dla and studying

cherub1965

i am interested in doing an undergrad course on open university.son going to uni this year,fed up,too much time on my hands.i will be living alone,i get income support,dla higher rate and severe disability premium.i have rheumatoid arthritis,osteo in my neck and suffer migraine.would the dwp query my entitlement if i was studying?not sure if i am up to it but cant work at the moment and just want to do something!! what is the position on bursary and dsa etc?never done anything like this before.if it should be in student tell me and will delete post and repost there.thanks:)

Hannah_10

DLA's got nothing to do with employability so you'll be fine with that.

IS will probably stop though, unless it's a part time course.

You can't go to Uni in the 2010 intake now anyhow (applications closed in January) so Septemeber 2011 would be your next chance. That gives you lots of time to get a meeting at the JobCentre plus to discuss returning to study and what help you would and wouldn't get.

zzzLazyDaisy

Open university is considered to be a part-time course, and shouldn't affect your benefit entitlement.

As far as I am aware, most of the degree level courses start in February, so you have time to check the situation with job centre plus, before commiting yourself.

Oldernotwiser

cherub1965 wrote: »

i am interested in doing an undergrad course on open university.son going to uni this year,fed up,too much time on my hands.i will be living alone,i get income support,dla higher rate and severe disability premium.i have rheumatoid arthritis,osteo in my neck and suffer migraine.would the dwp query my entitlement if i was studying?not sure if i am up to it but cant work at the moment and just want to do something!! what is the position on bursary and dsa etc?never done anything like this before.if it should be in student tell me and will delete post and repost there.thanks:)

If your household income is low you should receive a grant to cover your fees and a couple of hundred over for resources. Studying with the OU is part time and won't affect your benefits.

If you want to start in September and need help with the fees you need to apply soon as the financial help takes a little while to put in place.

Good luck.

cherub1965

thanks,just toying with the idea at the moment,hoping when i start my new meds soon will be bit better and able to do something.will get on to it today.:)

Indie_Kid

The DSA is in form of equipment and isn't based on household income.

cydney65

I'm in receipt of DLA and study with the OU, which is considered as PT study. If you have a low income go to the OU website and look at the financial information. You can check if you would receive any monetary support. You should also be eligible for the disabled student allowance (DSA). Again look this up on the website. I was able to get this and they helped out with some equipment to help me study and extra time to do the exams. I don't know if it would affect your IS though, sorry.

HTH

CydneyX

Mupette

This is an interesting thread.

I'm currently stuck at home, and it gets lonely, and i did wonder if i could go learn something.

on ESA with severe disability premium, DLA (HMR + MCR).

What worries me is i have MS, and my brain is not working as it should, my memory is shot to pieces, i could write things down, but when i look back at them it doesn't make much sense to me

But then i think of the days when i struggle to get out of bed, and think i'd have more time off that time in uni

ash4becks

Mupette wrote: »

This is an interesting thread.

I'm currently stuck at home, and it gets lonely, and i did wonder if i could go learn something.

on ESA with severe disability premium, DLA (HMR + MCR).

What worries me is i have MS, and my brain is not working as it should, my memory is shot to pieces, i could write things down, but when i look back at them it doesn't make much sense to me

But then i think of the days when i struggle to get out of bed, and think i'd have more time off that time in uni

i have a rotton memory with my dyslexia so i no about looking at what i have wrote and thinking what was that all about, but you would be suprised at the programs computer wise that could help you, the dragon naturally speaking comes to mind you talk to the computer and it types for you this all gets payed for by student disablity allowence and they sort all that out for you really helped me , also with being OU there a bit more flexable than normal uni courses, and like myslef pretty sure you would get extra time for essays and exams so dont count it out might be worth giving them a call if your still unsure x

JJ7

Hi,

I started an OU course (maths) last October. Only a basic 10 points starter course which I thoroughly enjoyed. When it came to the last assignment I was very ill, had recently came out of hosp and it took me ages to be able to decide whether I wanted a cup of tea or a cup of coffe never mind do a maths assignment! My tutor was excellent and she put me in touch with (I can't remember what they are called) but what I'm trying to say is the OU is really geared up to help people with disabilities.

I'm doing a level 1 30 point maths course at the moment but don't know whether I've the capacity to do any more. I'm really, really glad I did these courses. I'm at my best late at night when all my meds have kicked in, and with the OU you can study at your leisure.

Good luck and happy studying.

Indie_Kid

JJ7 wrote: »

My tutor was excellent and she put me in touch with (I can't remember what they are called)

The OU disability support services?