Last academic year, 215 students applied to the University’s Work Experience Bursary, up from 165 the year previous. While the acceptance rate was technically 100%, as each academic year there are 110 bursaries available, the number of students who missed out increased twofold.
Both years saw around £55,000 being awarded to students, with £20 in 2023-24 and £30 in 2024-25 being the lowest amounts awarded. Students can apply for up to £250 in each academic year, with students who are either on the full maintenance loan, Manchester Bursary, or Undergraduate Access Scholarship eligible to apply for an additional £750.
The bursary is designed to offer financial support for those undertaking low or unpaid work experience. To apply, students are asked to provide details of the work experience offer, their current CV as well as evidence of predicted expenditure. Work experience undertaken as part a degree programme, such as an industrial placement, is not eligible.
The University is restricted by the budget allocated to the bursary, indicating that for applications this year, they “will close on the 28th of June 2026 or once the funding has been exhausted, whichever point is reached first.”
As applications by final-year students and recent graduates to the UK’s leading employers have now doubled since 2023, the number of students turning to unpaid work experience or internships to gain experience has soared.
Unpaid internships and work experience are technically illegal under The National Minimum Wage Act 1998. However, 2025 research from social mobility charity the Sutton Trust shows that out of 614 interns surveyed, 61% had completed internships paying less than the national minimum living wage, with 21% not having been paid at all.
35% of graduates overall have completed an ‘unpaid or underpaid’ internship (an internship not paying the minimum wage), up from 27% in 2018.
Speaking to students at the University who have completed unpaid internships or work experience, financial barriers emerged as one of the strongest problems.
Priyanka, a final year Politics and International Relations student, highlighted the role of family support having completed internships in both London and Manchester, stressing “I think it’s a massive privilege to be able to afford it.” She contrasted this with peers who simply don’t have the option, recounting a story from a friend who told her: “I can’t afford to do an internship. I need to work over the summer and earn money.”
The cost was part of a similar story from Grace, a final year English Literature student who undertook a week of work experience at a large media organisation. On travel and living expenses, “I basically spent the amount I would have on a holiday”. Without free accommodation from friends, “it wouldn’t have been an option for me at all.”
Even local part-time placements carry hidden costs. As Mila, in her final year of Politics and International Relations, put it: “It’s not easy to just dedicate an entire day out of your week…it’s money as well, but it’s also time.”
Despite the benefits of going to university in Manchester, students repeatedly pointed to London-centric opportunities. Maaryia, an Art History student who hopes to work in the arts and culture sector after graduation, noted that although she’s lived in Manchester all her life, “there isn’t that much in the north…ideally I would look to the South, but you need funding for something like that.” Grace echoed this, “being from the North of England…it isn’t that cheap to get down and stay in London”.
The work experience bursary was seen as useful, but insufficient and unevenly accessed. It is only designed to fund travel costs or accommodation costs or a combination of the two. The University indicates that it cannot be used cover the cost of food, clothing, travel visas, travel insurance or other incidental expenditure or living costs such as utility bills.
Unlike other funds, like the Cost of Living Support Fund, students need to submit receipts to prove expenditure in order to have the award paid to them.
Maaryia, who received funding for one of her placements said: “it was just for trains…and they gave me a bit extra for lunches..,which is pretty decent.”
The University showcases several positive testimonials from students on the application website. Three students were awarded bursaries to help with the cost of international flights (Indonesia, Madrid, and Turkey) to travel to where they were undertaking placements, with others stressing it helped support with travel costs, or rent when other sources of income were delayed.
The type of experience undertook by those who submitted testimonies to the University varied widely, showing that the problem of unpaid or underpaid work experience is not exclusive to one sector or another.
Awareness of the bursary is inconsistent, with one student The Mancunion interviewed admitting, “I’ve seen it pop up…very briefly” while another had never heard of it at all.
Knowledge of the low success rate of last academic year would discourage future applicants. In the words of one student, with a “50/50 chance”, “why am I wasting my time? I’ve got enough to do already”.
Unpaid work has become deeply embedded in the pathways that students believe will lead to future full-time employment. Even those critical of the system often accept it as unavoidable. Referring to her aim of working in the media, Grace said “it’s just what you have to do if you’re in this kind of industry.”
Others described becoming numb to it, with Mila acknowledging that she’s “become desensitised to work experience being unpaid.” For many, the alternative feels worse. As Priyanka put it: “If you can’t get an internship… it’s doubly hard to get a grad scheme… it just adds up over time.”
In February, the University regained the top spot as the most targeted university by top employers, according to The Graduate Market in 2026 report. The top 100 employers reduced graduate hiring again in 2025 (down 5.1%) and are forecasting a further slight dip in 2026 (0.5%), bringing vacancies to their lowest level since 2012.
A spokesperson for The University of Manchester said:
“We believe every student should have the opportunity to gain meaningful real-world experience during their studies, regardless of background. All available Work Experience Bursary’s, which total 110, were awarded for the last complete bursary cycle. Supporting employability is central to our educational mission, and we are committed to widening access to high-quality work-related learning through a broad package of support led by our Careers Service, including internships, placements, mentoring, employer engagement and skills development.
“The Work Experience Bursary is part of that offer, helping to reduce financial barriers by contributing towards costs such as travel, accommodation and dependent care. While funding is limited each year, the scheme supports students to take up opportunities aligned with their career development, with payments made in advance where approved. Alongside this, we continue to work with employers and partners to expand access to paid internships and other funded opportunities, ensuring more students can benefit from meaningful work experience.”
