University campaign to raise £100m

Scotland's oldest university is to launch a multi-million pound American-style fundraising campaign later this year to mark its 600th anniversary and help bring in more students from poor backgrounds.

St Andrews, which was founded in 1413, hopes to raise at least £100m as part of its anniversary celebrations, which run from 2010-2013. Under the plans, graduates of the university, associated spin-off companies, and philanthropists will be asked to make donations.

The initiative, unveiled yesterday by Dr Louise Richardson, the university's new principal, will also see the creation of new bursaries to attract talented students from poor backgrounds.

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While St Andrews has attempted to reach out to pupils from state secondary schools, a significant proportion of its pupils are privately educated.

Dr Richardson said the campaign would have the twin benefits of bolstering the university's funds at a time when public money could not be guaranteed, as well as widening access.

"If you want a really excellent university education you need to spend more money than you can reasonably expect the government to provide," she said.

"We need more funding for universities if we are to realise our ambitions to be internationally competitive.

"What I would also like to do is raise money for bursaries to make it easier for poor talented children to come here, so that we are out there making sure that every student in Scotland who knows that he or she is smart enough to get into St Andrews can afford to come."

The fundraising launch mirrors recent campaigns by the universities of Aberdeen and Edinburgh.