What is the most the poorest student pays in fees and the minimum grant + bursary?

TurnUpForTheBooks_2

I now have first hand evidence of how two of the poorest undergraduates starting this year are faring with their finances.

So far both have been offered £3354 as grant plus one has been offered 2 x £500 cash via his uni's NSP offering with a £1,500 fee waiver plus a £500 prepaid card to use in campus outlets. With his books showing at around forty quid each even on Amazon I am sure he will soon spend the prepaid card if he goes near the university bookshop

He's already paid £4,000 from his summer break zero hours job earnings for university promoted accommodation out of the £9,000 he must pay for just 40 weeks accommodation this year.

SFE will now lend him the reduced £7,500 tuition and £6,100 towards Maintenance - at what interest rate and from what dates the interest kicks in no-one seems to make clear so it will all be missold and non collectible won't it? Can I advise him that much ? Or shall I advise him that the moment any of it leaves SFE it gets charged at RPI + 3%? Is the interest rate relevant? Afterall MSE knows all about what constitutes mis-selling. Or maybe these loans are "non-advised" sales or execution only?

The other student has not been offered any scholarship or bursary, not even NSP yet, so its the full £9,000 plus the £3,354 grant plus about a £3,800 Maintenance loan because it isn't London. Her university accommodation without en suite sharing a bathroom with I think 7 others is £85 per week. Great for a young woman first time away from home in 2013. At least at her poorest home she only has to share with family.

So how does this all add up, please, and where are the gap filling "bursaries/scholarships" or are they a scarce resource with a political banner headline that indicates it's all been thought out and the poorest are safe ?

How do you live on a £3,354 grant? (because accommodation swallows the entire maintenance loan - shabby accommodation from a shabby landlord that happens to be a "good" university. Strange system isn't it that sells easy credit to vulnerable people with no income to pay such landlords). I know the answer. You can't live on £3,354. You need at least two or three times that and might still have to be very frugal and live as a hermit. How do you get a 1st Class pure science degree if you have to work X zero hours a week to earn the missing living income you need? I think I know that answer too. You often can't unless you are some kind of a genius ...

... and if you were any kind of genius you might have left the country already.

Shelldean

ummm my daughter managed on her grant for her first yr, as her maintenance loan was used on her accommodation.
She was awarded full grant. her Uni only give bursary to those who qualify for full grant, her uni bursary was £345, this was used to purchase her self a laptop. She did top her money with occasional work at the local stadium when they held big events. But this was very occasional work.
She still had a life and enjoyed herself, although thinking about it maybe she survived better as her accommodation fee also included food???

Must admit she's doing a hell of a lot better this yr, living with a rellie at reduced rent plus she's got herself a part time job.
In fact we discussed money recently and she still has a large chunk of her student maintenance loan left with only days until the next one is paid.

TurnUpForTheBooks_2

Sounds like your daughter is now a MoneySavingExpert!

And that "bursary" - according to the Good Schools Guide that's "usually for helping out the impoverished but deserving and those fallen on hard times. So she only got an extra £345 - that's not a bursary is it ? In today's money isn't it surely more of a slap round the face with a wet kipper ?

What about the tuition fee - was there no waiver - so the full £9,000 had to be borrowed ?

And the maintenance loan has been borrowed but largely not spent this year so far?

How much interest has been racking up so far on the two together ? Is it easy to work that out?

flea72

TurnUpForTheBooks wrote: »

You can't live on £3,354. You need at least two or three times that and might still have to be very frugal and live as a hermit.

Thats £100/wk. if one person cant feed, clothe and have fun with that amount of money, then they obviously need to rethink their plans

Dunroamin

Students aren't supposed to live on their grants, they're intended to top up and replace the student loan for students from families who cannot afford to help support them.

Perhaps you can clarify your agenda on the subject.

Soleil_lune

In response to the OP. £9,000 for the year's accommodation. I doubt that is correct! That's £225 a week (for the 40 weeks you mentioned.) And yes, £100 a week IS roughly what they live on. The accommodation and bills are included, and some unis give travel passes. So this £100 a week is for food/booze/clothing for one person. Plenty of students live on it, and manage OK

Shelldean

TurnUpForTheBooks wrote: »

Sounds like your daughter is now a MoneySavingExpert!

