Thanks a million!

The Student Opportunities Fund has broken the £1 million mark in its fundraising campaign

The Student Opportunities Fund was established in 2003 to provide entry scholarships for some of the world's most gifted and deserving students whose financial circumstances could prove a barrier to studying at Imperial. Since that time the Office of Alumni and Development (OAD) has undertaken numerous initiatives to raise money for the fund, and a total of 60 scholarships have been awarded so far. Now, as the College celebrates its Centenary year, the fund has broken the GBP1 million mark!

Farhad Timuri, who studied bioengineering from 2003-06, was the first undergraduate Student Opportunities Fund scholar to graduate from the College. He comments: "I feel unbelievably privileged to have benefited from my scholarship. My time at Imperial gave me so many fantastic opportunities, and the fact that I was able to graduate with first-class honours really was the icing on the cake. It's great to hear that the Student Opportunities Fund has made GBP1 million and I know only too well the positive effect the money can have."

Over a third of the first GBP1 million has been raised through the College's bi-annual telethon campaign. The first telethon took place in February 2003, and since then Imperial students have called thousands of alumni in the UK and mainland Europe to ask them to consider making a gift.

Imperial alumnus David Hindle (MSc Geology 1989) is one of many donors who have contributed through the telethon. He says: "As alumni, our support is vital and has the capacity to change lives. Gifts to the Student Opportunities Fund make an immediate impact on talented students who might not otherwise come to Imperial.
Ji Yi Khoo completed an undergraduate degree in Chemical Engineering in Malaysia in 2004. Thanks to a scholarship from the Student Opportunities Fund, Ji Yi has been able to fulfil her lifelong ambition of studying here at Imperial College where she is the currently in the first year of her PhD. She comments: "The Chemical Engineering department here at Imperial is the best in Europe. I can really see the benefit of my research in practice and I can see how I am laying the foundations for my future. To all those who have donated to the Student Opportunities Fund I would like to say a big thank you. It really doesn't matter how big or a contribution a person makes, it makes such a huge difference to the lives of people like me."
 Another regular donor is the Rector, Sir Richard Sykes, who has given every year since the Fund was established. He comments: "Imperial's students are the lifeblood of the College and the premise behind the Student Opportunities Fund is that it enables the brightest students to study here, regardless of financial considerations. Students like Farhad show that the fund really works, and the level of support generated from alumni, friends and staff means that the fund will continue to support many more like him in the future."

With the first GBP1 million raised, the work doesn't stop here. Although the OAD will continue with existing activities and initiatives, plans are already underway to take the Student Opportunities Fund forward into its next £1 million.

The College has been awarded a place in the 2007 London Marathon and, as well as training hard in the hope of completing the 26.2 mile event in less than three hours, runner Ben Ryall is also busy collecting sponsorship towards the fund from staff, students and alumni. In May, a special Gala Dinner in aid of the Student Opportunities Fund will be held at Banqueting House in Whitehall. The event will target a corporate audience and guests will have the opportunity to meet some of the scholars who have benefited from the fund.

In addition to this, the College has recently unveiled a new way of highlighting the Student Opportunities Fund and thanking its donors through an eye-catching series of projected images in the Main Entrance on Exhibition Road which explain how the fund works, detail income to date and display a scrolling list of donors.

You can see your name added to the College's donor list by visitingwww.imperial.ac.uk/alumni/supporting where you can make a direct online donation, or, sponsor Ben in the London Marathon by visiting www.imperial.ac.uk/alumni/marathon2007