Postgraduate Loan – A Guide for 2022

You will usually rely as being ordinarily resident in England if any or all the following are true:

You will nonetheless rely as an English-resident when you have studied your undergraduate diploma in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland and wish to proceed straight on to a Masters. This means it is possible for you to to use for an English postgraduate loan.

Because you solely moved to England to review, your residency standing received’t have modified. You will nonetheless rely as being ordinarily resident in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland and will apply for a postgraduate loan from the nation you lived in earlier than you went to college.

Yes, you may get a postgraduate loan if you’re a UK nationwide, have been dwelling within the EEA or Switzerland previous to 31 December 2020 and can proceed to take action previous to the beginning of your course. You should be coming to review your Masters in England earlier than 1 January 2028. You’ll additionally have to have been dwelling within the EEA, Switzerland, Gibraltar or the UK for the previous three years.

Living and dealing in a special a part of the UK means you aren’t simply there to go to college. This can change your residency standing.

For instance:

The identical could be true for an English student who had lived and labored elsewhere within the UK after graduating.

If you aren’t positive about your residency standing, verify with Student Finance England.

In order to use for a loan as a UK student you should have lived within the UK for 3 years previous to your course. You can journey for holidays or different durations of ‘temporary absence’ from the UK throughout this era, however you shouldn’t have change into ordinarily resident abroad.

Postgraduate loans are a student finance product, not a industrial loan. Your private credit ranking and current money owed received’t matter.

The solely exception issues current arrears with the Student Loans Company. If you owe undergraduate loan repayments that ought to have been made you received’t have the ability to apply for a postgraduate loan till these are handled.

Postgraduate loans are paid on to your bank account. This implies that they perform as a type of revenue and might have an effect on the quantity of welfare help you may declare. You ought to focus on this with Student Finance England and / or your advantages supplier in the event you aren’t positive.

Yes. You can have a job throughout your Masters and nonetheless entry postgraduate student finance.

You can’t obtain student loans for various levels concurrently. This means you can’t apply for a postgraduate loan while you’re nonetheless getting funds from an undergraduate loan.

You received’t have the ability to apply for a new loan when you have already had one for a earlier Masters. This applies no matter whether or not or not you accomplished that course.

Similarly, you may’t apply for an English Masters loan when you have beforehand had one other UK postgraduate loan. This applies even when your earlier loan was for a non-Masters course.

No. Postgraduate Masters loans are solely obtainable to folks with out current Masters-level {qualifications} (or increased). Unfortunately you received’t have the ability to apply if you have already got a Masters you paid for your self.

Yes. You can nonetheless apply for a loan for a brand new Masters diploma if you have already got a postgraduate qualification beneath Masters degree, reminiscent of a PGCert or PGDip.

However, you may’t have a loan to review certainly one of these programs or improve an current qualification to a full Masters.

No. You can’t apply for a loan in the event you already maintain a PhD (or different doctorate). Loans are solely obtainable in the event you don’t have already got current {qualifications} at Masters degree or above.

Yes. Provided you didn’t graduate with a Masters diploma and didn’t obtain a postgraduate loan for it, you may apply for a loan to review a brand new course.

No. If you will have already accomplished an built-in Masters (a course that started at undergraduate degree however ultimately awarded a Masters diploma) you received’t have the ability to obtain a loan for a second ‘standalone’ Masters.

Some universities, reminiscent of Oxford and Cambridge, mechanically award their graduates with an MA diploma after a sure time period has elapsed. These levels don’t require any extra examination and aren’t separate {qualifications}. As such, they received’t make you ineligible for a loan to review a postgraduate Masters.

English Postgraduate Masters loans are solely obtainable to students below 60. This means you should be aged 59 or youthful when your diploma begins.

This relies on the primary day of the tutorial 12 months not your enrolment date or the date of your firstclass, lecture, and so forth.

The first day of the primary tutorial 12 months is generally as follows:

Note that the age restrict solely applies in the beginning of your course. You will proceed to obtain your loan after you flip 60, supplied you might be 59 or youthful when your Masters begins.

From the 2021-22 tutorial 12 months onwards, EU, EEA (Norway, Iceland and Lichtenstein) and Swiss students will normally solely be eligible for postgraduate loans in the event that they have been dwelling within the UK earlier than 31 December 2020 and have utilized for EU settled standing.

Students from international locations outdoors the UK and Ireland aren’t usually eligible for postgraduate loans.

Exceptions might apply in the event you’re an EU nationwide with settled or pre-settled standing within the UK, have lived within the UK legally for a really very long time, have been granted humanitarian safety or have refugee standing.

For extra data on UK charges and finance as a postgraduate student we advocate you verify the assets produced by the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA).

And, if you cannot get a postgraduate loan, you would possibly nonetheless be eligible for different worldwide Masters funding within the UK.

