UCAS – Managing your Application and Student Finance

Hannah CollinsHE and Work Experience Coordinator

UCAS – Managing your Application

Recap on process UCAS ‘Track’ Applicant Open Days Holding offers No offers Student Finance

Recap

Able to apply to make 5 choices Universities will make individual

decisions on your application Hold 2 offers

Conditional Firm Conditional Insurance

CONDITIONS BUILT AROUND THE COURSE(S) YOU ARE STUDYING

UCAS Track

UCAS ‘Apply’ o How you made the application

UCAS ‘Track’o allows you to manage your application

onlineo method by which you hold offerso keep all informed of changes of personal

details e.g. address, mobile phone etc.

o http://www.ucas.tv/ucas/video/7Njsb

Holding offers

Up to 2 offers: Conditional Firm (1st choice) Conditional Insurance (back up choice)

Commitment on both sides Offers have to be held by the date that

UCAS will give you You will lose your offers if you miss that

deadline date If you applied by the 15th of January you

should have all your decisions by March 31st

UCAS - Reply by dates

Last decision by Reply date

31 March 2014 7 May 2014

7 May 2014 5 June 2014

7 June 2014 26 June 2014

18 July 2014 24 July 2014

Factors to consider – holding offers

Right course and university for you – aim to visit at least your proposed Firm and Insurance choices

Level of the offer – grades required from you – can you meet them?

Conditional Insurance should be a back up – generally lower grades

What if I need to add or change a qualification?

Contact all 5 Universities to let them know

Applicant Open Days

Chance to find out

more about

The Course

Accommodation

& Facilities

The University

The Faculty

The Offer

Ask for advice if……..

Need interview preparation Offer letter doesn’t make sense Need advice on CF and CI choices Receive no offers and become

eligible for UCAS Extra

Looking ahead

Higher Education Student Finance: Presentation in class on the principles Open now and for an on time application need

to complete by 30 May 2014 www.direct.gov.uk

Accommodation – initial letters of choice Bursary/Scholarship information (including

NHS)– sent by post when you get the offer or visit the direct.gov.uk website.

Results time – We’re here for you.

What to do if you don’t get into your desired course

Step 1: Get Feedback

You have a right to feedback from the university, so contact them and ask.

Sometimes it may be because of a misunderstanding (i.e. missing qualifications off UCAS form).

Feedback should be used constructively to help you plan your next steps.

Work out what you want to do next

Do you still want to study that course? If yes then look at why you got rejected.

Why did you choose the course? Is it something you have researched?

Do you want to go to university?

If You Still Want To Go To University…

No offers at all?

UCAS ‘Extra’ Comes on stream from 25th

February till 2nd July for eligible applicants

UCAS prompts you if eligible Add one more choice Please come for advice if you enter

‘Extra’

You can apply for...

The same course at a different university.

A different course at a different university

The same universities for a different course.

NOT a course and uni you have already applied for!

What if I apply for a different course in Extra

You may have to send a new personal statement via email. Call up the university and ask if they require this and if so, who to send to.

What if I don’t find a place in Extra?

Clearing is live on results day in August (14th of August).

Allows you to look for places that have become available.

What if I don’t get a place during clearing?

Work out your aims and make sure you have researched them.

If you want to go to uni: Use feedback to determine what you need to do to in order to get in (i.e. take a year of study or work and reapply).

If you don’t want to go to university research what else is available.

Not sure what to do next?

Research different Careers:Nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk

Speak to me!

https://nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk/

Internships / Work experience

Can be paid or unpaid. Relevant work experience if essential for some jobs. Suggested summer internship companies….

The City Brokerage

Paid summer internships in the City in IT, Business, Finance, Law & Marketing. (Can be done before uni!)

Need to have a B in Maths. Also have a College Leaver

programme for students wanting to get straight intop work and have a C in Maths and English GCSE.

More info here: http://www.thebrokerage.org.uk/student-opportunities or email: melissa@thebrokerage.org.uk

YINI – Year In Industry

Gap year work provider which helps you find paid jobs in STEM subjects and IT for a year including training.

http://www.etrust.org.uk/year_in_industry.cfm

Or email Alex Price a.price@etrust.org.uk

STUDENT FINANCE 2014/15

SESSION CONTENTSi• Section 1 – The Student Finance Package

• Section 2 – Student Loan Repayments

• Section 3 – Applications & Information

• Questions & Comments

HOW MUCH DO YOU KNOW??

