Help - application for student finance

kparky1

Hello
I am struggling to work out what it will cost me and my husband for our son to go to university.

As far as I can see our combined income is just over £60k so our son won't be eligible for a student grant. But I'm not sure about whether he will get any other student finance / loan.

The student loan for the fees - will our son get any of this or will we, as parents, pay the whole amount?

The maintenance loan - will our son get any of this or will we have to finance this?

I'm worried. £3145 a year for the fees. £4625 maintenance loan. £2835 maintenance grant. Totals £10,605 for his first year.

Is this £10,605 the amount my husband and I will have to pay or will our son get some student loan money? I am trying to predict the outcome of our PN1 application.

Hoping you can give me some advice
Thanks

Oldernotwiser

If you live in England your son will be able to take out the loan for the full amount of his fees. If he'll be studying away from home and outside London he'll also get the non assessed maintenance loan of about £3,500 although I doubt that he'll get the extra income assessed element (£1,100) because of your salaries. You can find full information on https://www.direct.gov.uk

I imagine that most parents in your situation would top up this by the assessed element of £1,100, or even the extra £2,500 of the maintenance bursary, but it's up to you. Most students would also work at least a few hours part time whilst studying. Don't worry, it all works out in the end!

BruceyBonus

Everyone is eligible for the fees loan of up to £3145 - regardless of income. This is paid directly to the university.

Regardless of income, he will also get 75% of the maintenance loan. These are the full loan amounts, plus I put 75% in brackets:
London £6475 (£4856.25)
Elsewhere £4625 (£3468.75)
Overseas £5510 (£4132.50)
Living with Parents £3580 (£2685.00)

It is worth remembering that the loan doesn't necessarily do down as income goes up. For certain income boundaries, the loan goes up as income goes up.

You can enter your income here and it will estimate the amount of loan/grants that you will receive. A very handy tool!

Also check with the university what scholarships and bursaries are available.

kparky1

Thanks Oldernotwiser. My mum said it will all work out too but she's also saying that she is going to carry on working for as long as she can and she's already retired from work once. She should be enjoying spending money on herself.

Thanks BruceyBonus that has reassured me about where we stand with the parental contribution. And thanks for the link to the web - very useful.

I feel a bit less stressed now. Cheers

Oldernotwiser

If you are over the age of 25 or have supported yourself for at least 3 years (which I imagine is the case if your mother is retired) then your maintenance loan won't be based on your parents' income at all and you're likely to receive the maintenance loan of about £2,700 and additional funding as well inn addition to the above. Financially it's very much easier to manage if you're a few years older when you go to university, particularly if you haven't taken on additional financial and personal responsibilities.