Student Loan - Plan 2 and Plan 5 Repayment

liamcam56

Hi all,

Recent sport & exercise science graduate here...and have just begun my MSc (pre-reg) Physiotherapy, a further 2 year course. I took out a Plan 2 loan for my undergrad, and have now took out a further loan to cover my Masters tuition fees. 

I was under the impression that my masters 'debt' would merge into my undergrad 'debt', so wouldn't really affect my repayment cost and would ultimately be wiped in 30 years regardless...WRONG. I've just realised that in 30 years time I will be left with a reasonable chunk to repay, since the plan 5 lasts 40 years and will hardly have a dent in due to most of my repayments going towards the plan 2.

I feel like I have been hard done by since had I started my university a year earlier/ chosen physiotherapy as my BSc, I would be purely on the plan 2 which will be wiped after 30 years anyway.

Am I right in thinking this is how it will work? Doesn't seem fair for recent grads who have took on a pre-reg or pgce course. Anyone got any advice/ words of wisdom?

Thanks for reading

silvercar

Separate courses, separate loans. Each with their own terms and conditions.

Unless there is something special about studying physio, then a masters degree has a 6% payback of anything above the threshold in addition to the 9% for a plan 2 loan.

Plenty of threads to read on the student board, I’ll move this thread over.

liamcam56

@silvercar Thanks for the reply. From my knowledge a Msc (pre-reg) course such as physiotherapy is also classes as an undergraduate student loan. So on application I assumed it would be paid back the same as my undergrad. However since Plan 5 came into place this is where my confusion has come from.

silvercar

Does this help? The 9% payback quotes seem to suggest it counts as an undergrad loan rather than a masters loan. Unless they make a special exception for people moving straight from an existing degree to these pre-reg courses, it would mean you have a plan 2 and a plan 5 loan.

https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/career-planning/study-and-training/considering-or-university/financial-support-university

silvercar

Plan 2 threshold is 27,295 whereas plan 5 is 25,000. As you say only the payments of the amount between the two will go towards plan 5, the remainder to plan 2. 

I’m not convinced the government understands the issue for students with more than one student loan on different schemes. 

liamcam56

Thank you. Yes this is the conclusion I came to as well. I think I'm just going to try not to worry about it and hope something miraculous happens in the future meaning I won't have to overpay a ridiculous amount...seems very unjust.