*Eligible English domiciled students studying at a publicly funded university or college

Q *What’s the maximum tuition fee universities or colleges can charge new students in 2014/15?

Q How much of this will you need to pay up front before you go to uni or college?

A £9,000

A £0

HOW MUCH DO YOU KNOW?TUITION FEES?

Q How much do you need to earn before you start paying back your student loans?

Q After you graduate, your income is £25,000 a year, what would your monthly repayments be?

A £21,000

A £30

HOW MUCH DO YOU KNOW?REPAYMENTS?

THE STUDENT FINANCE PACKAGE

SECTION 1

Bursaries & Scholarships

Tuition Fee Loan

Maintenance (Living Cost) Support

Additional Support

The

Student Finance

Package

THE STUDENT FINANCE PACKAGESUPPORT AVAILABLE TO STUDENTS INCLUDES:1

TUITION FEES & LOANSSECTION 1

• Universities and colleges* can charge new full-time students up to £9,000 per year (£6,750 part-time) for tuition fees.

• Eligible students won’t have to pay any tuition fees up front.

• A Tuition Fee Loan is available to cover the fee charged by the university or college (up to £6,000 for approved courses at private providers).

• Tuition Fee Loan doesn’t depend on household income.

• SFE pay any Tuition Fee Loan directly to your university or college.

• The loan is repayable, but only when your income is over £21,000.

*Publicly funded

TUITION FEES AND LOANS1

MAINTENANCE SUPPORTSECTION 1

• Maintenance support is available to help with your living costs while in higher education.

• Two main types of support are available, Maintenance Loan and Maintenance Grant.

• The Maintenance Loan is repayable and all eligible students are entitled to get some funding.

• The amount of loan available will depend on where you live and study.

• Maintenance support is paid directly into your bank account each term.

MAINTENANCE SUPPORT1

Where you Live & Study Maximum Loan Available

Parental HomeLive at home £4,418Elsewhere

Live away from home and study outside of London

£5,555

LondonLive away from home and study in

London£7,751

OverseasStudy overseas as part of a UK

course£6,600

MAINTENANCE LOAN2014/15 MAXIMUM RATES

Additional loan is available for each extra week of study forstudents attending their course beyond 30 weeks.

1

• The Maintenance Grant doesn’t have to be repaid.

• How much grant you can get depends on your household income (100% means tested).

Household income thresholds for 2014/15:

MAINTENANCE SUPPORT

Household Income:Up to £25,000

Household Income:Up to £42,620

Full Grant of £3,387

Partial Grant

MAINTENANCE GRANT1

Household Income

Maintenance Grant

Maintenance Loan Total

£25,000 & under £3,387 £3,862 £7,249£30,000 £2,441 £4,335 £6,776£35,000 £1,494 £4,808 £6,302£40,000 £547 £5,282 £5,829£42,620 £50 £5,530 £5,580£42,875 £0 £5,555 £5,555£50,000 £0 £4,836 £4,836£62,132 & over £0 £3,610 £3,610

COMBINED MAINTENANCE SUPPORTLIVING AWAY FROM HOME, OUTSIDE LONDON

You can get a quick estimate of your student finance entitlement using the calculator on gov.uk/studentfinance

1

BURSARIES & SCHOLARSHIPSSECTION 1

Many universities and colleges offer financial support to their studentsthrough bursaries and scholarships.

Bursaries:• linked to personal circumstances and often, household income• awards can include fee waivers or cash

Scholarships:• can be linked to academic results or outstanding ability in an area

such as sport, music or art• can be subject specific and are limited in numbers

BURSARIES & SCHOLARSHIPSBURSARIES & SCHOLARSHIPS1

Check university websites and ask at open days for informationon bursaries & scholarships

ADDITIONAL SUPPORTSECTION 1

ADDITIONAL SUPPORT

• Have a child or an adult who depends on you financially:• Full-time students in higher education with an adult who

depends on them financially can apply for an Adult Dependents' Grant of up to £2,642.

