Funding a Masters Degree

fiona85_2

I am taking a full time, one year MSc in Psychology at Sussex University. I have just enough savings to pay for the course fees but will need to find funding to cover my rent and living expenses for the year (living on a very strict budget obviously!)

I can only work 20 hours per week as the course is very demanding. Can anyone point me in the direction to find funding in the form of grants / burseries? If anyone knew of a resource to find funding for psychology related study, that would be brilliant. I am sadly ineligible for the University’s funding (I don’t fall into any of the categories).

I am reluctant to get a career development loan as I won’t be able to pay it back straight away (I need to do more unpaid placement work for a while).

Also, I never had a student loan for my first degree (it was self funded). Does that mean I may be able to get a student loan, or are they only for 1st degrees?

Thanks in advance.

wontfallforit

fiona85 wrote: »

I am taking a full time, one year MSc in Psychology at Sussex University. I have just enough savings to pay for the course fees but will need to find funding to cover my rent and living expenses for the year (living on a very strict budget obviously!)

I can only work 20 hours per week as the course is very demanding. Can anyone point me in the direction to find funding in the form of grants / burseries? If anyone knew of a resource to find funding for psychology related study, that would be brilliant. I am sadly ineligible for the University’s funding (I don’t fall into any of the categories).

I am reluctant to get a career development loan as I won’t be able to pay it back straight away (I need to do more unpaid placement work for a while).

Unfortunately, there's very little funding available for postgraduate courses that don't lead to a professional and/or NHS-related qualification.

You might want to try posting over at the students' board, as someone may have had better luck in a similar situation, but speaking as someone who's 'been there', the pickings are very slim.

I did my MA during the evening, after fulltime work. It was only 6hrs per week classroom time, but extra studying, essay writing and revision made it around 20 hours per week solely devoted to my studies, plus my fulltime job. It was hard!

Also, I never had a student loan for my first degree (it was self funded). Does that mean I may be able to get a student loan, or are they only for 1st degrees?

Thanks in advance.

I'm 99% certain you wouldn't be eligible for a student loan, either.

It's funny, 'cos going to university has become easier than ever these days, with regards to generous funding. But with so many graduates in the job market, postgrad qualifications are becoming more and more essential in order to stand out and have the edge over other graduates in your field...but guess what...no funding

[Deleted User]

My experience is that there's very little funding for any Masters degrees. It seems that you've checked with the Uni you want to go to to see if there are any bursaries, scholarships et, which is ussally the most likley option.. Can you check out other Uni's that offer the same course - there may be opportunities available elsewhere.

If you have plans to continue on to a PhD - it might be possible to get 1+3 funding (1=MSc, 3=PhD) - again if this is something you are interested in check out the possible Uni's webpages and www.jobs.ac.uk .

I was unable to secure any funding for MSc study, so I deferred and worked full-time for a year and saved up - this is another option, and one that many of my classmates also did. There might also be an option to study your course part-time, allowing you to work longer hours to get by. By deferring for a year, or going part-time, you may also be able to get some hours doing the voluntary work related experience that you referred to in your post either before or concurrent to your studies.

If it's occupational psychology that you are interrested in there may be industry funded options - but I personally didn't go down this road, so I wouldn't know where to look for them - someone else might be able to suggest.

anotherginger

unfortunately there isn't much hope for funding if you aren't eligible for university funding. even masters which lead to a profession/vocation are seldom funded these days.

i was on an MSc which used to have a majority of funded students (through their workplace) but to even get into those jobs now you need to be qualified beforehand.

i finished an MSc about 18 months ago, which was self-funded. it was also 9-5 for the majority of the year, so there was no chance of getting a job in spare time really. the course and accommodation alone cost me the best part of 15k. like the last post, i deferred and worked full time for a year so i was able to pay for it. parents contributed and didn't charge me rent while i was saving for the course, which was an amazing help.

i did look into career development loans, and they look to be your best bet. you can't get a student loan for post grad (you should have taken the loan at the time and saved it!). i think you can defer the payment of the career development loan until you have finished...so can you not say your work placement is part of the course?