At the Barbican in London for the launch of his new publishing imprint #MerkyBooks, in partnership with Penguin. Stormzy’s #merkybooks is another way of trying to give those an opportunity to break into the industry. Stormzy accused Oxford University of rejecting his proposal for the Stormzy scholarship and has instead taken up an offer made by Cambridge University. The scholarship was created to fund two black students from underprivileged backgrounds to attend university, Stormzy would pay for their tuition and maintenance loan for up to four years.
In June, the prestigious Oxford and Cambridge university came under fire for its failure to take in students who are black and from underprivileged backgrounds. Stormzy, who’s from South London, was educated at Harris City Academy in South Norwood and excelled in school with six A*’s, Three A’s and three B’s despite having come from an underprivileged background. Often those from underprivileged background do not attend university due to lack of finances and have to sacrifice their education to contribute to the household.
Photography by Goodphotos.com
The Stormzy Scholarship was announced after the financial times shared that Cambridge colleges didn’t take in any black students between 2012 to 2016. And in 2017 admitted only 58 students.
Studying at University leaves students with a minimum debt of £50,000. Stormzy created this opportunity for those who feel as though starting university isn’t an option due to financial issues but can make it academically at Russell group universities. Another factor is due to the fear of rejection and the lack of a diverse community.
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A Representative at Oxford University commented saying that “We have contacted Stormzy’s representatives today to clarify we would welcome the opportunity to work together on inspiring students from African-Caribbean heritage to study at Oxford.”
We have spoken with Stormzy's management and clarified we are keen to work with him further, whether this is through @OxfordACS or the University directly, on inspiring more young people to study at Oxford.
— University of Oxford (@UniofOxford) November 8, 2018
Two Cambridge students have already been awarded the scholarship anonymously and there will be two scholarships awarded.
Words: Nia Tyrell | Subbing: Jake Woods