Student Loans and Finance

The financial help a new full-time student can get depends on the course, where they live while they are studying, and their individual circumstances.

Types of help for new full-time higher education students include:

• Tuition fee loans to cover the full cost of tuition fees
• Maintenance loans to cover the cost of living expenses
• Grants for living costs to cover the cost of living expenses
• Bursaries and scholarships from universities and colleges
• Students can also get extra help if they have children or adult dependants, or have a disability or specific learning difficulty.

For the majority of students, a loan will comprise of the tuition fee loan plus a maintenance loan, and this will be paid directly at the start of each academic term. Everyone on an eligible course qualifies for 75% of the maximum loan, regardless of income, and the rest is income-assessed. These loans accrue interest at the rate of inflation, which means that the amount repaid has the same value as the amount borrowed.

The repayment of loans is repaid through the tax system, and only begins after the student has left higher education and is earning over £15,000. This system of collection is known as Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR), because it tapers the repayment obligation according to the gross income of the account holder. It is distinct from the previous mortgage-style scheme in which the monthly repayments were fixed and account holders whose incomes exceeded the deferment threshold, were required to repay the entire instalment each month.