• Childcare Grant• In 2014 to 2015 you can apply for:• up to £150.23 a week for 1 child• up to £257.55 a week for 2 or more children

• Have a disability, long-term health condition, mental-health condition or specific learning difficulty (Disabled Students Allowance)

ADDITIONAL SUPPORTEXTRA SUPPORT MAY BE AVAILABLE IF YOU:1

Study an NHS or Social Work course?Social Work: Currently £4575 year 2 and year 3 (not guaranteed)

NHS courses include:nursing, midwifery, physiotherapy, speech and language

therapy, dietetics, radiography, the later stages of medicine and

dentistry

For more information on eligibility and applications for NHSsupport go to www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/students

New NHS students can get up to:£1,000 grant from the NHS£3,263 maintenance loan from Student Finance England£5,460 bursary from the NHSCan’t get Tuition Fee loan!Will be a question on student finance form about this.Apply when you have a confirmed place 4th March earliest, 22nd Aug latest.

STUDENT LOAN REPAYMENTSSECTION 2

• You won’t make repayments until your income is over £21,000 a year gross (before tax).

• Full-time students will be due to start repaying in the April after graduating from/leaving their higher-education course.

• You’ll repay 9% of your income over £21,000 and if you’re employed deductions will be made from your pay through the HMRC tax system.

• If your income falls to £21,000 or below your repayments will stop.

• Any outstanding loan balance will be written off 30 years after entering repayment.

STUDENT LOAN REPAYMENTSTUDENT LOAN REPAYMENTSAN OVERVIEW2

Income each year before tax

Income from which 9% is deducted

Monthly Repayment

(Approx)£21,000 £0 £0£25,000 £4,000 £30£30,000 £9,000 £67£35,000 £14,000 £105£40,000 £19,000 £142£45,000 £24,000 £180£50,000 £29,000 £217£60,000 £39,000 £292

STUDENT LOAN REPAYMENTSTHE FIGURES

Interest will be applied to your loan at a maximum rate of RPI +3% More info can be found on www.studentloanrepayment.co.uk

2

Interest

Income Interest rate

While you’re studying Rate of inflation (Retail Price Index) plus 3%

£21,000 or less Rate of inflation£21,000 to £41,000 Rate of inflation plus up to 3%£41,000 and over Rate of inflation plus 3%

APPLICATIONS & INFORMATIONhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vq7RsIzaxKI

SECTION 3

Each year thousands of students apply late for their finance andhave no way to pay for their course or halls, some even have to drop

out.....don’t let that be you!

• It will take at least six weeks* to process your application so apply early!

• Apply online now at gov.uk/studentfinance to make sure your student finance is in place for the start of your course.

• You don’t need a confirmed place at university or college to apply for student finance.

• Apply with your first choice, you can change details later if you need to.

STUDENT FINANCE APPLICATIONS APPLY EARLY3

*SFE handle over 1 million applications a year, most involve interactions with other government departments, eg HMRC

MayThe application deadline for new studentsis 30 May 201430th

Student finance applications can be made from 20 January 2014*20th

Jan

STUDENT FINANCE APPLICATIONS APPLICATION DATES - NEW STUDENTS

*Returning students should wait to hear from SFE before re-applying for their finance

3

www.gov.uk/studentfinance

GOV.UKFOR MORE INFORMATION & TO APPLY3

Before starting the application, you should have the following to hand:

• passport - SFE can check identity using valid UK passport details for most students

• university and course details – remember apply with your first choice initially so your application can be assessed as soon as possible

• bank account details

• National Insurance (NI) number

• parent’s or partner’s NI number and income details

For most applications, SFE verify income from your parents/partners NI numbers with no need to send any documents, unless we ask for them

STUDENT FINANCE APPLICATIONS INFORMATION YOU’LL NEED TO PROVIDE3

www.thestudentroom.co.uk/studentfinance

THE STUDENT ROOMFOR FURTHER INFORMATION & RESOURCES3

• Important to make the right university/college and course choice!!

• Tuition Fee Loans are available to all eligible students and futurerepayments are linked to your income, not what you owe

• Research all finance available – especially bursaries & scholarships

• Apply on-line & on time – no need to wait for a confirmed place

• Application deadline for new students 30th May 2014!!

• Check all details are correct before submitting your application

KEY MESSAGESKEY MESSAGESPOINTS TO BE CLEAR ONi

Student Finance

Matters...

Apply Now!!

And remember that....

QUESTIONS & COMMENTS?

NEED MORE INFORMATION?iiFor further Information on student finance and

applications go to:www.gov.uk/studentfinance

For a range of helpful tools and guidance, visit:

www.thestudentroom.co.uk/studentfinance

Any questions?

Hannah CollinsHannah.collins@tower.ac.uk0207 510 7779