Money for studying at college and university

Government announces more money for students going into higher education

From Autumn 2008, more students going into higher education will be able to claim a non-repayable grant.

Click here to find out about the increased funding for higher education students

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Tuition Fees

Universities can charge up to £3,145 per year in 2008/2009 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. They will be able to put off payment of their fees until after their course. Students will start paying off their fee loan after they leave higher education and are earning more than £15,000 a year.

Bursaries

You will qualify for a bursary if you are studying for a full time course and:

you receive the full Maintenance Grant or Special Support Grant.
you pay tuition fees of up to £3,145 (for 2008/2009).

A bursary is another type of grant that does not have to be paid back. Bursaries are usually between £305 to £3,000; this would mean that if you are paying tuition fees of £3,145 and receiving a full maintenance grant you would receive a minimum bursary of £305. However bursaries vary between universities with many offering 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.

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 2008 to 2009 loans will be available up to £6,475 per year. The amount of loan you can apply for depends on your household income and where you live. The lower your household income the higher the loan amount will be. But, all students are entitled to borrow up to 75% of the maximum loan amount.

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 £5.20 a week. There is no interest on the loans other than the rate of inflation and any outstanding amount is written off after 25 years. The payments are made through the tax system.

Maintenance Grant or Special Support Grant

Full time students can apply for a Maintenance Grant or Special Support Grant, which doesn’t have to be paid back, of up to £2,835 per year in 2008/2009 for living costs. The amount of grant you can get depends on your household's income. Some students from low income families will get the full grant, others will get a partial grant and students from higher income households will not get any grant. If you get the Maintenance Grant, some of it is paid instead of the Student Loan for Maintenance. So, if you’re a student from a lower income household, you will have a smaller loan to repay when you finish studying and start work.

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 Special Support Grants including how much you could be entitled to at: Direct.gov.uk

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 you 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. The info below is a rough guide but speak to your Connexions personal adviser or social worker for more detail.

If you reached 16 after October 2001 then your local Social Services department will probably be responsible for helping you with the costs of your accommodation during the holidays.

Applying for Financial Support

You need to complete a student support form (called PN1) in order to apply for your Student Loan, Maintenance Grant and any help available towards your fees. You can choose to complete a paper form or apply online. The paper form should be available in your school or college or from your local council’s education department. You can also download the form from the Student Support web site. To apply on-line go to the Student Finance web site.

If you think you qualify for a bursary or scholarship from your place of study you should apply as soon as you have a confirmed place on your course.

Some universities and colleges look after their own bursaries and scholarships and some are handled by Student Finance Direct. Search for your university or college on the UCAS website to find out who you should apply to.

Leicester City Council Education Department- Grants and Loans
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

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 ie 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.

Real life student finances

All about U!

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Student calculator

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Student money profiles

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Last Updated: 15-Apr-2008