The Ministry of Education and Vocational Training of the Spanish Government has awarded scholarships this academic year to nearly 14,000 university and non-university students in the province of Almeria, for which the Spanish Government has earmarked an investment of nearly 26 million euros. Throughout the month of March, the Ministry will open the call for applications for study grants for the 2024-2025 academic year.
Around 9,000 non-university students and another 5,000 students studying university degrees in Almeria have benefited from the new income thresholds for scholarships and study grants that the Government approved last year, a measure to which was added the historic investment of 2,520 million euros to ensure equal opportunities and training for students without the economic situation of their families being an obstacle to this. The sub-delegate of the Government, José María Martín, highlighted that the budget for scholarships approved last year was «the largest in history and has allowed nearly 14,000 young people from Almeria to enjoy this right». «The government began a journey in this legislature that it wants to continue to address, improving the budget for scholarships and improving the management of resources so that students can see the full amount of their scholarship paid as soon as possible,» he said.
Nationally, more than 1.57 million students from all over the country applied for scholarships last year. In order to be able to attend to as many students as possible, the government has been increasing, year by year, the budget allocated to scholarships.
Thanks to increased investment and streamlined processing, it was possible to bring forward to December the payment of part of the variable amount for more than half a million students. The first payment was also made to public universities in compensation for free tuition fees for scholarship holders.
Changes in income thresholds
Over the last six years, in addition to increasing the budget by more than one billion euros, the government has been introducing changes in the call for applications with the aim of ensuring that the grants reach the students who need them most and thus improve the equity and quality of the education system.
In the current academic year, the main novelty is the increase in the amount of the residence grant, from 1,600 to 2,500 euros, to help students who have to move from their home town to continue their studies. In addition, a supplementary grant of €400 was included to cover the additional costs that families of students with specific educational support needs have to face.
This aid will be maintained for the 2024-2025 academic year. The main new feature is the 5% increase in all income thresholds, which will prevent some students who in recent years have been excluded from these grants for slightly exceeding these limits from obtaining them again.
In addition, the percentage of disability that must be accredited in order to apply for grants for students with specific educational support needs will be reduced to 25%, and the measures that until now have been applied to victims of gender violence will be extended to minor victims of sexual violence.
Contribution of scholarship holders
On the other hand, the Government sub-delegate in Almería, José María Martín, referred to the contribution to the Social Security system for scholarship holders who carry out unpaid internships, a measure that came into force on 1 January.
University students who carry out internships to obtain official bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees, as well as their own degrees (lifelong learning master’s, specialisation or expert diploma) must be included in the Social Security system as employees. Likewise, persons who carry out vocational training placements must be included, as long as they are not intensive vocational training.