Funding

Nobody capable should be priced out by silence

Money is the most common reason a capable applicant in this region never enrols. Forward will publish every award, its criteria and its decision date, so that the answer you get is a decision and not a silence.

On award values

Each award below is published as a commitment with its criteria and its decision date. The monetary value is set with the founding-intake fee schedule, so every value on this page currently reads Confirmed before the founding intake. The criteria do not change when the values are added.

Awards

Five awards, all decided on published criteria

Four of the five need no separate application: a complete application to Forward is an application for them.

Merit

Founding Cohort Merit Award

Confirmed before the founding intake

Covers: A published proportion of tuition for the full duration of the degree
Who it is for: Applicants in the first-wave programmes with outstanding UACE or equivalent results, judged against the published entry requirements rather than against other applicants' schools.
How to claim it: No separate form. Every complete application is assessed for this award automatically.
When you hear: With your offer, not after it

Conditions

Renewed each year on mastery of the published capability thresholds, not on a class ranking
Held through the cooperative-education year, which is paid separately by the employer
Withdrawn only for an upheld academic-integrity finding, with a right of appeal

Access

Access Award

Confirmed before the founding intake

Covers: Tuition support plus the functional fee, scaled to assessed household need
Who it is for: Applicants whose schools' resources did not match their ability, and applicants carrying documented household financial need. Assessment is on need, not on charity narrative.
How to claim it: Complete the funding section of the application and upload the supporting documents listed there.
When you hear: Within fifteen working days of a complete funding submission

Conditions

Reassessed annually, because household circumstances change in both directions
Never conditional on public storytelling, media appearances or promotional use of your name
Combinable with the Founding Cohort Merit Award

Regional

Regional Award

Confirmed before the founding intake

Covers: A contribution to tuition for applicants from outside Uganda
Who it is for: Applicants from East African Community member states and the wider continent, prioritising districts and countries with no comparable provision.
How to claim it: Indicate your country of study in the application. Eligibility is determined from your prior-education record.
When you hear: With your offer

Conditions

Held for the full programme as long as your registration is continuous
Does not replace study-permit or travel costs, which are your own
Reviewed if you transfer between the Term Model and the Block Model

Cooperative education

Cooperative Education Continuation Award

Confirmed before the founding intake

Covers: The functional fee for the academic year that follows a completed placement
Who it is for: Students who complete the twelve-month paid placement with a passing employer assessment and a passing University assessment.
How to claim it: Awarded automatically on the recorded outcome of the placement.
When you hear: On confirmation of your placement result

Conditions

Requires both assessments to pass, not just the employer's
One award per student, per programme

Bridging

Bridge Continuation Award

Confirmed before the founding intake

Covers: A contribution to first-year degree tuition for Higher Education Certificate graduates
Who it is for: Graduates of FU-HEG, FU-HEP or FU-HEB who progress directly into a Forward bachelor's degree.
How to claim it: Awarded automatically on progression. No separate application.
When you hear: On issue of your certificate result

Conditions

Progression must be direct, in the intake that follows your certificate
Held for the first year of the degree, then reassessed under the Access Award

Paying

Four ways to pay, none of them penalised

An instalment plan costs no more than a lump sum. Forward does not charge for the fact that you are paying monthly.

Two payments per academic year

Pay per term

The default for Path One. Each term is settled before it begins, and nothing for a later term is charged in advance.

Suits: Students on the Term Model with predictable household income

One payment per four-week block

Pay per block

The default for Path Two. The smallest billing unit Forward offers, so stepping out for a cycle costs nothing beyond the block you skip.

Suits: Working students and anyone whose income is irregular

Monthly, inside a term or semester

Instalment plan

A term or semester split into monthly instalments at no additional charge. Requested in the enrolment step and agreed in writing before teaching begins.

Suits: Households paying from monthly earnings rather than a lump sum

Invoiced to the sponsor

Sponsor or employer billing

An employer, government scheme or family sponsor is invoiced directly. The student remains the account holder and receives every statement.

Suits: Sponsored students and employer-funded co-op progression

Payment channels

Mobile money
MTN Mobile Money and Airtel Money, to a named University collection account. Instant receipt to your student record.
Bank transfer
Local transfer in Uganda Shillings, or international transfer in US Dollars. Bank details are issued with your offer, never over social media.
Card payment
Card payment is being set up for the founding intake and will appear here when it is live.

Bank and mobile-money details are issued with your offer and confirmed on your student record. Forward never publishes collection account numbers on social media, and never asks you to pay an individual.

The refusal list, on funding

What we will not do

An award is a decision on published criteria, not a favour.

No award is conditional on you telling your story publicly, appearing in marketing, or letting us use your name.
No award is decided by a personal appeal to a member of staff. Every decision is on the published criteria and is recorded.
No loan is arranged, brokered or recommended by Forward through a commercial partner that pays us anything.
No agent, consultant or intermediary is paid by Forward for delivering an applicant, and none can secure you an award.
No student who has paid for a stage loses the credential that stage certified.

Next

Check the dates, then apply

Awards are assessed with your application, so the intake deadline is the deadline that matters.

Intake dates and deadlines Back to fees How to apply