higher education

Higher education is typically courses such as first degrees, BTEC Higher National Diplomas, Diplomas of higher education and foundation degrees.

• Eligibility
• Tuition fees
• Living costs
• Bursaries
• Travel expenses
• Childcare Grant
• Adult Dependants' Grant
• Parents' Learning Allowance
• Child Tax Credit
• Differences in Scotland
• Disabled Student's Allowance
• Access to Learning Funds
• Career Development Loans
• Benefits
• Tax credits
• Part-time students
• Social work
• Wales

Eligibility for funding

Residence
To be eligible for higher education funding you need to have been living in the UK, Channel Islands or Isle of Man for three years before the course start date. You must also be living in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland on the first day of the academic year of your course.

You need to be ordinarily resident in the UK and have settled status. This means that groups like refugees can apply for higher education funding.

Previous Study
If you've received higher education funding before, you'll only be able to apply for supplementary grants. However, maintenance loans are still available if you haven't already got a UK honours degree, or if you are studying to become a professional like a doctor, dentist and architect.

Age
Students of any age can apply for help with tuition fees. But you can only get a student loan to cover living costs if you're under 60 at the start of the course.

Eligible courses
The following courses are eligible for higher education funding:

• First degrees such as a BA, BSc, BEd, BEng
• Higher National Diplomas (HND)
• Diplomas of Higher Education (DipHE)
• Foundation degrees (not Access courses).

Some other professional courses, which lead to the equivalent of higher education study, also attract funding.

For more details on residency requirements, the rules on previous study, and which courses are eligible for higher education funding, contact:

• Your Local Education Authority (LEA) - find your LEA on the LEA Gateway
• learndirect Careers Advice - call us on 0800 100 900 from 8am - 10pm, seven days a week
• The Educational Grants Advisory Service (EGAS) - call 020 7254 6251on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday between 2 pm and 4 pm.

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Tuition fees

For the academic year 2007/2008 universities and colleges can charge between zero and £3070 a year for tuition fees. The fees will vary amongst different universities and courses.

Everyone has to pay the fees - they are not means-tested any more. But if you're eligible you won't have to pay the fees up front; you can apply for a Student Loan for Fees. The Student Loans Company then pays the fees for you. You pay back the Student Loans Company after your course finishes and when you start earning over a specified amount.

There is no age limit for applying for Student Loans for Fees.

There are different fee arrangements in place in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. If you study in Scotland you do not have to pay tuition fees.

Living costs

The money you use to live on while studying is often called ‘maintenance’. You can apply for a Maintenance Grant, which you don't have to pay back. How much you get depends on your household income. The maximum amount of Maintenance Grant is £2765 for the 2007/8 year.

On top of this you can apply for a maintenance loan. Anyone under 60 can apply for this loan. The amount you can receive depends on where you study, whether you live at home or not, your household income and the amount of maintenance grant you receive. You have to pay this back after you complete the course and begin earning a specified wage.

The yearly rates for 2007/8 are:

• £4,510 for students living away from home
• £6,315 for students living away from home in London
• £3,495 for students living at home.

The amount available is slightly lower for the final year.

If you claim Income Support or Housing Benefit you might qualify for the Special Support Grant in place of the Maintenance Grant. This will generally be lone parents, other student parents if they have a partner who is a student, and students with disabilities. The Special Support Grant covers extra course-related costs such as books, equipment, travel or childcare. How much you get depends on your household income.

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Bursaries

You can apply for a bursary of at least £300 if:

• you attend an English university or college that is charging over £2765 a year for tuition fees; and
• you qualify for the full £2765 Maintenance Grant or the Special Support Grant.

You don't have to pay this back.

Travel expenses

These extra allowances can be claimed on top of tuition fee support and maintenance loans. You might be able to claim for travel expenses if part of your course is overseas, if you have a disability, or if you're a medical, nursing or dental student who has to travel to a different college from your own.

Further information:

• Student Finance section of Directgov
• Student Awards Agency for Scotland
• Department for Education and Learning - Northern Ireland

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Childcare Grant

You can get more information about the Childcare Grant from our Childcare section.

Adult Dependants' Grant

If an adult is dependant on you, you may be able to be entitled to this. It is usually a spouse, but it can be any adult. How much you get depends on your income and that of your adult dependants.

Parents' Learning Allowance

If you're a full-time student in England, Wales or Northern Ireland with dependent children you might qualify for this help towards course-related costs. How much you get depends on your household income (which includes your husband, wife or partner).

