Funding for postgraduate study including PGCE 2016/17

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1 Funding for postgraduate study including PGCE 2016/17 Finance essentials Inside costs financial support PGCE courses useful contacts

2 Continuing to learn The University of Portsmouth offers a diverse range of over 100 Master s courses and postgraduate research degrees. Our research is thriving and postgraduate research students, supported by a dedicated Graduate School, are an integral part of our community. Many of our taught courses are accredited by professional bodies and provide status recognised by employers searching for highly qualified personnel. Most courses are available both full and part time to provide flexible options in line with the demands of busy lifestyles. Tuition fees Tuition fees vary from course to course. For courses starting in 2016, fees for full-time home (UK) and EU students will be between 4,200 and 8,900 per year. Fees for international full-time students will be between 11,500 and 21,600 per year (subject to exceptions). Parttime fees are pro rata to the amount of credits studied. You can find the exact fees for a specific course by visiting the course page at Alumni Scholarship If you studied your undergraduate degree at the University of Portsmouth you may be entitled to a 20 per cent discount on any selffunding element of your tuition fees for a full or part-time postgraduate course (excludes PGCE and MArch). You can check whether the course you are interested in is eligible at alumnischolarship. Students who intend to pay their tuition fees with a Postgraduate Loan (PGL) from Student Finance England will be entitled to the Alumni Scholarship assuming they meet the eligibility criteria. Additional costs In addition to tuition fees and living costs, you also need to consider other expenses such as study costs and materials. The basics you will need to account for include: textbooks photocopying, printing and computer memory sticks required specialist equipment/software and protective clothes fieldtrips any research you may need to complete Also ask your department about any additional materials or fees you may be expected to pay. If possible, try to speak to students who have studied the course previously to estimate your study costs. Lots of information about the typical costs of living in Portsmouth is available at. The support for postgraduate study does differ to that for undergraduates, so it s important to look into the funding options early. 2

3 Postgraduate support From academic year 2016/17, the Government will for the first time provide a loan for postgraduate Master s study. Postgraduate Loan The Postgraduate Loan (PGL) will be paid to you as a contribution towards tuition fees, living costs and other course costs. A non-means tested loan of up to 10,000 will be available. Loans will be available to UK and EU Nationals (and individuals with settled status in the UK). Students must start the course in the academic year 2016/17 or later (i.e. on or after 1 August 2016). Students who will be under the age of 60, when commencing their course, will be eligible for Master s loans. Loans are available for both taught and research Master s programmes. All disciplines and subject areas will be covered.* For part-time courses students must be studying at least 50 per cent intensity in the first year of the course. Three year part-time courses will not be eligible for PGL funding and some two year part-time courses may not be eligible. Students wishing to study full-time, part-time and distance-learning Master s programmes will be eligible. Repayments will be income-contingent and made concurrently with undergraduate loans. Rates will be set at 6 per cent of annual income over 21,000. Interest will accrue at a rate of RPI + 3 per cent on all outstanding balances, and repayments will not begin until April 2019 at the earliest. *Excluding MArch, PGCE, Integrated Masters and PhDs. Applying You can apply online at studentfinance. Applications will open in summer We recommend that you apply as soon as possible, and you meet the application deadlines to ensure you receive your support when you start the course. Full details of the Postgraduate Loan system, including eligibility criteria can be found at: University of Portsmouth Postgraduate Scholarship 200 means-tested scholarships of 3,000 each are available to eligible* UK University of Portsmouth students graduating in July 2016 progressing to full-time Master s courses (including MRes) starting in September *Excludes PCGE, Integrated Master s and MArch, Postgraduate Certificate and Diploma courses. Priority will be given to students achieving a first-class honours degree or a 2:1, who are from a household income of below 42,620. For full details on eligibility, how applications will be prioritised and how to apply, visit Scholarships will be paid as a cash bursary on a termly basis. Students receiving the Postgraduate Scholarship will not be eligible for any other discounts (e.g. alumni discount). 3

