Luke Edgecombe Hits the Headlines!

Congratulations to Luke Edgecombe who has secured a soccer scholarship to Bethel University in Tennessee.  He has also recently been featured in the Times newspaper. US Beckons (with a discount) Luke Edgecombe is about to start a degree in the U.S, as are two of his friends. (Nicola Woolcock writes). All three have won sports scholarships.  Luke from Chertsey, Surrey is 18 and is doing his A levels.  He said; "I always wanted to be a footballer but that happens for only a small number of people, so I'd like to go into business. I am taking my degree at Bethal University in Tennessee.  I went through FirstPoint USA.  They interviewed me and created a video of me, showing my footballing ability and my history of playing football.  Then they put it online for Universities to view.  I was contacted by 25, with offers of annual fees ranging from $5,000 to $15,000.  The target was to get a soccer scholarship to make it cheaper than studying in the UK, now that fees have gone up.  I chose Bethal because they won the national championships in soccer in 2008 and were runners-up this year, and were the best team to give me an offer.  It's an experience I couldn't really turn down. They are charging me $5,000 a year, which is about £3,100, which is similar to what British Universities are charging this year, before fees rise to £9,000.  That includes catering, accommodation, football costs and a free laptop. I'll play a maximum of 15 games before Christmas, and after that I have to concentrate on my degree, which is business marketing.  I honestly don't think I would have gone to University in Britain, if I hadn't got this scholarship, because I would rather get into work without the debt, and work my way up." Luke Edgecombe_footage_01.03.12 from Firstpoint USA on Vimeo. Luke's Sports Consultant John Crawley was pleased to see Luke securing his scholarship and had this to say about him: "Luke is a very nice guy, and a good goal keeper.  He has played well at both his Client Games and at the Showcase event in December.  It was great that his Dad took such a keen interest and was very involved in the scholarship process with Luke.  Luke has the desire to succeed, and got many offers from different schools in the U.S, before he decided to go to Bethel.  I am sure he will do well, and wish him the best of luck!" Lukes point of contact in our Clearing & Compliance team was Craig Hughes, who has this to say about him: "Luke is a great goalkeeper, and I found himself and his Dad really great to work with. I know he will do very well at Bethel University and I'd like to wish him the best of luck for his time in the USA." Well done Luke! We would like to wish you every success at Bethel University and beyond!