money for fees for part time college course

snowfairy84

hi everyone,
i work full time but i'm not enjoying my role very much so i'd like to study part time either evening/weekend to gain a skill i could use a back up should i need it. i have massive interest and enjoyment in:
nails
hair
beauty therapy
waxing
tanning
make up

the courses however cost between £350 up £1800 i have no savings and can't afford this and i live week to week so can't manage installments. is there any grants or anyway i could get the fee's paid by the government? i am27 yrs old and have a claim for working tax credit going thru?

thanks

Oldernotwiser

Do you already have a qualification at level 2?

MrsManda

The best place to ask is the college where you want to study.
They'll be able to tell you if they provide fee reductions/grants.

Do you have any qualifications already?

This may give you some idea what's available but the college is still probably going to be your best source of information.

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/EducationAndLearning/AdultLearning/FinancialHelpForAdultLearners/index.htm

**Juice**

I know about 3 years ago, when I did my NVQ 2 in Beauty Therapy, the college funded your course if you had no previous NVQ/GSCE etc. qualifications or were in receipt of certain benefits - you could also apply for a grant to cover the cost of your kit and uniform.

It would probably be worth speaking to the enrolment people at the college you're looking to learn with and see if there's something similar

19lottie82

Hi OP, it really depends what kind of course you intend to undertake, if it's a F/T college course, then yes, I'm guessing there will be help with fees and possibly a grant. However if it's just evening / weekend classes then this is less likely. Although Scotland, if you earn under 22k (?) you can get a grant of up to £500 to assist with part time study. I don't know if there is a similar scheme in England, if that's where you are based.

BUT one thing to consider before embarking on this new career path, possibly at a large cost to yourself, is that unless you have the resouces to start up your own business, most standard salon beauticians are only on minimum wage (to my knowledge). Seems crazy considering the trainign that they require!

Oldernotwiser

19lottie82 wrote: »

Hi OP, it really depends what kind of course you intend to undertake, if it's a F/T college course, then yes, I'm guessing there will be help with fees and possibly a grant.!

Why on earth would you think that this would be the case? What's the point of guessing when you don't know the information?

19lottie82

Oldernotwiser wrote: »

Why on earth would you think that this would be the case? What's the point of guessing when you don't know the information?

Yes ONW you're prob right, but I was basing my educated guess (I never claimed it was anything more than this)on my own experiences. That's why I thought it might be the case.

Back to the mattter in hand..... OP, This might help you work out what you are entitled to (if you have decided on a course and study method, p/t, f/t?)

http://www.studentfinance.direct.gov.uk/portal/page?_pageid=153,4680136&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL

**Juice**

19lottie82 wrote: »

Hi OP, it really depends what kind of course you intend to undertake, if it's a F/T college course, then yes, I'm guessing there will be help with fees and possibly a grant. However if it's just evening / weekend classes then this is less likely. Although Scotland, if you earn under 22k (?) you can get a grant of up to £500 to assist with part time study. I don't know if there is a similar scheme in England, if that's where you are based.

BUT one thing to consider before embarking on this new career path, possibly at a large cost to yourself, is that unless you have the resouces to start up your own business, most standard salon beauticians are only on minimum wage (to my knowledge). Seems crazy considering the trainign that they require!

There's also a wealth of opportunities that can come from being a trained beauty therapist - you can work overseas, you can work for yourself, you can go into education and training and if I remember rightly a survey done in the last few years found that hairdressers/beauty therapists/nail techs had the highest job satisfaction.

Oldernotwiser

19lottie82 wrote: »

Yes ONW you're prob right, but I was basing my educated guess (I never claimed it was anything more than this)on my own experiences. That's why I thought it might be the case.

Back to the mattter in hand..... OP, This might help you work out what you are entitled to (if you have decided on a course and study method, p/t, f/t?)

http://www.studentfinance.direct.gov.uk/portal/page?_pageid=153,4680136&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL

I'm going to be negative again.

The link you've given is for full time university level courses and is totally inappropriate for the level the OP wants to study.

Kate78

I think that the best place to ask is at the college.

You may be able to access some help paying towards kit and equipment, possibly travel to college, child care if appropriate and some fee discounts.

I work in Student Services in an FE college, we offer a 40% discount on fees if you don't qualify for any fee waivers and have a household income of less than £18,000 after tax. I am not sure if this is the same for all colleges though.

It does mean that for a course costing £1000, you would still have to pay £600 and even paying in installments that is still out of reach of a lot of potential students, and the goverment have scrapped the Adult Learner Grant too.

Oldernotwiser

Kate78 wrote: »

I think that the best place to ask is at the college.

You may be able to access some help paying towards kit and equipment, possibly travel to college, child care if appropriate and some fee discounts.

I work in Student Services in an FE college, we offer a 40% discount on fees if you don't qualify for any fee waivers and have a household income of less than £18,000 after tax. I am not sure if this is the same for all colleges though.

It does mean that for a course costing £1000, you would still have to pay £600 and even paying in installments that is still out of reach of a lot of potential students, and the goverment have scrapped the Adult Learner Grant too.

It does vary enormously from college to college. Where I used to work there were virtually no discounts (certainly not for courses like this) and only a very small contribution towards childcare and travel for those on means tested benefits.

Obviously no harm in asking though.