Student Loan Company Funding

							                            Student Loan Company Funding

The information below is for students who have not studied at Higher
Education level before. If you have previous study you may not be entitled
to receive all of the funding mentioned below.

Student Loan
The Student Loan is designed to help with your living costs such as rent/mortgage, food,
travel, etc. It is not designed for any other purpose such as major household repairs, having
central heating installed in your home, buying a car or very expensive computers!

Am I Eligible?
It is available to all full time and sandwich students as well as full/part time PGCE students.
To be eligible for a Student Loan you must be aged under 60.

How Will My Loan Be Paid?
Your loan is usually paid in three instalments, one at the start of each term, directly into
your bank account. Student Finance Direct will issue a payment schedule letter to you
which will explain what amounts will be paid and when.

How Much Can I Borrow?
This will depend on your household income and where you live whilst you study. The
amounts you can borrow are shown in the table below. Of this loan entitlement 75% is non
income assessed and the remaining 25% is income assessed.

Your 'household income' means either

       Your income - if you are an independent student i.e. over 25 at the start of your
        studies, married before the start of your studies, you have supported yourself
        financially for at least 3 years before you start the course, you have no living
        parents or you have the care of a child under the age of 18 on the first day of your
        course.
       Your parent’s income - if you are a dependent student.

If your parent/parents do not provide details of their annual income then you will only be
assessed for the non income assessed elements of funding.



Loan Rates                                   Maximum Available
London                                       £6475
Elsewhere                                    £4625
Overseas                                     £5510
Living with parents                          £3580
 Loan rates are slightly higher for students living in London (and not in their parental home)
 to accommodate the higher cost of living there.

 Tuition Fee Loans
 Universities are now allowed to vary the amount of fees they charge new students. They
 can charge anything between zero and £3145 per year.

 You can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan to cover the cost of these fees. If you apply for this
 loan the Students Loan Company will pay the fees directly to your university. You will then
 repay this loan in the same way as any other student loan - once you have finished studying
 and are earning over the repayment threshold of £15, 000 per year.

 Grants And Other Assistance

 Maintenance Grant
 New full-time students from lower income households may be eligible to receive a
 Maintenance Grant which is worth up to £2,835 per year. The actual amount you will be
 entitled to receive will depend on your household income.

        Household income of £25,000 or less           = Full Grant
        Household income of 25,000 - £60,005          = Partial Grant
        Household income of £60,006                   = No Grant


 Special Support Grant
 The Special Support Grant is available to new students who are eligible to receive Income
 Support and other means-tested benefits such as Housing Benefit. It will cover additional
 course costs such as books, equipment, travel and childcare that result from attending your
 course. The amount of support and the income assessment arrangements are the same as
 for the Maintenance Grant above. New students who are receiving the Maintenance Grant
 and gap year students are not entitled to receive a Special Support Grant.

 Bursaries And Other Help From Your University Or College
 Universities and colleges wishing to charge more than £2,835 a year are required to provide
 additional non-repayable financial support, such as bursaries, to students on these courses
 who are receiving the full £2,835 maintenance grant (or Special Support Grant).

 This means that students who receive the full maintenance grant and are being charged the
 maximum fees will receive at least £310 a year in additional financial support from their
 university or college.




www.ubsu.org.uk        T:01204 900850          F:01204 900 860             E:info@ubsu.org.uk

                                                                    Last updated February 2009