Money to learn for full-time higher education courses
What's Available?
Most people who go to Higher Education apply to Student Finance for
- a Tuition Fee Loan of up to £9,250 to cover the fees. This will be rising to £9,535 from 2025.
- and a Maintenance Loan to help towards living costs such as rent and bills.
These have to be paid back, but not until the course is finished.
Apply online through gov.uk/student-finance usually from Feb/March. You can start your application without having confirmed a UCAS place.
What makes a student loan different from other loans?
If your course finishes in June you won't have to start paying it back until the following April, and only then if you have a job paying over £25,000 a year (if you took out a loan before 2024 then the threshold to pay back might be different - check you loan plan).
The main thing that makes it different from a regular bank loan is that the amount you pay back is based on what you earn rather than what you owe.
Repaying the Loan
You do not start making any payments until you are earning over £25000 per year. So if for example you were earning £30,000 per year you would pay back £37.50 per month.
Your loan repayments are automatically deducted from your earnings in the same way as income tax.
You pay interest on the loan at the rate of inflation [RPI] and pay it back over 40 years.
For more information Martin Lewis's Money Saving Expert has a whole section about repaying student finance.
You can find out lots more about “How student loans work” by looking at comparethemarket.com helpful guide which tackles essential topics, such as the two different types of student loans in the UK, financial support eligibility, and alternative financing options.
Student Finance Explained 2024 to 2025
How and When to Apply for Student Finance 2024 to 2025
Applying for a Maintenance Loan
You can apply for a Maintenance Loan to help pay for your living costs such as books and rent. How much you can get depends on your household income, and where you live and study. From 2025 maintenance loans are going up by 3.1%.
To see how much you could get to live on go to the Student Finance Calculator.
Saving Money by doing a Shorter Course
Some universities have introduced two year accelerated degrees - which could save you money. They have tuition fees at £11,100 per year rising to £11,440 from 2025. This could save you a year of living costs and some tuition fees.
Other Financial Support Options
There are also other sorts of financial support available - which you do not have to pay back.
Government Support
- You can also get financial support if you are a parent and have childcare costs or adults who are financially dependent on you.
- If you have a disability, learning difficulty, mental health condition or health condition you may be able to apply for Disabled Students Allowance.
To find out more about the help available go to gov.uk
Bursaries and scholarships
- Many universities will offer additional funding to certain target groups. This may include a bursary for students from a lower-income background, care leavers or disabled students. Each university will have a different offer of support, so check with the universities you are applying for.
- www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk
- www.thescholarshiphub.org.uk
- www.scholarship-search.org.uk
- Which? University bursaries and scholarships
Educational Grants and Awards
Some charities, trusts and organisations provide financial grants and bursaries to people for educational study. You can identify ones that you maybe eligible for and apply for these.
These could be linked to a geographical area, or because your father was in a particular occupation or linked to a specific course.
https://www.thescholarshiphub....
https://grants-search.turn2us....
Getting help sorting out the funding
When planning to study it is important to understand the costs and know your sources of income. You will then need to plan your budget so that you can manage financially throughout your study.