Money to learn for part-time higher education
Part-time students from England studying for their first higher-education course are eligible to apply for Student Finance for tuition fees and maintenance loan if they are studying at least 25% of a full-time course.
Your university or college sets your tuition fee, and the loan is paid directly to them by Student Finance. You can get up to £6,935 in an academic year towards tuition fees.
The amount of maintenance loan you can get to live on will depend on
- where you live while studying
- your household income
- your course intensity
You can use the Student Finance Calculator to estimate your maintenance loan.
If you already hold an honours degree or higher-level qualification, you may be eligible for a loan to study a further honours degree.
If you're looking to re-skill or up-skill in subjects such as psychology, science, computing, maths, nursing or healthcare, you could be eligible for a tuition fee loan from Student Finance England
Repayment of Student Finance
Part-time students will start to pay back their loan four years after the start of the course or the April after they finish their course, whichever come first, if they are earning more than £25,000 a year.
Find out more about repayments here.
Other financial support
Part-time students who are eligible might also be able to claim Disabled Students Allowances (DSA).
Contact the university or college you are applying to for more information about their bursaries and scholarships.
Open University Study and Costs
Use the OU Finance finder tool to see different ways of funding your course.
- 80% of students borrow money through a part time tuition fee loan Student Finance.
- Some employers pay towards the cost of fees, especially if the course is relevant to the job.
- Some students borrow the money from the Open University Student Budget Account [OUSBA] and then pay it back in monthly instalments.
You only pay for the module you are going to study at the time, and not the whole course.
Most OU
students will study one or two 60 credit module a year which costs £1,104 per module
A full degree is 360 credits (6 modules) and would cost £6,624
Additional Financial Support from the OU
The OU also offers a range of bursaries and scholarships [ free money] to carers, care leavers, disabled veterans and people from black and ethnic minority backgrounds.