Definition of the target group(s)

The state guarantees an academic social support system in higher education to improve access and academic success with positive discrimination for economically underprivileged students with suitable educational attainment.

Academic social support ensures that no student is excluded from the higher education system due to lack of means, with direct support for certain target groups (scholarships and emergency aid) and indirect support (access to food and accommodation, health services, support for cultural and sports activities and other educational support, the latter of which are intended for all students in general.

Direct social benefits are designed for different target groups, although students can benefit from more than one.

Specific support measures

The state also provides other support, such as merit scholarships for students who are academically exceptional, support for students with special needs, such as disabled students, as well as mobility grants and the promotion and implementation of a system of loans to facilitate student autonomy.

Scholarships for higher education students

Students that need financial aid are assessed considering the following factors:

• socioeconomic disadvantaged background
• displacement
• disabilities.

The main student population that is targeted in these measures, considering principles of equal opportunities to access and study in higher education, are those that come from lower socioeconomic social strata.

Mobility grant + Superior

The mobility grant is designed to support students who want to study in higher education in areas where there is a low level of population pressure, moving from their place of origin.

The target groups for this grant are students applying for higher education and who tend to live in large cities and benefit from social benefit scholarships.

Scholarships for students with disabilities

This scholarship promotes higher education access and attendance for students with special needs, supporting their academic pursuits and ensuring equal opportunities and better social and academic integration.

Students who prove a degree of incapacity equal to or greater than 60% can benefit from this scholarship.