A number of scholarships are available for eye healthcare professionals working in Scotland who have been accepted for admission to the online MSc in Primary Care Ophthalmology programme in academic year 2021-2022, thanks to funding from the Scottish Government.
Award
The value of each scholarship is £1,000 annually, which will be deducted from the annual tuition fees for successful applicants' part-time programme of study (3 years). These new scholarships are designed to support the education and training of practitioners residing and working in Scotland who are contributing to their national and/or local COVID-19 recovery plan for ophthalmology which will feature fewer consultant-led outpatient clinics. The Hospital Eye Services in the Scottish NHS are increasingly becoming dependent on community and hospital optometrists, ophthalmic nurses, and ophthalmic allied health professionals such as orthoptists and dispensing opticians.
Eligibility
The scholarships will be awarded to applicants who are accepted for admission to the online learning MSc in Primary Care Ophthalmology at the University of Edinburgh in 2021/22. Applicants should already have been offered a place at the University of Edinburgh and should have firmly accepted that offer or be intending to do so.
Applicants must be: community or hospital optometrists, ophthalmic nurses, orthoptists, dispensing opticians, or other ophthalmic health professionals involved in delivering eye care in/for the Scottish NHS.
Criteria
The scholarship will be awarded broadly on the basis of academic merit and evidence of a commitment to and involvement in their national and/or local COVID-19 recovery plan for ophthalmology or optometry and who have an interest in extending their role.
Applying
1. Complete an online EUCLID application for admission to the MSc in Primary Care Ophthalmology
– instructions on the full application process can be found on the University’s degree finder page for the MSc in Primary Care in Ophthalmology. Deadline for EUCLID applications for admission is 27 August 2021. Wait for decision on application via EUCLID.
2. Complete The Scottish Government Scholarship in Ophthalmology Application Form (Word document) and email it to Karen Muir (karen.muir@ed.ac.uk ) by 12 noon on 30 July 2021.
You will be asked to enter the following information on the form:
a) Name and University Application Number
Enter your name and University application number (UUN). You will have received a UUN from your online EUCLID application for a place on the MSc.
b) Your Profession
Tell us your ophthalmic profession and how long you have been qualified.
c) Tell Us Where in Scotland You Are Based
Tell us where you reside, where you work and the name and type of employer [e.g., NHS or community optometry practice (multiple or independent)]. Tell us which health board(s) you work for and/or are listed with.
d) Personal Statement
Include a personal statement (maximum 500 words) in which you describe the following:
your reason for applying for the Masters programme, how undertaking this course of study will benefit your career, and how you envisage this course enhancing your working practices to help your national and/or local ophthalmology services recover in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Acknowledgement of your scholarship application will be provided by the ESO team in due course.
If your application for a scholarship is successful, you must meet all of the University’s eligibility criteria for an unconditional offer of a place on the MSc in Primary Care Ophthalmology which must also be accepted.
Please note that these scholarship awards are likely to be oversubscribed and there is no guarantee you will be successful.
All applicants will be notified of the outcome by Friday 27 August 2021.
Contact: Karen Muir, Ophthalmology Programme Administrator
Email: karen.muir@ed.ac.uk
