Tricky College Situation, Need Advice

tiger_eyes

I believe the reason you can't get JSA etc while you're a full-time student is because of the student loan - you're presumed to be supporting yourself that way.

kwmlondon

tiger_eyes wrote: »

I believe the reason you can't get JSA etc while you're a full-time student is because of the student loan - you're presumed to be supporting yourself that way.

Also, the moment you say you will be going into full time education they cut your JSA completely. As you're intending to go into full time education you are not looking for work so no longer eligible. That can be very nasty for someone who is very unlikely to be able to get a job for a couple of months before going to college.

kawaii-lobster

Really? I'll have to get on that then.
I'm really ignorant when it comes to these type of things despite having lived alone since I was 15; you'd think I'd be more knowledgeable haha

You apply through here right?

https://www.gov.uk/apply-online-for-student-finance

FBaby

Most of the TEFL courses in my county are offered on a part-time basis, mainly in the evenings, some places even offer Saturday classes.

I know quite a few people who have studied for this and all worked full-time.

paddedjohn

kwmlondon wrote: »

Unless they spend the rest of their working lives out of the UK they'll end up paying off their loan at some point.

Whatever, would you rather we have this person languish on the dole costing the UK money, or educate them with the likelyhood that they end up paying it back and if not go abroad taking the burden away from our country?

Stop being such a miserablist and have some faith in people and think of a person growing, improving and getting out of the poverty dole trap.

It depends how long they are out of the country and what their earnings are whilst here. The loan is written off after 25 years and there is a sliding scale for repayments depending on earnings.

Dunroamin

On what grounds are you claiming Income Support at the moment?

What sort of teacher training course will you be doing - if it's TEFL, you won't be eligible for any loans or funding.

Dunroamin

paddedjohn wrote: »

Even if eligible for a student loan, how do you think the OP would pay if back if they were working abroad?

You still have to pay back student loans when living abroad, you know!

MissMoneypenny

kawaii-lobster wrote: »

I don't understand how people with children manage to do this alone when I can't do it, it all seems so complicated and I'm not sure where to go or who to ask.

The UK has (at present) an overly generous welfare system for those parents with no salary/low salary. As a single, you will need to work.

Have you thought about taking advantage of free university courses being offered in other EEA countries and being taught in English? Just look for courses in northern or western european countries.

MissMoneypenny

paddedjohn wrote: »

If you are going to college full time you won't be eligible for JSA, you need to get a weekend job to support you. I know this will sound like short shrift to you bit I hope you don't get any benefits to help you get your free education/training so you can go to another country and pay taxes there, what does the UK get out of it?

I think that some of the proposed changes (and more to come?) to using the NHS for free will make Brits wary of going abroad after their education and paying taxes to other countries. Unless that other country has a national health service too.

pmlindyloo

Your first port of call must be the college where you are doing your course and ask to speak to the welfare department about possible grants/loans whilst you are studying.

If you are currently living in rented accommodation it is probable that you will not be entitled to HB/CTB whist you are a full time student.

I am not sure which course you are taking and whether it is counted as higher education or not. You need to find out the exact 'classification' of your course so that you can find out about any benefits/financing.

If you find that you are not entitled to any financial help then you might want to investigate distance learning. This might give you the opportunity to look for work/continue on JSA and fulfil your ambition.

I believe that teaching English either as a second language/foreign language is an excellent career choice. Although you are leaning towards the 'Japanese side' I would be inclined to keep this as an 'extra' as it were. I believe that a qualification in teaching English as a second language has great prospects because of the growing (and present) number of immigrants who have, for one reason or another, have failed to learn English in this country.

Plus, a qualification like this has the added bonus of teaching privately, one to one or in small groups, in future years as your circumstances change. You will always have a way of 'upping' your income.

A great career choice! I wish you lots of luck!