Going to University in Scotland, 2013

Funding your living (or maintenance) costs

If you come from Scotland

• Scottish Government has simplified the student funding system with effect from 2013–14. Changes apply to new and continuing students.
• You apply to SAAS for a means-tested loan of maximum £5,500 and minimum (non-income assessed) of £4,500.
• If you are a 'young' student studying in Scotland (i.e. under 25), you may be able to apply for the Young Students' Bursary. This is non-repayable, like a grant. The maximum you can receive is £1,750 if your household income is £16,999 or less. The bursary reduces to zero for a household income over £34,000 a year. 
• If you are an independent student, you may be eligible for the Independent Students’ Bursary. The maximum amount payable is £750 if household income is £16,999 a year or less, reducing to zero where household income is over £34,000 a year. 
• Supplementary grants are available to certain categories of students such as lone parents, those with dependants and those leaving care to enter higher education. Extra help is also available to those who have a disability, learning difficulty or mental health problem.
• For new students, the deadline date for applications to SAAS to guarantee that funds are in place for the beginning of the academic year is 30 June, 2013.  The final closing date for receiving applications in session 2013–14 is 31 March 2014.
• After you have graduated you will start re-paying the loan once you are earning over £16,365 a year. You can make extra voluntary payments straight to the SLC to reduce your loan quicker.

If you come from Northern Ireland

• You apply to Student Finance NI for a means-tested maintenance loan.
• The maximum amount available is £4,840 if you are living and studying outside London. The maximum amount available if you are living at home with your parents is £3,750. If your course is longer than 30 weeks you can get an additional loan. (Maximum Extra Loan if you are living outside London is £84 per week; £55 per week if you are living with your parents.)
• If your household income is £41,065 or less you may be eligible to receive either a Special Support Grant or a Maintenance Grant. A full grant is worth £3,475 and is payable if your total household income is £19,203 or less.  A partial grant is payable if your household income is between £19,204 and £41,065. 
• If you receive the full Maintenance Grant or the full Special Support Grant you are guaranteed to receive a bursary. The amount you are entitled to receive can be different depending on the university you go to, so you should contact them directly to find out more about the bursaries they offer.
• Supplementary grants are available to certain categories of students such as lone parents, those with dependants and those leaving care to enter higher education. Extra help is also available to those who have a disability, learning difficulty or mental health problem.
• For new students, the deadline date for applications to Student Finance NI to guarantee that funds are in place for the beginning of the academic year was 12 April, 2013. The latest you can apply is nine months after the first day of the academic year of your course, usually around 31 May, 2014.
• Loan repayments begin after you have finished your course. You repay 9% of your income above £16,365. You can make extra voluntary payments straight to the SLC to reduce your loan quicker.

If you come from Wales

• You apply to Student Finance Wales for a means-tested maintenance loan to help cover your living costs.
• The amount available is up to £5,150 if you are living and studying outside London.
• You may be able to receive a partial cancellation of up to £1,500 on your living cost (maintenance) loan, subject to the approval of the National Assembly for Wales. 
• You may be eligible to receive the Assembly Learning Grant (ALG). The full grant is £5,161 a year, payable if your household income is £18,370 a year or less. A partial grant of between £50 and £5,000 a year is payable if your household income is between £18,371 and £50,020.
• Note that there is a sliding scale in place and up to £2,575 of the ALG will be paid instead of an element of the Maintenance Loan so that for every £1 of ALG a student receives the amount of Maintenance loan they can receive will be reduced by 50p.
• The Special Support Grant replaces the ALG for eligible students. The amount of Special Support Grant you receive will not affect the amount of Maintenance Loan you qualify to receive (but in these circumstances the loan counts as assessable income for state benefits).
• For new students, the deadline date for applications to Student Finance Wales to guarantee that funds are in place for the beginning of the academic year was 19 April, 2013. The latest you can apply is nine months after the first day of the academic year of your course, usually around 31 May, 2014.
• Loan repayments begin after you have finished your course. You repay 9% of your income above £21,000, commencing the April following graduation.

If you come from England

• You apply to Student Finance England for a means-tested Maintenance Loan. The maximum Maintenance Loan for new students starting from 1 September 2013 is £5,500 if you live away from home and study outside London.
• You can also apply for a Maintenance Grant if your family income is below £42,611. You can get £3,354 if your household income is £25,000 or under; £50–£3,354 if your household income is between £25,000 and £42,611. 
• These loans and grants are paid into your bank account at the start of each term, once you've registered on your course.
• You may be able to get a bursary, scholarship or award directly from your university.
• Further support may be available to certain categories of students such as lone parents, those with dependants and those leaving care to enter higher education. Extra help is also available to those who have a disability, learning difficulty or mental health problem.
• Bursaries and scholarships do not have to be paid back.
• For new students, the deadline date for applications to Student Finance England to guarantee that funds are in place for the beginning of the academic year was 28 April, 2013. The latest you can apply is nine months after the first day of the academic year of your course, usually around 31 May, 2014.
• Loan repayments begin after you have finished your course. You repay 9% of your income above £21,000, commencing the April following graduation.

If you come from the (non-UK) EU, EEA or Switzerland, or if you’re the child of a Turkish worker in the UK

• Providing that you meet all the eligibility criteria relating to residence, you could qualify to apply for the full-support package available (tuition fees, loan, bursary and living-costs grants). 
• To be eligible to apply for the full-support package available you must: be, on the relevant date, a non-UK EU national or family member of such; have been ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man for the three years immediately before the first day of the first academic year of your course (the relevant date); and be ordinarily resident in Scotland on the relevant date.
• If you have not been living in the UK for three years, you may still be eligible to apply for the full-support package available if you meet the migrant or frontier worker/self employed person conditions. Visit the SAAS website for full information. Otherwise, contact the SAAS:

The Student Awards Agency for Scotland
Gyleview House
3 Redheughs Rigg
EDINBURGH
EH12 9HH
Telephone 044 300 555 0505 (choose option 4)
From a mobile call +44 300 555 0505 (choose option 4)

If you are an international student, coming from overseas

• Read Tuition Fees for International Students or click on the international tab in our university profiles for more information.
  

Useful links

• Student Finance England
• Student Finance Wales
• Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS)
• Student Finance NI
• Student Loans Company