Post grad study....no financial assistance at all?

Torby

I'm gobsmacked....my daughter is due to finish her degree(BSc Hons) this June and she intended doing the "law conversion course" (CPE I think it is, she eventually wants to work for the CPS.....my, my....all these acronyms...or whatever they call them)....not too sure of the exact title....now I don't know if she has asked the "wrong" questions or the "wrong" people, but she has basically said she has to fund the whole thing herself....no financial assistance at all!....we called the Local Education Authority and they've said there's no help available?

At this moment in time our total family income is £16k and we have a son doing an HND so money is tight....REALLY tight...has she been given poor advice, have we missed something?


She currently lives in Newcastle and wants to stay there....any pointers or suggestions would be more than welcome

misskool

I don't remember any funding for law conversion courses. From memory, friends who have done law conversion courses have been sponsored by solicitors with a contract to work for them after they have finished but they only got them by doing unpaid internships for the summer.

There are post grad loans (especially for those doing courses where there is little funding) but I think their rates are not competitive.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.

edited to add
you can get funding from funding bodies for phd and sometimes (rarely) for masters, depends if your subject area is priority funding or not but it is highly competitive. Courses which are more technical (ie ones where you can get a job that pays you money!!) are almost never going to be funded, hence law and MBAs are almost always excluded. *i could be wrong, but this is the general impression that I get*

[Deleted User]

I had to pay to do my MSc.. there's only so much the state will pay for. The university system is already heavily subsidised (compared to many other countries). We had people paying 10K to come from abroad and study on the course.

Post-grad study is VERY expensive and typically racks up a lot of debt, especially as student loans aren't available for it. The only loans are 'Career developement loans' and these seem to have quite harsh APRs (after the course is completed)

You best bet is to start looking for grants and bursaries, from charities or firms.

Voyager2002

When I finished my first degree I wanted to do a CPE. Even then, there was virtually no funding available. The general advice was to work for a couple of years at something that would make it possible to save a lot of money, like a living-in job (hotel or social care) where you don't need to pay rent.

Of course, bank loans are available.

The real killer is that after the CPE (which gives exemption from needing a Law degree) there is another year of full-time professional study before you can begin working. And even then, you are working as a trainee -- there is intense competition for places as a trainee, and salaries at that stage are barely enough to live on. No wonder that fees for fully-qualified lawyers are so high.

melancholly

if she checks at her careers service there is (or at least used to be!) a book of all the major solicitors that offer sponsorship with the application deadlines. it's hard to get it, and the deadlines for starting this september may have been and gone already.... it might be an option take a year to work - that way she can really concentrate on doing lots of applications for funding and not let them interfere with her degree, and work to get some money saved up to pay the fees if the applications dont' work out.

best option is to go see someone at the uni careers service - they can be really helpful.

these websites might help:

http://www.chambersandpartners.com/chambersstudent/
http://www.chambersandpartners.co.uk/chambersstudent/Pdf/Calendar.pdf

Crispy_Ambulance

There is no statutory funding for postgrad study, except for PGCE. Your daughter will need to look into Career Development Loans or Professional Studies loans. Or, work for a couple of years and save up. The law society website might have some useful information on any charity or trust funding available. But other than that, there is no help.

Mr_Crafty

Just forget it altogether because there's just no help available and you're best just putting off for 5 years. Or 10 - or write to your MP. Because it's not Crispy's fault. He just helps people.

Isn't that right, Crispy?

Crispy_Ambulance

Mr_Crafty wrote:

Just forget it altogether because there's just no help available and you're best just putting off for 5 years. Or 10 - or write to your MP. Because it's not Crispy's fault. He just helps people.

Isn't that right, Crispy?

I shouldn't bite but this has really upset me. I have been posting on MSE for a long time and have tried to help people out, including PMing sample letters to help students out and explaining legislation.

I really don't understand why you have felt the need to post such a nasty personal attack on me. The OP asked a question and I answered it. There is no statutory funding for these courses. Check the student support regulations if you don't believe me.

You asked a question in your thread about your wife's course and I answered it. You didn't like the answer and turned it into an attack on me. The duty of advice workers is to advise on the facts of the situation and the options available to someone. It is up to them what to do. But if you don't like the facts of the situation, there is no point in blaming the person who told you what they are.

And for the record, I am not a he.

Gingham_Ribbon

Mr_Crafty wrote:

Just forget it altogether because there's just no help available and you're best just putting off for 5 years. Or 10 - or write to your MP. Because it's not Crispy's fault. He just helps people.

Isn't that right, Crispy?

That's bang out of order. Someone who knows about the situation posts a reply and you don't like the answer so have a go at her?

I hope when you sign back on you'll apologise because I just can't see how you thought she deserved that.

dexters_mum_2

Might also be worth contacting the chosen university and asking if they have any scholarships available for post-grad study, I know mine does for certain courses.

m.smith14

I doubt much funding is available for the CPE tbh although a very limited number of grants may be available from a few charities/organisations - for that it would be best to speak to the careers advisor at the uni she's currently at. It is worth bearing in mind though that the CPE is supposed to be a hard course, I'm currently an LLB finalist and I find it hard to believe that people take on all the core modules that are required by the Law Society in one go, indeed many do not pass and of those that do many are mature students (who seem to have more motivation than those just out of uni!). After that, there's the LPC which will cost a minimum of around £6,500 + living expenses (Although Professional/Career Development Loans can help up to £8k or Natwest's LPC Loan Scheme for more than this). Whilst they are both professional courses and appear to be very worthwhile, an additional 2 years studying, lots more debt and no guarantee of a job offer is a difficult prospect. It would definitely be worth trying to get some experience though, if only to ensure that she would be suited to Law, and you might find that they will sponsor her through the post-grad study (although not to put a dampener on things, most of these require very good A Levels, evidence of a wide range of extra-curricular activities along with a good, sometimes excellent, degree from an excellent university).