Desperately in need of advice on what loans I can apply for

Smysha

Caz3121 wrote: »

you say it does not start till 5th October, have you looked at temp agencies etc as that is at 7 weeks away.
If you choose not to work during that time I expect the money you do have will be depleted and you may be left with no money for repayments

I need to provide the letter from the student registry asap otherwise of course I would work towards it. When I start my PhD the funding is paid to me as four lump sums. With the first lump sum I can pay it off and comfortably live off the rest for 4 months.

Smysha

Tixy wrote: »

Who were you thinking of asking to be a guarantor for you?

Assuming its a member of your family why would that be less stressful for them than asking them for a loan?

Only because I can guarantee that they won't be out of pocket at any time. I will genuinely pay it all off on the 5th October and I have enough to pay for any payments in the meantime. I have already received written confirmation from Imperial (the university I am going to do my PhD at) on the amount of my funding and how much will be paid when.

Clive_Woody

Smysha wrote: »

I don't want to borrow money off of friends or family but I know no bank is ever going to loan me anything. Would you advise going for a guarantor loan? I really have no clue what to do.

A guarantor loan is essentially the same as the guarantor borrowing money on your behalf (although at much much higher interest rates than they could probably get on their own for a loan). You would still need a friend or family member to act as guarantor and I think most people on here would advise against this.

I assume that UCL will not provide the required letter until your debt is settled? I suspect your best chance is negotiating with them, telling them you have a PhD place confirmed with a stipend that will allow you to repay them. Obviously their concern will be that they provide the letter and you then fail to repay the debt.

Out of curiosity do you really need proof of completing the MSc to start on the PhD. I went straight from doing my BSc to my PhD and this is a fairly common route (i.e. no real need for an MSc)?

Tixy

I'd feel far more comfortable asking a family member to lend me money rather than be a guarantor for me.

Guarantor loans have crazy interest rates, usually appear as a credit agreement on the guarantor's credit file, and then for the guarantor there is the uncertainty of not knowing whether payments are made.

An alternative if you really don't want them to be out of pocket for a few weeks would be for them to get a personal loan in their own name, at least then the interest rate won't be crazy and they'll know for certain that the repayments are being made.

But hopefully the UCL will agree a repayment with you and none of this will be necessary.

Smysha

Clive_Woody wrote: »

A guarantor loan is essentially the same as the guarantor borrowing money on your behalf (although at much much higher interest rates than they could probably get on their own for a loan). You would still need a friend or family member to act as guarantor and I think most people on here would advise against this.

I assume that UCL will not provide the required letter until your debt is settled? I suspect your best chance is negotiating with them, telling them you have a PhD place confirmed with a stipend that will allow you to repay them. Obviously their concern will be that they provide the letter and you then fail to repay the debt.

Out of curiosity do you really need proof of completing the MSc to start on the PhD. I went straight from doing my BSc to my PhD and this is a fairly common route (i.e. no real need for an MSc)?

I am going to go in to talk to them today. The only reason why I haven't already left is because I am SO NERVOUS! I'm thinking that if I go in with my offer letter (which I already have and it also indicates it's fully funded). Hopefully they can negotiate something with me.

Why didn't I go straight to a PhD? Well, I changed fields! I did my undergrad in Molecular Biology and I worked for nearly two years as a research assistant in a cancer research lab. Then I did my Masters in Biochemical Engineering. I found it really hard to find work after that in engineering because I wasn't experienced enough and now I'm about to start my PhD in Chemical Engineering! It might not sound like a huge difference to someone who isn't in this field but it feels like a complete turn around!

Smysha

Tixy wrote: »

I'd feel far more comfortable asking a family member to lend me money rather than be a guarantor for me.

Guarantor loans have crazy interest rates, usually appear as a credit agreement on the guarantor's credit file, and then for the guarantor there is the uncertainty of not knowing whether payments are made.

An alternative if you really don't want them to be out of pocket for a few weeks would be for them to get a personal loan in their own name, at least then the interest rate won't be crazy and they'll know for certain that the repayments are being made.

But hopefully the UCL will agree a repayment with you and none of this will be necessary.

Thank-you Tixy - I never considered asking someone to get a personal loan on my behalf. I will definitely consider this. And yes, hopefully UCL will agree! Again I'm too nervous to actually go and find out!

Clive_Woody

Smysha wrote: »

I am going to go in to talk to them today. The only reason why I haven't already left is because I am SO NERVOUS! I'm thinking that if I go in with my offer letter (which I already have and it also indicates it's fully funded). Hopefully they can negotiate something with me.

Why didn't I go straight to a PhD? Well, I changed fields! I did my undergrad in Molecular Biology and I worked for nearly two years as a research assistant in a cancer research lab. Then I did my Masters in Biochemical Engineering. I found it really hard to find work after that in engineering because I wasn't experienced enough and now I'm about to start my PhD in Chemical Engineering! It might not sound like a huge difference to someone who isn't in this field but it feels like a complete turn around!

I've worked in the pharma industry for more than 15 years, first in a research lab then in clinical trial project management so I do understand the difference

Hope it all works out for you

Smysha

Clive_Woody wrote: »

I've worked in the pharma industry for more than 15 years, first in a research lab then in clinical trial project management so I do understand the difference

Hope it all works out for you

Thank-you Clive! Unfortunately the university just got back to me saying that it needs to be paid in full first. I guess I will try and contact Imperial next and see if I can reach a compromise with them!