4 Financial support Should you not meet the eligibility criteria for a PGL you may want to consider some of the alternative forms of postgraduate funding: Professional and Career Development Loans (PCDL) PCDLs can be used to help pay for workrelated learning. You can borrow between 300 and 10,000 to help pay for up to two years of learning (or three years if it includes one year s relevant unpaid practical work). The Skills Funding Agency will pay the interest on the loan while you are studying and for one month afterwards. The loan can be used towards course fees or other costs, such as travel and living expenses. It is a commercial loan product so should only be considered as an option once all other student funding options have been investigated. For further information visit or call the National Careers Service on Graduate studies loan Some banks offer their own graduate or professional studies loans. Ask at your bank for details and remember to check the terms and conditions. Sponsorship Some employers may consider part or full sponsorship. This may be in the form of day release for part-time study or providing financial support to students studying a relevant area. Trusts and charities Some charities and trusts offer support for students undertaking postgraduate study. Be aware that most organisations apply very specific criteria, such as age, residency, religion and/or course type, and only have limited resources available. It is very rare that an organisation will be able to support you in the form of a full scholarship. You will usually need to show that you have tried all other sources of financial help, and that you are able to source the rest of the money needed to complete the course. A searchable database of funding available for postgraduate students from charities, trusts and other funding organisations is available at: The Alternative Guide to Postgraduate Funding This is an online resource which the University subscribes to, and students can use to search for and apply to charities and other funding bodies. Visit com to use this. Research councils Research councils may provide support for recognised postgraduate courses. Most councils will not accept applications directly from students, and ask that you apply through your department. Their websites offer useful information regarding the support and funding opportunities on offer. Competition for this type of funding can be very strong. Details of the seven research councils are available at: Prospects If you are having difficulty finding a source of funding for postgraduate study, the Prospects website has useful tips on funding, plus a scholarship awards search. 4

5 University of Portsmouth funding Portsmouth Business School scholarships These are available to self-funding UK or EU students on taught postgraduate degrees. The scholarship is a 40 per cent discount off tuition fees and cannot be taken in conjunction with any other discount (with the exception of the two per cent early payment discount). The decision to award is based on the merit of your application. For more information on the eligibility criteria and to apply, visit Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences Master s Prize Bursary Scheme Current final-year undergraduate students in the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences are encouraged to apply for a bursary of a 2,000 discount on the fee for a full-time Master s degree (this is in addition to Alumni Scholarship). The decision to award is based on the merit of your application. For more information on the eligibility criteria and to apply visit Hardship funds If you experience financial difficulty once you are on your course you may be eligible to apply for help through the University-administered hardship funds. Any awards made are based on your income and expenditure and you will normally have to show that you made adequate provision to fund your course before applying for assistance. Visit for more information. Course-specific funding MSc Social Work UK students studying an MSc in Social Work may be eligible for a bursary from the NHS Business Services Authority. The bursary consists of a non incomeassessed basic grant of up to 4,052 towards tuition fees and 3, towards living costs (including placement travel expenses) (2015/16 rates). There is also an additional incomeassessed maintenance grant of up to 2,721 and income-assessed allowances to assist with other living costs, depending upon your individual circumstances. All awards are paid in three instalments.* There is a cap on the number of bursaries available to students on this course so not all eligible students are guaranteed to receive a bursary. For further information please visit Postgraduate social work students are not eligible for any loans or grants from Student Finance England. *NHS funding is subject to change Master of Architecture Eligible home (UK) students studying an MArch course can apply for the same package of support as undergraduate students (maintenance loans, bursaries and tuition fee loans). The rates applicable to you will depend on when you started your BA in Architecture. In order to qualify for this support package you need to progress on to the MArch within three years of completing your undergraduate degree. See for more details. 5

