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Whether you are leaving school and after the full immersion of living in halls, or a mature student looking for a masters or career change, going to university is expensive. Universities in the UK can charge as much as £9,250 a year in tuition and that’s before you factor in living costs.
This is where student loans, and this guide, come in.
How student loans work
Student loans in the UK — provided by Student Finance England, Student Finance Wales, Student Finance Northern Ireland and Student Awards Agency Scotland (SAAS), on behalf of the government body the Student Loans Company — will help you pay for studying, and living away from home.
Only some of your student loan goes directly into your own pocket. The rest goes to the university or college. How much, and what you can borrow in total, depends on what, where and how you’re studying, as well as your financial need.
The most important thing to recognise is that student loans from the government operate very differently from bank loans, mortgages or credit cards.
While you start owing interest from the day you take out the loan, you repay the loan only when you stop studying and only when you earn above a certain salary threshold. If you never earn above that threshold, you don’t have to repay it. How much and when you pay is determined by which plan you’re on.
If you are an English or Welsh student who took out a student loan before 1 September 2012, you’ll have a Plan 1 loan. EU students that took out a loan after 1 September 1998 but before 1 September 2012, and Northern Irish students who started on or after 1 September 1998, also have Plan 1 loans.
If you started university as an English, Welsh or EU student and took out a loan in England or Wales after 1 September 2012, you’ll be on Plan 2. Postgraduate loans are those used to fund master’s degrees and doctoral level study.
Scottish students studying undergraduate or postgraduate degrees in Scotland after 1 September 1998 have Plan 4 loans. EU students studying in Scotland after this date will also have Plan 4 student loans.
What do student loans pay for and how much can I borrow?
Broadly, there are two types of loan — a tuition fee loan and a maintenance loan — although many students take out both together and repay them together.
A tuition fee loan does what it says on the tin: it pays for the cost of seminars and lectures, tutors, access to the library, labs or computer rooms. Bear in mind that it might not cover all the tools and equipment and books you will need, however.
In the 2023/24 and 2024/25 academic years, English students studying in England can borrow up to £9,250 a year for tuition fees as a full-time student. And Welsh students studying in Wales can borrow up to £9,250 in tuition fees.
If you live in Scotland and study full-time at a Scottish university, you don’t have to pay tuition fees but you will need to apply to the Student Awards Agency Scotland (SAAS) to have your tuition fees covered. In Northern Ireland tuition fees are capped at £4,710 for 2023/24 for those who stay there to study, rising to £4,750 for 2024/25.
If you decide to study in the UK, but outside your own country, you can borrow a maximum of £9,250 but from the student finance body in your own country. You may only borrow up to the amount the university charges for tuition.
Tuition fees are paid directly to your university or place of study, in three instalments across the academic year.
A maintenance loan, meanwhile, is paid into your bank account at the beginning of term. It provides money to help you get by while at university, to pay for your living accommodation, food, and essentials like beer and nights out.
How much you get will depend on your household income, where you will live while at university and whether you are studying away from home or remaining at home with parents. You can find more information on eligibility criteria and the amount you could be entitled to on Gov.uk.
As an example, in England you can borrow up to £10,227 in the 2024/25 academic year if you’re living away from home outside London, or up to £13,348 if you’re living away from home and in the capital. If you’re living in England and studying at home the maximum you can borrow is £8,610.
If you’re a Scottish or Welsh student, you may be eligible for a combination of a bursary and a loan to support your studies. If you’re from Northern Ireland, you may be able to get a loan and a bursary dependent on your household income. You can find out more on SAAS, Student Finance Wales or Student Finance NI.
Part-time students can also receive a loan if your course intensity is 25% or more (the percentage of the course you complete each year compared to full-time study). You’re eligible for up to £6,935 per academic year as a tuition fee loan and extra, depending on family income, in a maintenance loan.
Postgraduate loans
If you have already completed an undergraduate course and are keen to gain further qualifications, there are funding options to help manage the cost.
Masters degree students can apply for a loan to cover course fees and living costs up to £11,836 if your course starts on or before 31 July 2023, and £12,167 if your course starts on or after 1 August 2023.
A postgraduate doctoral loan offers up to £27,892 if your course starts on or before 31 July 2023, and £28,673 if it starts on or after 1 August 2023. These loans are not based on your or your parents’ income, and are paid directly to you, not to a university or college.
Both types of postgraduate loans are paid in three instalments each year, and you’ll get a letter stating exactly when the payment will land in your account.
Like undergraduate student loans, you’ll start repaying your postgraduate student loan when you stop studying and start earning above the repayment threshold (currently £1,750 a month for postgraduate loans).
Am I eligible for a student loan?
Not everyone is eligible for a student loan. You need to be attending a qualifying university or college studying a qualifying course (there’s a list of institutions and courses that count here). It may have to be your first higher education course, and you need to be a UK national or have settled status, and have been living in the UK for three years before the start of the course. There are some exceptions, for example if you are a refugee.
You can check the eligibility criteria on the government website.
Those wanting to borrow a masters loan must not have received a loan or grant for a masters course before, or already have a masters degree or equivalent qualification. Similarly if you want a doctoral loan you must not have already completed a doctorate.
Pros and cons of student loans
For most people, university would be completely unaffordable without taking a loan to pay for tuition and living costs. In the UK, borrowing from the government is the cheapest way to do this. It is important to remember that any money you borrow from banks or private loan companies is owed regardless of how much you earn, will have an impact on your credit score, and could be subject to very high interest rates.
Government-backed student loans have kinder terms. They do not affect your credit score, and how much you have to pay back per month is linked to how much you earn. If your salary is below the repayment threshold, you don’t pay – though interest will still build up on your outstanding balance. You can find out more about repayment thresholds for the different plan types on the UK Government website. Student loans in the UK still come with interest on what you borrow. This is charged at the Retail Price Index plus up to 3% for students with a Plan 2 loan, which includes anyone who starts university now in England. Once you graduate interest rates are based on your earnings but still linked to RPI (RPI plus up to 3%).
You might find that you are entitled to grants, sums of money that don’t have to be repaid, to help fund some of your studies or living costs. Make sure you investigate what is available before taking out the maximum student loans. Try websites such as Family Action, Prospects and Turn2Us.
How do I apply for a student loan?
You need to apply through the student finance body in your country: Student Finance England, Student Finance Wales, the Student Awards Agency Scotland or Student Finance Northern Ireland. All let you apply online with proof of identity, and for a maintenance loan you’ll need to fill out household income forms if you want to be means-tested. If you’re not means-tested, your household income won’t be assessed so you will not be able to get anything more than a basic amount of maintenance loan.
You will need to apply each year for your course, not just in your first year. This is because the student finance body will want to know if your family circumstances change, given your loan will be based on the size of your household income.
Your first payments will arrive at the beginning of term. You will need to register at your university or college before the first payment of tuition fees is sent to your university, and before you can get your maintenance loan. Registration usually happens in the first week of your course.
When do I start repaying student loans?
You have to start repaying from the first April after graduation, provided you earn above the repayment threshold.
On 6 April 2024, the repayment threshold for pre-2012 (Plan 1) loans increased to £24,990. The income threshold for repayment of Plan 2 loans has been maintained at £27,295.
It is also important to remember that once your earnings go above the relevant threshold, an additional 9% of your earnings will go towards repaying your loan (6% above the threshold for postgraduate students).
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