Masters loans are solely obtainable for postgraduate programs, not for four-year built-in Masters (just like the MChem, MPhys or MSci) that start at undergraduate degree. These programs are normally eligible for undergraduate student loans as a substitute.

The MArch (Master of Architecture) is generally an undergraduate qualification and is eligible for undergraduate student finance. However, you might be eligible for a postgraduate loan in case your MArch is a part-time course (and isn’t eligible for an undergraduate loan).

You can’t apply for a Masters loan to finish a doctoral diploma (even when it features a Masters). However, separate PhD loans have been launched for English-resident UK students and EU students.

If you might be ordinarily resident in England earlier than your course, you need to use your loan to review anyplace within the UK.

If you might be an EU student and are ordinarily resident outdoors the UK, you may solely use your loan to review in England.

You might be able to obtain a loan to review a Masters at an alternate supplier within the UK, supplied it has been granted diploma awarding powers or your course has been particularly designated for postgraduate loans.

Your establishment ought to have the ability to let you know if that is so.

You can’t get a postgraduate loan to review a full Masters overseas, or for a level awarded by a college outdoors the UK.

However, you may research a part of your Masters abroad, supplied this doesn’t account for greater than 50% of your course.

You can change Masters programs and proceed to obtain your postgraduate loan. This consists of altering to a brand new course on the identical college, or shifting to a brand new establishment. However, your new course should even be eligible for a loan.

Note you can solely proceed your present postgraduate loan when switching programs; you may’t apply for a ‘fresh’ loan to start out a special course. This implies that switching programs received’t enhance the utmost quantity you’ll be able to borrow.

No, you may’t obtain postgraduate loan funds to repeat a part of your course (even in the event you haven’t but borrowed the complete quantity).

However, it might be doable to your postgraduate loan funds to renew upon getting ‘caught up’ along with your Masters.

Your postgraduate loan will solely be paid while you might be learning. Your college will verify your attendance in the beginning of every tutorial 12 months, however you might be accountable for informing Student Finance England in the event you droop your research.

If this occurs you’ll cease receiving postgraduate funds, however might be able to resume your loan along with your course.

You can’t usually obtain a couple of postgraduate loan. However, exceptions might apply when you have compelling private causes (CPR) for not with the ability to full your unique diploma.

Compelling private causes may embody medical points or a private disaster that stops you progressing by means of your diploma. You ought to contact Student Finance England to debate your case with them if obligatory.

Yes. If you will have have already got an account with Student Finance England you should use it to use to your Masters loan.

No. You can apply by put up in the event you want, however on-line purposes are usually sooner.

Note that students who’ve beforehand obtained an undergraduate loan from Student Finance Wales, Student Finance Northern Ireland or Student Awards Agency Scotland might have to use by put up for a Masters loan from Student Finance England.

Yes, you may change your thoughts earlier than you start your course (for instance, in the event you determine to start out your Masters subsequent 12 months as a substitute) and cancel your software.

There is not any pro-rata discount for later Masters loan purposes. You can all the time request the utmost loan quantity, supplied you achieve this earlier than the deadline (9 months after the beginning of your remaining 12 months).

Postgraduate loan purposes re-open for every new tutorial 12 months. You can apply now for a course that began in 2021-22 (or earlier). Applications for 2022-23 will open in June 2022.

Loans for September programs needs to be processed in time in the event you apply promptly.

The very first thing to do in case your software is refused is to verify you positively meet the eligibility standards (described additional up this web page). You ought to then ensure you have entered all of your data appropriately, significantly your deal with historical past and residency particulars.

You will change into eligible to repay your postgraduate loan on the sixth April after your Masters ends. This is named ‘entering repayment’. However, no students will enter reimbursement till sixth April 2021.

Remember too that you simply solely ever repay your loan when you find yourself incomes over £21,000 a 12 months.

No. The annual reimbursement threshold for undergraduate loans has risen yearly from 2018, however the threshold for postgraduate loans stays at £21,000. Our publication updates will let you understand if this modifications.

HMRC will mechanically deduct your postgraduate loan reimbursement at 6% of your gross revenue over £21,000 a 12 months (or the month-to-month equal of £1,750). This implies that deductions can be calculated earlier than different deductions reminiscent of revenue tax, nationwide insurance and undergraduate loan repayments are taken.

You can be accountable for making any repayments that HMRC can not deduct mechanically. This can usually be accomplished by means of your tax return on the finish of the monetary 12 months.

No. Unlike undergraduate loans, curiosity on postgraduate loans is similar for all debtors. It received’t enhance in the event you earn extra.

All postgraduate loan funds are topic to the identical reimbursement standards. You can go away your course and cancel your remaining loan, however you’ll nonetheless be eligible to repay any cash you will have obtained to date.