6 PGCE courses If you are a student from England studying a full-time Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) course you can apply for a tuition fee loan, maintenance loan and a University of Portsmouth bursary, details of which are below. If you are an EU student studying a full-time PGCE, you can apply for the tuition fee loan only. If you currently live in Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland you should visit the following websites for further information on funding: Students from Wales: Students from Scotland: Students from Northern Ireland: Tuition fee loan The tuition fee for a full-time PGCE course in 2016/17 is 9,000. You can take a tuition fee loan to defer the payment until after you have finished your course. The loan is paid directly to the University on your behalf. If you wish, you can pay your fees yourself, either in full at the start of your course (an early payment discount applies) or in instalments throughout the academic year. Alternatively, you can pay part of your fees and apply for a tuition fee loan for the remainder. Maintenance loan Eligible PGCE trainees can also apply for a maintenance loan to help with their living costs. Loans are available to students under the age of 60 on 1 September of the year they start their course. The maximum available depends on where you live whilst you are studying and your household income. Where you live Maintenance loan In the parental home Between 3,039 and 6,904 Elsewhere Between 3,821 and 8,200 University of Portsmouth Bursary Full-time PGCE Business Studies or Post Compulsory Education students whose household income is less than 32,000 may be eligible for a 500 bursary. Additional grants Further non-repayable support may be available if you have a disability or learning difficulty, or if you care for children or an adult who is financially dependent on you. Contact the Student Finance Centre or the Additional Support and Disability Advice Centre (ASDAC) for more information (see back cover). How to apply Students from England can apply online for all the support via EU students can apply for the tuition fee loan with an EU16N form, available from the same website. Repayment You only start to pay back your loan when your income is over 21,000 a year and these repayments will be deducted from your salary, through the tax system. You repay at a rate of 9 per cent of your income above 21,000. For more information on repaying your loan see 6

7 Training bursaries If you are thinking of studying a full-time PGCE course, you may also be eligible for a tax-free bursary from the National College for Teaching and Leadership (NCTL) while you train (UK students only). The NCTL will pay you a non means-tested bursary of up to 30,000 depending on the subject you teach and the class of your undergraduate degree. Your department will arrange payments of the training bursary once you have started the course. For more information, visit We advise that you do check this website for current information as these rates change annually. First degree result Subject First 2:1 2:2 Other Science (with Physics) 30,000 25,000 25,000 9,000 Maths 25,000 25,000 25,000 9,000 Computer Science 25,000 20,000 20,000 0 Modern Foreign Languages 25,000 25,000 20,000 0 Science (with Chemistry) 25,000 20,000 20,000 0 Science (with Biology) 20,000 15,000 15,000 0 Geography 15,000 15,000 15,000 0 English 9,000 4, Business Studies Post Compulsory Education Maths 25,000 20,000 15,000 0 Post Compulsory Education English 9,000 4, Post Compulsory Education Teaching Students with Special Educational Needs Post Compulsory Education all other subjects 9,000 4, PGCE: part time If you intend to study a part-time teacher training course, such as the part-time PGCE or CertEd in Post Compulsory Education, please contact the Student Finance Centre for information or pick up a copy of our leaflet Funding for part-time courses. This is because funding for part-time teaching courses differs substantially to that for full-time courses. 7

8 Useful contacts University of Portsmouth Finance Department (for queries about paying your tuition fees) T: W: Additional Support and Disability Advice Centre (ASDAC) T: E: W: Student Finance England T: W: Social Work Bursaries T: W: School of Education and Continuing Studies T: E: W: National College for Teaching and Leadership T: W: Our commitment It is our aim to provide comprehensive support to current and prospective students and parents in the form of information, advice and guidance, and additional funds where appropriate. In doing this we hope to enable the successful completion of their studies, improve their financial capability and literacy, and enhance the quality of the student experience. We provide a wide range of services and offer free, non-judgemental and confidential guidance on money-related issues. If this document is in a format not accessible to you, please corporate.communications@port.ac.uk. Information correct at time of print (February 2016). University of Portsmouth Student Finance Centre Nuffield Centre, St Michael s Road, Portsmouth PO1 2ED T: T: (Fees and bursary helpline) F: E: student.finance@port.ac.uk W: Opening times Monday, Wednesday and Thursday: 8.25am 5pm Tuesday: 9.30am 5pm Friday: 8.25am 4pm MD