1. A Guide to Student Finance Vanessa Chetwyn School & College Liaison Officer

2. What do students have to pay for? Tuition Fees Living Costs The amount you pay to study at your chosen university Everything Else! Accommodation, Food, Social life, Course materials, travel Living Costs Student Finance

3. What do I have to pay for? Tuition Fees Living Costs  Universities charge up to £9,000 per year  Some NHS courses currently exempt from Tuition Fees  Fees due the day your course starts in the first term  No upfront payment required  Finance available for all UK/EU students The amount you pay to study at your chosen university What does £9,000 get you?  People to teach you who are experts in your chosen field  Facilities to be taught in  Resources to help you learn

4. Living Costs  The average cost of student living is £7,000 per year (more if you study in London, less if you live at home)  Includes accommodation, food, social life, travel, course materials, etc. Living Costs Everything else!! What do I have to pay for?

5. Living Costs Borrowed Money Government Loans Tuition Fee Loan Maintenance Loan How do I pay for it all? Other Sources of Income Scholarships Bursaries Part time earning Savings Bank of mum & dad

6. Living Costs Tuition Fee Loan  Tuition Fee Loans are provided by Student Finance England – Government Organisation.  Tuition Fee Loans can cover all or part of the cost.  All UK/EU Students are eligible regardless of household income.  Paid directly to the university at the start of the first term.  Repayments are deferred until after graduation.  Apply online via Student Finance England.

7. Living Costs  Maintenance Loans are provided by Student Finance England.  Amount available to students is dependent on where the student lives and studies (slightly more if study in London, slightly less if you stay at home).  All students entitled to apply for 65% of loan amount.  Remaining 35% of full amount is mean tested and dependant on household income.  Loan is paid in three instalments direct in to students bank account.  Repayments deferred until after graduation.  Apply online before starting university. Maintenance Loan

8. Living Costs Maintenance Loan * Figures provided by Student Finance England Calculator and subsequent to change. ** Amount available will be lower in the third or final year of study. Household incomeLiving at homeLiving away from home Living away in London £25,000 or less£6,904£8,200£10,702 £30,000£6,322£7,612£10,103 £35,000£5,740£7.023£9,503 £40,000£5,158£6,434£8,904 £45,000£4,576£5,845£8,304 £50,000£3,994£5,256£7,705 £60,000£3,039£4,078£6,506 £70,000+£3,039£3,821£5,330

9. Living Costs Other sources of funding  Childcare Grant – can cover up to 85% of childcare costs  Parents’ Learning Allowance – help for course costs for students with children  Adult Dependents Grant – support for those who are carers  Child Tax Credits/Working Tax Credits  Disabled Students Allowance (DSA) See www.gov.uk for more information Other Sources of Government Funding

10. Living Costs Disabled Student Allowance  Disabled Students’ Allowances (DSAs) are grants to help pay any extra essential costs students may have as a direct result of their disability, including a mental-health condition, or specific learning difficulty such as dyslexia.  DSAs can go towards human support, assistive technology, travel costs etc.  DSAs don’t have to be paid back and the amount awarded is based on individual need and not household income.  Download a DSA1 form and complete early as it can take up to 14 weeks to process.

11. Living Costs Other Sources of Funding

12. Living Costs  Majority of universities offer scholarships and bursaries to help towards both living costs and tuition fees.  Usually awarded based on:  Do your research when applying – visit university websites and www.thescholarshiphub.org.uk  Eligible students should apply direct to the university High academic achievement Household income Personal circumstance Scholarships & Bursaries Specialist skill set

13. Living Costs How to Apply

14. Living Costs How to Apply  All applications handled by Student Finance England (SFE).  All done online – www.gov.uk/studentfinance.  Applications open end of February 2016.  Apply for tuition fee loan and maintenance loan in the same application.  If you are applying for the full maintenance loan and wish to be means tested there will be two parts to the application – a student section and a sponsor section.  A sponsor can be anyone who the student lives with full time and is financially responsible for them. (Typically parents and step-parents).

15. Living Costs Before applying gather the following…. Students  Passport  University and course details – Don’t need to have decided your firm choice before applying just use best case scenario and amend later on.  Bank account details – must be your own bank account  National insurance number  Sponsors’ contact details (usually parents/carers/partners) – names and emails How to Apply

16. Living Costs Before applying gather the following…. Sponsors (Parents)  National Insurance Number  P60 or self assessment tax return if self-employed from previous tax year  Details of any other dependants  For means testing purposes only you will need to provide evidence of all earned and unearned income.  Unearned income can be in the form of benefits, pensions, savings and investments, monies from rental properties etc How to Apply

17. Living Costs Repayments

18. Living Costs  After graduation, tuition fee loan and maintenance loan are treated as one loan – therefore it’s one repayment.  Repayments start in the April after graduation and once the graduate is earning over £21,000.  The amount repaid is based on how much a graduate earns not how much they have borrowed.  Repayments are set at 9% of any earnings over the £21,000 threshold.  Repayments are calculated by HMRC and deducted via PAYE in the same way as tax and national insurance. Repayments

19. Living Costs Typical Repayments

20. Living Costs  If the graduate’s salary drops below £21k, repayments stop automatically.  Any debt remaining will be written off after 30 years.  Student loans are classed as unsecured lending and do not appear on or effect credit score ratings.  Repayments are the responsibility of the graduate only and can not be passed to parents/partners/future children  There are no penalties for making early repayments  Interest is charged at the point of acceptance and up to a maximum of RPI plus 3%. Repayment FAQ’s

21. Living Costs Interest Rates During study until entering repayments Interest rate is: Retail Price Index (RPI) + 3% Earnings below £21,000 Interest rate is: RPI only Earnings between £21,000 and £41,000 Interest rate is: RPI plus up to 3% Earnings above £41,000Interest rate is: RPI + 3%

22. Living Costs Common Queries Will students ever pay back the full amount they owe?  There is no official government research into this.  Unofficial research suggests that only students with a starting salary of £45,000+ upon graduating will ever repay their loans back over 30 years.

23. Living Costs Will you ever pay it off? Table taken from The Money Saving Expert – Martin Lewis’s website.

24. Living Costs Common Queries Do students still have to make repayments if they drop out of their course?  In short YES they do.  Amount repayable depends on when the student drops out. First term ie) Sept to Dec = Accountable for repaying 25% of loan back Second term ie) Jan to Mar = Accountable for repaying 50% of loan back Third term ie) April to July = Accountable for repaying 75% of loan back

25. Living Costs Common Queries What if a student moves abroad to live and work?  Although you won’t pay UK tax and not accountable to HMRC repayments should still be made.  Students are legally bound to inform SLC (student loans company) of any changes to their circumstances inc; where they live and work.  SLC will work out a repayment plan with the students and student pays direct to SLC.  Failure to notify SLC could result in the loan being recalled in full, the highest level of interest being applied and subject to court action.

26. Useful websites Living Costs Avoid Credit Cards Avoid Convenience stores Do you need your car? Martin Lewis’ Money Saving Expert www.moneysavingexpert.com/students Student Finance England www.studentfinanceengland.co.uk Official Student Finance Information www.gov.uk/browse/education www.gov.uk/student-finance-calculator Student Finance

27. enquiry@dmu.ac.uk 0116 2 50 60 70 @dmuenquiry Saturday 20 February Saturday 19 March