Students Helping Students Fund Request Form

The UB School of Social Work’s Students Helping Students Fund was created to help students through emergencies that might otherwise disrupt their progress toward earning their degree. 

It is supported by donations from students, faculty, staff and alumni. As a student-funded account, availability of funds may vary.

These funds offer temporary one-time financial assistance for immediate and current emergency situations. Emergencies involve circumstances that are beyond the student’s control, such as a death in the family, accident, loss of property, loss of income or unanticipated educational expenses.

Applying for Assistance

Students in need of assistance need to note the following before applying for funding:

  • Funding requests should not be used in place of financial aid, nor should they be considered a means to finance a student’s education. 
  • Each request should include a statement that outlines your specific need, how the fund would alleviate your need and how the need will be resolved/avoided in future semesters. 
  • If funded, students will agree to provide receipts — upon request — that document the expenditure of the funds. 
  • Students may only receive assistance from this fund once. 

Examples of situations where the Students Helping Students Fund might be used: 

  • Unanticipated practicum education expense (e.g. required personal liability insurance, monthly parking costs beyond typically expected/budgeted).
  • Assistance with replacing textbooks that were lost, stolen or damaged. 
  • One-time assistance with utility bill for unexpected disconnect or to assist with avoiding disconnect.
  • NFTA bus pass for students without reliable transportation to and from field placement locations.
  • Other life emergencies leading to financial distress.

Please note: The Students Helping Students Fund cannot be used for tuition assistance.

*Exemptions from these guidelines may be made at the discretion of the School of Social Work's Office of Student Services. A student's academic, financial and other relevant information may be used to determine eligibility. All applications will be treated as private and will be shared only on an as-needed basis.*

If you have questions or concerns regarding requesting funds, please contact Joshua Hine, assistant dean for student and academic affairs, at sw-studentservices@buffalo.edu.

Request Form