could prepare anything, but they kept their cards close to their chests. I will caveat that by this stage in my search for funding, I was head-deep in funding applications, so I was definitely overthinking everything.
Whereas Fulbright gives you most of your questions beforehand, BUNAC doesn’t give you anything to go by so you’re going into it in the dark (well…hopefully this article helps to shed a little light).
The panelists (I had three) will have your written application in front of them, though in my experience, they didn’t interrogate it too harshly. What they will look at closely is your comprehensive budget. Make sure that this is as detailed as possible so they don’t have to grill you on the numbers. Again, my budget example is here.
The interview itself was a bit of a blur, but below is a general overview of what was asked.
Interview Questions
1. The Icebreaker
You know it’s coming, but it’s still the hardest one to answer: “Tell me a bit about yourself and why you want to study in America.” After months of writing personal statements, it’s so hard to condense your life into a concise answer. I had practiced this one, but I could still hear myself rambling. I don’t recommend rehearsing an exact script, but definitely have a clear, punchy opening paragraph that will set you up well for the interview. I’ll repeat, the icebreaker is always the hardest question - prepare for it.
2. The Situational Question
This one really threw me. It felt like a corporate job interview. They asked for a specific scenario where I had previously engaged in cross-cultural activity. My mind didn’t completely freeze, but I hadn’t prepped situational examples (a bit silly of me). Definitely have a few stories/scenarios under your belt.
3. The Exchange/Political Question
I think they’ll always ask some form of cultural question like: “What do you believe is the UK’s biggest misconception of America, and vice versa?” You can get a bit political here. They want to see that you’re engaged with the world and US current affairs. I found that relating these big questions back to my own specific field of study stopped me from being too general/rambly. Also, the UK and US are actually quite similar in many ways, so don’t be afraid to turn the question on its head.
4. The Budget Question
I thought they were going to interrogate my finances, but I’d done a good job of clearly showing my funding gap. They asked how much I was requesting, and I honestly said the full amount (£15,000). They also asked what I would do if I didn’t get the money. For better or worse, I told them I would still find a way to go. Realistically, without BUNAC it would have been incredibly difficult to fund my year in America, but I was committed to seeking other loans and funding, so it felt like the honest answer. Maybe if I’d said I couldn’t go without them it would have worked out too, who knows!
The Outcome
Whatever I did, it worked! I ended up getting awarded the full amount (and my advice is that if you can clearly show you need the £15,000 I would just ask for it. Be bold.) They emailed me with the good news on the 3rd of June. It’s a really quick turnaround from the interview, which is lovely because you aren’t left waiting for weeks. The timing was also perfect for my visa application, as I could officially list BUNAC as a guaranteed income stream making my visa application more viable.
The Timeline Breakdown:
Mid-February: Applications open
Beginning of March: Applications close
29th April: Interview invitations sent
11th May: Deadline to submit supporting documents (budget, acceptance letter)
30th May: In-person interview in London
3rd June: Final outcome email
By far, this is the best top-up fund you can get for a Master’s or PhD in America or Canada as a UK student. It is highly substantial, and the trust genuinely cares about supporting students abroad. Also, I don’t know why but not that many people know about it, so if you get an interview I think there is a high chance that you will get some form of funding, even if it isn’t the full £15,000. I cannot recommend putting an application in enough.
As always, if you’re thinking of applying and have any questions, reach me at roise_nab.