Money for studying at college and university

There are two types of support available to help you pay for higher education. Student loans for fees and maintenance loans that are repayable after you leave university and non-repayable maintenance grants and bursaries. You may also be able to get extra support if you have special circumstances (e.g. you have a child under 18 or you have a disability).

Tuition Fees

Universities can charge up to £3,290 per year in 2010/11 for tuition fees. The amount universities charge may vary between courses, as well as between universities. Students will not have to pay any money for fees up front, or while they are studying as the full cost is covered by a tuition fees loan which doesn't have to be repaid until after they leave university.

Repayable financial support

Student Loans

Students can get a Student Loan for Fees to cover tuition fees and a Student Loan for Maintenance to cover living costs. Student Loans for Fees (also known as tuition fee loans) are available to all students to cover the full amount of fees charged. This means that you will not have to pay for fees before or during your course and the loan will not have to be paid back until you have finished the course and are earning over a certain amount (currently £15,000 per year).

Student Loans for Maintenance are available to cover living costs which may include things like a place to stay while at university, books, food, clothes, phone etc. In 2010/11 loans will be available up to £ 4,950 per year. The amount of loan you can apply for depends on your household income, the lower your household income the higher the loan amount will be. Also where you are studying will effect how much you can apply for (students in London can apply for more money).

The loan has to be paid back to the Student Loans Company (with interest linked to inflation). Young people don’t have to start repaying their loan until they have left university and are earning more than £15,000 per year. If you have a Tuition Fees Loan this will be combined with your Maintenance Loan so you only have to make one repayment a month.

Rates are low at the moment (in line with inflation) and a graduate earning £18,000 - the average graduate starting salary - will pay £5.19 a week.

Non-repayable financial support

Maintenance Grant

Full time students can apply for a Maintenance Grant which doesn’t have to be paid back. The grant is for living costs and will be up to £2,906 per year in 2010/2011. The amount of grant you can get depends on your household's income. Students from low income families (up to £25,000 for 2010/11) will get the full grant, others will get a partial grant and students from higher income households will not get any grant. As long as your household income is less than £50,020 a year you will get some Maintenance Grant.

Some students will be able to get the Special Support Grant instead of the Maintenance Grant. If you receive the Special Support Grant it won’t affect how much you can get through the Maintenance Loan. Students who are likely to qualify include those receiving Income Support, Housing Benefit, parents and students with certain disabilities.

Students with children or disabilities, studying part-time or with money problems can also get extra grants to help with living costs.

You can find out more about Maintenance Grants and the Special Support Grant including how much you could be entitled to at: Direct.gov.uk

Non-repayable bursaries

A bursary is another type of grant that does not have to be paid back. The amount you receive will depend on where you are studying, your course and your personal circumstances. However if you are paying full tuition fees and receiving a full maintenance grant you would receive a minimum bursary of around £329 for 2010/11. Bursaries vary between institutions with many offering much more than the minimum amount. All universities and colleges have access agreements with details of their fees and bursaries. You can find these on the Office for Fair Access website. You can also contact your university or college directly to find out about their fees and bursaries. Other bursaries for students on low incomes may be available. Ask your college or university for more info.

Adding it up: the Student Finance Calculator

If you’re a new student starting in 2010/2011, enter your details into the Student Finance Calculator for an idea of how much you’ll get through Student Loans, grants and bursaries.

Disabled Students' Allowances (DSAs)

If you are disabled you can apply for this allowance to help with the costs you incur as a direct result of your disability. It does not have to be repaid and is not dependant on your family income. See the Directgov website for more information.

Help if you are a parent

You can get extra help to cover childcare and other costs associated with studying.

See the Directgov Website for more information.

Help for Care Leavers

If you are a care leaver you can get help with the cost of accommodation in the holidays whilst you are in higher education. Your local Social Care department will probably be responsible for helping you with the costs of your accommodation during the holidays. You will probably also be able to apply for extra financial support while you are at university. Speak to your Connexions personal adviser or social worker for more details.

Applying for Financial Support

The quickest and easiest way to apply for financial support is online. All applications for financial support for 2010/11 will be dealt with by Student Finance England. You can register and apply online on the Direct.gov website. If you want to apply using a paper form (PN1) these are available to download from the Direct.gov website, your school or college may also have some paper forms.

If you're applying for a bursary, contact your university or college to find out how to apply. Some universities and colleges look after their own bursaries and scholarships and some are handled by Student Finance England. The first stage in this process is to fill out your main student finance application. You'll be asked if Student Finance England can share your information with your university or college. This will allow them to calculate how much of the bursary you're entitled to.

If you started university in September 2008 or earlier your student finance application will be handled by your local authority. You'll need to contact them directly using the details below:

Leicester City Council Awards and Grants section
Tel: 0116 229 4300

Leicestershire Student Finance Service
email: studentloans@leics.gov.uk
Tel: 08456 077 577 (national enquiries)

Help from Charitable Trusts

Some students can get help with the cost of studying from charitable trusts. There are usually very specific criteria that you need to meet to get help. For example you may have to live in a certain area, have a disability or be a lone parent. The amounts of help offered may be quite small.

Use the Funder Finder database in your local Connexions centre to search for sources of charitable funding. Or find out more from the Educational Grants Advisory Service website.

Access to Learning Fund

Once you have started a course, if you have money problems which make it difficult to continue with your studies you can apply to your college or university for money from the Access to Learning Fund – sometimes called ‘Hardship Fund’. Ask at your university Welfare or Student Services department for more information.

Sponsorships

Some companies offer sponsorships to students in higher education. Each sponsorship arrangement is different. Some companies offer you payment sometimes called a bursary to top up other sources of funding or the chance to work for the company in your vacations. This can sometimes lead to employment with the company after your course but there is not usually any contract that says this must happen. Other companies offer work experience placements.

Sponsorships are most often given to students on vocational courses such as engineering, construction or business. Competition for places is high.

Find out more from the Everything You Wanted To Know site.

Benefits and Tax

If you're a student in the UK you have to pay National Insurance and tax on your earning just like everyone else. However because your income might vary over the year you may be due a tax refund. You can find out if you're due a refund by using the calculator on the Student Tax Advice website.

Some students may qualify for benefits and/ or tax credits. See our benefits and tax pages to find out more.

Refugees and Asylum Seekers

If you have Refugee status you will be charged fees at the home student rate and can apply for student support i.e. loans and grants. If you have been granted Humanitarian Protection or Exceptional Leave to Remain you will be charged fees at the home student rate and you can apply for Student Support once you have been resident in the UK for three years. If you are an Asylum Seeker still awaiting a positive decision you cannot apply for student support and you will be charged fees at the higher overseas student rate.

Further info on financial support

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Last Updated: 03-Feb-2010