With Support From Business Partners, 116 First-Year Vilnius University Students Awarded the 450th Anniversary Scholarship

Four years ago, in order to increase the accessibility of higher education and encourage talented yet financially disadvantaged students to pursue their academic goals, Vilnius University (VU) established a special annual 450th Anniversary Scholarship.

In 2023, this commemorative scholarship was awarded to 116 first-year VU students. However, three times as many students had applied for the scholarship.

According to Jevgenija Avedenij, Head of the Partnership Development Division, there is a clear tendency for a yearly rise in the demand for scholarships, which is why businesses are joining the University’s initiative. Out of all 450th Anniversary Scholarships granted this year, VU funded 96, while the remaining 22 were set up by companies cooperating with the University. This year’s support from business partners amounted to EUR 67,000, while VU allocated EUR 288,000.

"Each additionally established scholarship enables more students to acquire a university degree in a particular study programme. This year, ten Lithuanian and foreign capital companies, such as “Altechna”, “Hnit-Baltic”, “Thermo Fisher Scientific Baltics”, “EPAM Systems”, “Light Conversion”, and “Ekspla”, aided first-year VU students enrolled in studies in the fields of information, high-tech, physics, chemistry, geology, cyber security, telecommunications, informatics, history, and cartography," says J. Avedenij.

This year, “EPAM Systems” – a global digital platform engineering and software development company – established six scholarships (worth a total of EUR 18,000) for VU students pursuing a degree in the fields of information technologies, data science, and cyber security at the Faculty of Mathematics and Informatics as well as Kaunas Faculty. Linas Grinevičius, General Director at “EPAM Systems” in Lithuania and Latvia, notes that the company has decided to invest in young talents because EPAM’s values, our culture, and engineering excellence are focused on helping aspiring engineers develop their talents, foster creativity, and advance technologies, thereby assisting businesses and communities in enhancing their digital products and services. "IT knows no boundaries, and we are pleased to tackle barriers for talented students to acquire new knowledge and master skills."

Students of laser and light technologies, as well as physics, were awarded seven scholarships by the world-renowned Lithuanian laser technology companies “Light Conversion” and “Ekspla”.

"This initiative expands the accessibility of such studies, both in social and, potentially, geographical terms; thus, we consider it very relevant and much needed. As a high-tech company, we find it important to encourage students to enrol in the fields of the exact sciences, especially physics and other technological-engineering studies," says Martynas Barkauskas, Director of “Light Conversion”.

A scholarship worth EUR 3,000 can be granted to applicants whose average monthly family income over the last three months did not exceed EUR 500 per person, who have not already obtained a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree, who have not received the VU Birthday Scholarship, and who have indicated VU as their first preference when applying for first-cycle and integrated studies.

A ten-month scholarship of EUR 300 helps students from vulnerable social groups to adapt to a new environment and motivates them to achieve better academic results.