Student Loan Entitlements - Fee Loans and Grants

Tuition fee and maintenance loans and grants are available for UK students

There are several tuition fee and maintenance loans available for UK born students studying for their first degree.

The information below assumes that you are applying for funding for your first degree and you are a UK citizen.

Tuition Fee Loan

Despite the recent raises in university tuition fees (up to £3,000 and soon to go up further to £9,000) you will never have to pay a penny of this upfront if you are a UK citizen.

Everyone is eligible for a loan to cover the tuition fee that you are charged each year.

This money is paid directly to your university or college so you won’t see the money yourself.

The maximum tuition fee for courses in 2011/12 is £3,290 per year.

In 2012-2013, this will rise to £9,000 per year.

Maintenance Loan

A maintenance loan is given to help students with their living costs (rent, food, books etc.)

The maximum maintenance Loan for students starting university in 2011/12 is depends on your living situation.

If you’re living at home with your family the maximum is £3,838 per year
If you’re living away from home and studying outside of London the maximum is £4,950 per year.
If you’re living away from home and studying in London the maximum is £6,928 (this may seem like a lot more but rent is London is considerably more than most other cities).

How much of the Maintenance Loan will I receive?

Unlike the tuition fee loan the maintenance loan is means tested. This means it depends on your household income.

In 2011/12 you will be entitled to 72 per cent of the above maximum maintenance loans regardless of your household income, the remaining 28% of the loan is based on household income. The higher your household income the lower your maintenance grant will be. In 2011 the ends of the spectrum are:

Students with household incomes of £25,000 or less will be eligible for the entire maintenance loan.
Students with house hold incomes of above £70,000 will only be entitled for 72% of the maximum maintenance loan.

Your maintenance loan is fully repayable along with your tuition loan. Read more about paying back your student loans.

You do not have to take the entire amount of loan you are eligible for. If you only want to take a small amount then you can request to do so.

Maintenance Grant

Maintenance grants are also available to students. Unlike the maintenance loan the grant is not repayable.

Maintenance grants are fully dependent upon household income.

Applicants with a household income of up to £25,000 are eligible for the entire maintenance grant; students with a household income of more than £50,020 are not eligible for any of the grant.

The full maintenance grant for 2011/12 applicants is £2,906.

Can I receive both a loan and a grant?

Students who are eligible for the maintenance grant are still eligible for a maintenance loan but the maintenance loan they receive will be adjusted depending on how much of the maintenance grant they receive.

If you’re a 2011/12 applicant the amount you’re eligible for through maintenance loan will be reduced by £0.50 for every £1 of Maintenance Grant you’re entitled to.

This means that if you’re entitled to the full maintenance grant of £2,906 your maintenance loan will be reduced by £1,453.