Student Loan application - rant

rubble2

Daughter is starting university in September as a mature student so she sent off her Student Loan application along with birth certificate and (because her passport has expired) a form which they requested that had to be countersigned by a 'Responsible Person' to confirm that they know my daughter and to confirm her identity.

One of the recommended categories of people to sign the form is a Company Director, we have a family friend who is dierctor of a company so she signed the form and it was sent back.

The form has now been returned by Student finance saying that the counter signatory is not acceptable due to their job status - so daughter contacted them to find out what the problem was, she was told that the job description 'Sales Director' was not acceptable.

So, for context - when my daughter applied for finance last year to do her access course she used the same friend to sign the forms but at that time she just described herself as 'Company Director' and this was accepted.

When my daughter rang back the Student loan company they said that Company Director is acceptable but Sales Director is not - Why?

They also suggested that my daughter could pay our Doctor to sign the form, but he declined to do so because they want him to submit his passport number as well as his signature

bargainbetty

A Company Director is often listed at Companies House, and can be checked up on. A Sales Director is a head of department, and would have no checks made on their fitness to be in business etc. They want someone who fits the legal business definition of the word. Perfectly normal practice.

Sooler

"Sales Director" is just a vanity title.

Taiko

As above.

Also, she wouldn't have got finance last year, as access courses are not eligible. If it's SFE you applied to, they probably let it through because there's no point asking for additional documents if you're just going to make someone ineligible.

That, or your daughter applied elsewhere for finance last year, and they had different requirements?

dodger1

Taiko wrote: »

As above.

Also, she wouldn't have got finance last year, as access courses are not eligible. If it's SFE you applied to, they probably let it through because there's no point asking for additional documents if you're just going to make someone ineligible.

That, or your daughter applied elsewhere for finance last year, and they had different requirements?

OP said daughter was a mature student so probably over 23 and therefore would have been eligible for a student loan for an access course,

http://www.bolton.ac.uk/Undergraduate/FeesAndFunding/24-Advanced-Learning-Loans-for-Access-courses.aspx

My daughter is 29 and has just applied for the loan for an access course at a college in Southampton.

Taiko

dodger1 wrote: »

OP said daughter was a mature student so probably over 23 and therefore would have been eligible for a student loan for an access course,

http://www.bolton.ac.uk/Undergraduate/FeesAndFunding/24-Advanced-Learning-Loans-for-Access-courses.aspx

My daughter is 29 and has just applied for the loan for an access course at a college in Southampton.

That's not the standardised definition of what a student loan is though, as it's a long established principle that these are for higher education, which an access course is not.

In any case, they are two different companies. The SLC have rejected it, but it may have met the criteria for further education loans.

dodger1

Taiko wrote: »

That's not the standardised definition of what a student loan is though, as it's a long established principle that these are for higher education, which an access course is not.

In any case, they are two different companies. The SLC have rejected it, but it may have met the criteria for further education loans.

The way I look at it is that if you are a student and you are given a loan then it's a student loan. It matters not which organasition it comes from and the finance loans for access courses are treated in exactly the same way as typical university student loan as far as the repayments are concerned, 9% on earnings above £21,000.