And that "bursary" - according to the Good Schools Guide that's "usually for helping out the impoverished but deserving and those fallen on hard times. So she only got an extra £345 - that's not a bursary is it ? In today's money isn't it surely more of a slap round the face with a wet kipper ?

What about the tuition fee - was there no waiver - so the full £9,000 had to be borrowed ?

And the maintenance loan has been borrowed but largely not spent this year so far?

How much interest has been racking up so far on the two together ? Is it easy to work that out?

Yes she is quite the little expert I made sure she was ( and my boys too) as I don't want them making the same mistakes I did

yes the bursary was small but better than nothing I think? and it was all that was offered.

Luckily she is now a third yr student and started before the huge rise in tuition fees, cant recall off top of my head her figures as she has all the paperwork, but her fees are appox 3 1/2 a yr?

I wouldn't say largely not spent but due to cheap living accomadation she still has a fair bit left due to working as well as having the loan. Majority of her friends are dying for next instalment but then they all have higher living costs than DD.

No idea on interest as she keeps telling me "it's MY debt Mum and I will worry about it"

Shelldean

Soleil_lune wrote: »

In response to the OP. £9,000 for the year's accommodation. I doubt that is correct! That's £225 a week (for the 40 weeks you mentioned.) And yes, £100 a week IS roughly what they live on. The accommodation and bills are included, and some unis give travel passes. So this £100 a week is for food/booze/clothing for one person. Plenty of students live on it, and manage OK

student accom that my DD was in, is this yr £6195.50 ( 37 weeks) BUT that includes breakfast and dinner.
Think when DD was there is was appox £100 less than her Maintenance loan, so she lived on her grant, as he loan had been used.
Very occasional job to help top things up and NO help from bank of mum and dad as we simply couldn't afford to.

As you say she survived like plenty of other students!!!!
Tho it was close to the wire by this time last yr, she was one of the ones waiting for the next installment

Ed-1

Shelldean wrote: »

Yes she is quite the little expert I made sure she was ( and my boys too) as I don't want them making the same mistakes I did

yes the bursary was small but better than nothing I think? and it was all that was offered.

Luckily she is now a third yr student and started before the huge rise in tuition fees, cant recall off top of my head her figures as she has all the paperwork, but her fees are appox 3 1/2 a yr?

I wouldn't say largely not spent but due to cheap living accomadation she still has a fair bit left due to working as well as having the loan. Majority of her friends are dying for next instalment but then they all have higher living costs than DD.

No idea on interest as she keeps telling me "it's MY debt Mum and I will worry about it"

Interest rates for loans on the old scheme for courses starting pre-2012 (repayment plan 1) are 1.5% (lower of Bank of England base rate + 1%/March RPI). See http://www.studentloanrepayment.co.uk/portal/page?_pageid=93,6678455&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL

On repayment plan 1 you also pay back more per year though when earning above the repayment threshold (9% of income above £16365). This threshold is rising every April by March RPI up to April 2015.

Shelldean

Ed-1 wrote: »

Interest rates for loans on the old scheme for courses starting pre-2012 (repayment plan 1) are 1.5% (lower of Bank of England base rate + 1%/March RPI). See http://www.studentloanrepayment.co.uk/portal/page?_pageid=93,6678455&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL

On repayment plan 1 you also pay back more per year though when earning above the repayment threshold (9% of income above £16365). This threshold is rising every April by March RPI up to April 2015.

Thanks Ed-1 interesting as I have no idea will be useful if she ever asks for my help xx

Nat1990

I used to get the minimum amount when I was at uni (a maintenance loan of around £3500, or something like that). I received a grant of £500 (year 1) and £200 (year 2) and nothing in year 3 due to my parents increased wages. My parents refused to give me any money to subsidise me so I worked whilst I was at uni. My loan did not cover my rent so I had to cover the rest of that and my living costs by getting two part time jobs. Oh and I still managed to get a first class degree! I would have killed to get the amount these two examples get