Repaying Student Loans 2009/10 guide discussion

Poolie

Your PGCE will be under the same terms and conditions as you currently have. It should noted that your current loan for your undergraduate degree will become repayable the April after you graduate from your undergraduate course.

You may receive paperwork asking what you are doing and how you are supporting yourself in which case you can send a copy of you loan request form and SLC will not request payment till you have entered employment and earning over the threshold.

Oldernotwiser

janita wrote: »

I'm so confused by this student loan business...

The advice given in the article states you should absolutely not pay it back but mine was taken out first of all for academic year 2000/01 so I can't defer. £40 per month is taken from my earnings of £20,000 a year which is going nowhere towards paying anything off....

It seems I have to let them take it until I'm 65. Nice money making scheme for a 'no-interest' loan company.

Is there any way I can stop losing that money every month?

My degree has nothing whatsoever to do with my job. I feel like a sucker for being encouraged to go university and for taking these loans out in the first place... Uber frustrating.

Although your degree may have nothing to do with your job, you might well not be getting 20K in your twenties without it.

You'll also not owe more than you borrowed, although you're paying back only a small amount. Don't forget, as well, that if you give up work or cut your hours for any reason you'll pay nothing. Apart from that, you'll have to keep paying as was explained in all the literature you had when you took it out.

Education is never wasted.

Poolie

Just to add to Oldernotwiser. Your loan may have increased in value with the interest that would have been added on since when you had your first loan payment.

MrsManda

By don't pay it back, it means that there is no point in paying more than you need to under the T&Cs as it doesn't affect your credit rating (unless you default), and it's at such a low interest that if you have spare money it's better to pay off any other loans with a higher interest rate, or put the money in a savings account which pays a higher interest than the student loan is charging.

BUT it is still a LOAN, which you signed the T&Cs for and received therefore you should pay it back under the terms you signed for. You may feel that your education was a waste but that's nothing to do with the SLC, just as it's nothing to do with your mortgage company if you decide you don't like your house. Think of your repayments as a graduate tax, and remember that if you had the loan with anyone else you'd be paying an awful lot more money each month and they wouldn't be taking into consideration what you earn.

Oldernotwiser

Poolie wrote: »

Just to add to Oldernotwiser. Your loan may have increased in value with the interest that would have been added on since when you had your first loan payment.

I should have said "in real terms" in my post; thanks for the clarification.

janita_2

I'm not in my twenties, I'm consideraly older! And I definitely don't think education is a waste. I simply feel a little misled and believe I could have got to my current position without a degree.

There is little to no choice in taking loans out if you are a low earner or do not have sufficient savings. I worked throughout my education and would have been worse off if I hadn't.

Thank you all for your advice and clarification but some of you might consider being a little less patronising...

Lokolo

janita wrote: »

I'm not in my twenties, I'm consideraly older! And I definitely don't think education is a waste. I simply feel a little misled and believe I could have got to my current position without a degree.

There is little to no choice in taking loans out if you are a low earner or do not have sufficient savings. I worked throughout my education and would have been worse off if I hadn't.

Thank you all for your advice and clarification but some of you might consider being a little less patronising...

lol? This is your first post?

Oh I see you deleted your other one.

And don't be rude, I am sure ONW could teach you a thing or 2! If you want patronising.....

If you think you could have got to your current position without a degree, why didn't you? Research is key

Fact is, the job I want, I cannot get without a degree. Thats why I am doing it

And final point, there is a choice, you save up the amount to go and do a degree and then do it.

Poolie

janita wrote: »

Thank you all for your advice and clarification but some of you might consider being a little less patronising...

I think you might want to reconsider this statement as you came onto the board requesting information which was provided happily and freely.

You then decided to delete the original post because you didn't like the accurate answer you received.

toxicgirl

Hi there,

Apologies in advance if this query has been answered - I couldn't find the answer on the forum!

I wonder if anyone can help me? I'm trying to organise my finances and am attempting to do a budget for the coming year. However, I'm having trouble figuring out whether or not I will be able to defer my student loans again. I have pre-98 loans and my deferment date is in November. At November 09 I earned just below the repayment threshold (£27,050pa) so deferred; however I've just had a bit of a pay rise and now earn slightly more than this. I phoned the SLC to see when the threshold was reviewed and they told me it was in September each year but they couldn't tell me what it was going to be come September 2010 as it's the government who set the rates. I've had a look at the increases from the past few years, but I can't figure out whether they are based on inflation rate, RPI, base rates etc....does anyone happen to know?? That way I could figure out roughly whether or not I would be able to defer again!

I hope this makes sense and hope someone might be able to give me the answer!

Many thanks in advance,
Cat.

arlon

Poolie wrote: »

I think you might want to reconsider this statement as you came onto the board requesting information which was provided happily and freely.

You then decided to delete the original post because you didn't like the accurate answer you received.

I think you lot might've been a bit rough on this Janta.

It is silly to delete the first message (I read it and absolutely saw the points you chaps were making) but I think this is a very emotional thing, particularly when the end (job/career) seems to have so little to do with the means of reaching it (degree in...)

It's true that some see no choice but to take out a loan, as the chance of raising the several thousand pounds required for higher education is a daunting prospect and pressure to compete is intensifying all the time.

An education is a wonderful thing and should be available to all but it isn't so straightforward if one (or one's family) do not have the financial resources.

My lot were under a great deal of pressure from many sides to attend university. It was their choice, of course, but they had the advantage of reasonably comfortably-off parents to make life easier. They worked hard (most of the time!) but only my son has been able to follow the path he chose at that time. My daughter has had quite a struggle and feels, much as Janita, that it would have been better to bide her time or perhaps not go at all. I must say I'm sure we could've done something with the money we spent and while I do not begrudge my girl, I quite understand the sentiment.