Child Tax Credit

You can get more information about Child Tax Credit from our Childcare section.

Differences in Scotland

In Scotland the system is slightly different. You might be eligible for a Young Students' Bursary, Dependants' Grant, Lone Parents' Grant, Additional Childcare Grant for Lone Parents and help with travel expenses. Eligible students also don't have to pay tuition fees.

Further information is available from the Student Awards Agency for Scotland.

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Disabled Students' Allowance (DSA)

If you've got a disability, entering higher education will usually mean extra costs, so you can get extra help from the DSA to cover this. It's a supplementary grant and isn't means-tested. DSA is not a loan so you don't have to pay it back.

DSA covers specialist equipment and a non-medical helper (for note-taking, for example). Even though standard student support covers travel costs, you can also claim extra funds if your disability means you incur extra travel costs.

You can claim DSA if you're a part-time student, as long as the course is equivalent to 50% of the full-time course. You'll get a lower level of DSA, apart from the specialist equipment part of the award.

For more details about how much DSA you might be eligible for visit:

• Directgov page on Disabled Students' Allowance
• Student Awards Agency for Scotland
• Educational Guidance Service for Adults (EGSA)
• SKILL, National Bureau for Students with Disabilities

Access to Learning Funds

These are available through your college or university. They are for students on a low income who need extra financial help to stay on in higher education. They can cover unexpected costs and costs not being met by any other grants. You need to meet the usual residence requirements and be considered a 'home student'.

Similar schemes operate in Wales and Scotland: Financial Contingency Awards in Wales and Hardship Funds in Scotland.

Career Development Loans (CDL)

A CDL is a deferred repayment bank loan to help you pay for vocational learning or education. You can borrow between £300 and £8,000 to fund up to two years of learning plus (if relevant) up to one year's practical work experience where it forms part of the course.

For the full rules or a step-by-step guide to applying for a CDL, visit the Directgov website or call the CDL Information Line on 0800 585 505.

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Benefits

If you're a full-time student you can't usually claim Income Support, Jobseeker's Allowance and Housing Benefit while studying in higher education. However, there are some exceptions, including if you:

• have children or other caring responsibilities
• have a disability
• are unable to work because of sickness
• are over retirement age
• are a refugee who's just arrived in the UK and is learning English
• are studying part-time.

For these benefits your income is taken into account, as they're means-tested benefits. But for each benefit your income is worked out differently.

The qualifying rules for benefits and working out how much you're entitled to are complicated. For guidance contact either the Student Support/Welfare Department at your college or university, your local Jobcentre Plus or your local Benefits Agency Office.

You can also contact one of the following organisations for guidance:

• Child Poverty Action Group
• Centre for Economic and Social Inclusion

Tax Credits

Working Tax Credits are to top up your earnings if you're on low pay. You should qualify for them if you are 16 or over, you work 16 hours a week or more, and are on a low or medium income. You may get extra money if you're disabled or have children.

If you're studying, you may be able to claim Child Tax Credit if you have dependent children. You need to be over 16 years old and look after a child under 16, or a child who is 16-18 and in full-time education themselves.

For more details on Working Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit call the Inland Revenue Tax Credit Helpline on 0845 300 3900 (0845 603 2000 for Northern Ireland) or visit the Tax Credits website where you can calculate how much you would qualify for and apply on-line.

Part-time students

If you study a course that's at least 50% of the equivalent of a full-time course you may qualify for a fee grant and a course grant. How much you get depends on your household income.

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Social work

One of the qualification routes for social work is through a degree. All undergraduate students normally resident in England, and who are not funded by their employers, can get a non means-tested bursary. The rate depends on where you live. Part-time students receive a pro rata bursary.

You should still be eligible for the other higher education student allowances. For most people it should not affect their entitlement to income-related benefits. You apply to the NHS Business Services Authority.

Further funding is available from the Student Loans Company. Contact your Local Education Authority for more info on loans. You can also find the address in your local telephone directory.

Wales

You may qualify for Assembly Learning Grant if you live in Wales and are from a low-income family.

Ask about it at your Local Education Authority in Wales. You can also get info on the higher education funding system in Wales from Learning Wales or Dysgu Cymru.

Further information

You can get more info on higher education funding from

• Student Finance section of Directgov
• Student Loans Company
• Department for Education and Learning - Northern Ireland
• Student Awards Agency for Scotland