Royal couple return to university

A scholarship will be created in honour of the St Andrews University graduates

St Andrews will be brought to a standstill later as crowds are expected to gather to catch a glimpse of Prince William and his fiancee Kate Middleton.

The couple, whose relationship blossomed when they studied in the Fife town, will return for the university’s 600th anniversary celebrations.

St Andrews has created a scholarship in their honour, as a wedding gift.

The prince and Miss Middleton carried out their first official engagement as a couple on Thursday, in Wales.

They attended a ceremony at Trearddur Bay Lifeboat Station on Anglesey, where Prince William is currently based as an RAF rescue helicopter pilot and where the couple will set up their first home.

The pair, who are to marry on 29 April, met at St Andrews university and both graduated in 2005.

Prince William graduated with an honours degree in Geography and Miss Middleton with an honours degree in History of Art.

They return to Scotland’s oldest university to launch a fundraising campaign to raise £13m for new scholarships and student support.

The scholarship created in their honour, which will have a value of up to £70,000, will be open to applicants from all nationalities.

It will be awarded annually to a student who without such financial support would be unable to attend St Andrews.

The scholarship will meet the costs of tuition, if payable, accommodation and living expenses for a four-year undergraduate degree in science, arts, medicine or divinity.

Professor Louise Richardson, the university’s principal and vice-chancellor, will present the gift.

She said: “This will be the first scholarship of its kind at St Andrews and a reflection of this university’s commitment to ensure that we find, attract and support the most gifted students from anywhere in the world.

“It will guarantee that a high quality Scottish higher education can be available to any citizen of the world, that a lack of means need not be a barrier to study and that bright students who might otherwise have been unable to go to university can fulfil their potential.

“We were very pleased to make the offer of this scholarship as a wedding gift to Prince William and Miss Middleton and absolutely delighted that they have graciously accepted.”

Hundreds of staff and students will greet the couple in St Salvator’s Quadrangle, where Prince William will unveil a plaque to mark the launch of the 600th anniversary.

During the visit, the couple will attend a reception at University House and visit its museum, where they will be shown the Papal Bull from Pope Benedict XIII which conferred full university status on the institution in 1413.

The visit will be Prince William’s first in his role as patron of the anniversary fundraising campaign and the couple’s first official engagement in Scotland.

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