This section deals with student loans from the Government, which are administered by the Student Loans Company. Make sure you know all the figures marked in blue.
The majority of young people that MyBnk work with will be applying for full-time university courses.
IMPORTANT FACTS:
Full-time students can apply for:
- a Tuition Loan to cover their tuition fees, which is paid directly to their university or college.
- a Living Cost Loan to help with their living costs, which is paid directly to their bank accounts in termly instalments
New part-time students can apply for a partial tuition fee loan to be paid directly to their university or college, but they are not eligible for living cost loans( see caveat below).
From September 2018: Part time students can apply for a living cost loan (maintenance loan). This is only available for students who started their part-time course of study from 1st September 2018.
More details about part time student finance can be found here.
Detailed eligibility criteria for all student loans can be found here. But, in summary, students must be studying for their first undergraduate degree at a UK degree-awarding institution or similar, and be a UK national (or have ‘settled’ status or be ‘ordinarily resident’ in the UK). Students must be under the age of 60 to apply for a living cost loan.
| Remember that young people do not have to take out student loans. This should be reflected in how we talk about student finance e.g. ‘if you decide to get a student loan…’ rather than ‘when you get a student loan..’ |
When & how to apply
- Students can apply online for 2019/20 finance from late 2018.
- The sooner they apply the more likely they will get their loan through at the start of term – they do not have to wait to be formally offered a place.
- Students can apply for student loans up to 9 months after they start their course, but they are only guaranteed to receive their student loan by the time their course starts if they apply by the official deadline, which was 27th May in 2018. The exact deadline date changes year on year but is always at the end of May; make sure you find out the relevant deadline date for the students you’re working with.
- Application for all of these forms of support is through Student Finance England. To access it, students need to register and log in at the gov.uk website.
Tuition Loans
The Tuition Loan covers the tuition fees students are charged each year of their course, and is paid directly to their university or college. The amount they get depends on the cost of their tuition fees and not on their household income, but students must generally be studying on their first higher education course to be eligible for this loan. The UK government gives useful advice on how much loan you can expect to receive on https://www.gov.uk/student-finance-calculator
See section on Tuition fees
| Full-time student | Tuition Fee Loan |
| Full-time | Up to £9,250 |
| Full-time at a private university or college | Up to £6,165 |
| Part-time student(must complete a minimum of 25 per centof the equivalent full-time course load per year.) | Tuition Fee Loan |
| Part-time | Up to £6,935 |
| Part-time at a private university or college | Up to £4,500 |
Living Cost Loans
All full-time students can also apply for a Living Cost (or Maintenance) Loan to help with their living costs. This is paid into their bank account at the start of each term, once they’ve registered on their course. The exact amount they can borrow will depend on:
- their household income (their parents’ household income if they are financially dependent, or their own income (and their partner’s if applicable) if they are over 25, married, have a child or live independently. For more info on this see here)
- where they live while studying
- when they start their course
- what year of study they’re in
These figures are correct for students starting in September 2020.
| Full-time student | 2019 to 2020 academic year | 2020 to 2021 academic year |
|---|---|---|
| Living at home | Up to £7,529 | £3410 up to £7,747 |
| Living away from home, outside London | Up to £8,944 | £4289 up to £9,203 |
| Living away from home, in London | Up to £11,672 | £5981 up to £12,010 |
- All students can apply for the minimum amount (46% of the full amount) without their household income being taken into account. How much they receive of the remaining 64% will depend on their household income.
- Useful information: If the student is coming out of foster care and has less than £25,000 in unearned income, they are eligible to receive the maximum bursary. The household income of the foster parents will not be taken into account. More advice can be found at http://www.propel.org.uk/ and https://www.ucas.com/ucas/undergraduate/getting-started/individual-needs/care-leavers