TELUS Friendly Future Foundation yesterday announced the launch of Canada’s largest bursary fund: the TELUS Student Bursary, supporting students facing financial barriers impacting their ability to enroll or continue their education. Created through a $25 million endowment gift from TELUS, along with an additional $25 million commitment in fundraising from TELUS Friendly Future Foundation, TELUS Student Bursaries are awarded annually to youth between the ages of 17 and 29 who are accepted into, or attending, any undergraduate degree or diploma program at any Canadian college, university or polytechnic institute, enabling youth across the country to access higher education.
While education opens doors to a brighter future, unfortunately not all youth have the resources needed to attend college or university. Recent reports state that 75 per cent of students find it very hard to afford post-secondary education and nearly 1-in-3 students have considered withdrawing from their studies due to financial difficulty. The TELUS Student Bursary program offers bursaries valued at $5K for university students and $3K for college students, helping break down financial barriers and further empowering youth to thrive and reach their full potential.
Aligning with the start of the 2023–2024 school year, TELUS Friendly Future Foundation awarded its first round of bursary recipients to more than 400 students across the country. Pulling from their own personal experiences, ranging from immigrating to Canada, to navigating the foster-care system and experiencing social injustice, these are the social impact leaders of tomorrow that will be driving climate action, advancing Reconciliation, advocating for human rights, and uplifting marginalized communities across the country and around the world.
By the end of 2023, TELUS Friendly Future Foundation will have provided $2 million worth of bursaries to students attending post-secondary institutions across Canada and through select post-secondary partners including University of Victoria, Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT), Humber College, McGill University and Indspire, a national Indigenous registered charity that invests in the education of First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples. In addition to financial support for their education, the TELUS Student Bursary seeks to help alleviate some of the additional challenges facing students such as affordability and career opportunities. Bursary recipients have access to free mobility and internet plans through TELUS’ Mobility for Good and Internet for Good programs, as well as mentoring, networking and other career development opportunities throughout their schooling and post-graduation, helping enable their ongoing professional success.
The next student bursary application window will open in spring, 2024. To learn more, visit friendlyfuture.com.
Darren Entwistle, President and CEO, TELUS
Through the TELUS Student Bursary, we are helping to empower and motivate young people to pursue their dreams, realize their full potential and create a better world. Building on the $120 million gift from TELUS to inaugurate the Foundation in 2018, TELUS’ additional endowment to create the largest bursary fund in Canada is a testament to our team’s unwavering commitment to ensuring every young person in Canada is able to realize their dreams of a post-secondary education. Together, with TELUS Friendly Future Foundation, our annual bursary program will enable thousands of youth who might lack the means to attend college, university or a technical vocational school. TELUS is committed to ensuring that our next generation of leaders have access to a brighter, more inclusive future, while they are also making a positive difference in their communities around causes that matter most to them.
Ashif Mawji, chair, Board of Directors, TELUS Friendly Future Foundation
In a world rapidly evolving, we cannot afford to leave any youth behind. The TELUS Student Bursary is not just about funding, but about belief in the boundless potential of our youth and the transformative power they hold. As the main differentiator of the TELUS Student Bursary, students will commit to undertaking a project that will have a positive social, environmental or health impact during their studies, helping ensure that every youth has the opportunity to not only get the education they are passionate about, but to also give back in the form of a social impact that they will champion and be self-accountable for.
