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Here East Announces 2025 Scholars

We are delighted to welcome three new students to the Here East Scholarship Programme. Now in its fifth year of nurturing the next generation of talent in East London, this programme awards prospective students from our surrounding growth boroughs with full scholarships to study at the world-class universities based at Here East.

Our scholarship programme has been developing the next generation of talented East Londoners since 2021 – opening doors to higher education, work experience, and a supportive community right here at the heart of East London.

As our fifth cohort of scholars – Madison Scarlett, Kotryna Zeciute, and Olasubomi Akande – embark on their undergraduate degree courses, we’re proud to support this exciting next step in their education and career paths.

Providing full undergraduate tuition fees and supporting loan supplements, the programme is open to prospective local students from our four growth boroughs: Hackney, Newham, Tower Hamlets, and Waltham Forest.

Our newest scholars will be studying at LMA, Teesside University London, and the University of Staffordshire London, taking courses in Music Performance, Game Art and Design, and Cybersecurity. In parallel to their studies, our scholars will also have access to mentoring, networking, and work experience opportunities with the businesses on our campus.

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For the Here East community, this programme is about unlocking the full potential of tomorrow’s creatives, entrepreneurs and innovators – but what does the programme mean to our newest scholars?

Madison Scarlett, studying Music Performance at LMA, explained what this means for the future:

“This Scholarship means the world to me as it is an investment towards my future and I am eternally grateful for receiving it. I am now able to fully immerse myself in my studies without financial worries and make my family proud. Music has always been a key element of my life, and I’m ready to make this my career and inspire others to achieve what their hearts are set on.”

Kotryna Zeciute, studying Game Art and Design at TUL, highlighted how the programme will help to ease financial pressures and develop skills:

“I come from a low-income household. I applied for the Here East Scholarship in hopes of easing financial pressure that comes alongside university, growing skills through networking and work experience, whilst also fully focusing on my studies. I aspire to be a senior game artist at a company like Square Enix, Riot Games and Bandai Namco Entertainment. Taking up art as a profession would be an exciting and rewarding journey, being able to use my skills to create games people can enjoy and immerse themselves in. I believe that university will provide the perfect environment to further my skills and deepen my understanding of the process behind game art.”

Olasubomi Akande, studying Cybersecurity at the University of Staffordshire London, emphasised what career opportunities this could unlock:

“For me, this scholarship means that I can be a student ambassador. I can represent the school in many ways due to this scholarship. It also gives encouragement to people and aspiring students around me, as they can see the benefits of the scholarship. It helps with my future ambitions because after completing my undergraduate degree I won’t need to pay back the loan so I can focus on my future career aspirations to become an ethical hacker. Finally this scholarship gives me an advantage in the sense that I will have opportunities to receive work placements/internships in a cybersecurity setting.”