SLC launches application service for postgraduate study

Postgraduate students in Wales invited to apply for student finance

Postgraduate students in Wales are being encouraged to apply now for student finance, as the application service launches for the 23/24 academic year.

The Student Loans Company (SLC) paid over 1.5 million students more than £22bn in maintenance loans, grants and tuition fees in the last completed academic year (21/22). As students start to prepare for the upcoming academic year, the message from SLC is to submit applications as early as possible, so that their funding will be ready for the start of term.

Postgraduate students can apply for a Postgraduate Master’s Loan and grant or a Postgraduate Doctoral Loan depending on the type of qualification they will be studying for. Prospective students don’t need to have a confirmed place on a course at university or college to make their application, as the course details can be updated as the course details are confirmed.

Jackie Currie, Interim SLC Executive Director of Operations, said: “Deciding to pursue study through to postgraduate education is a big decision for every potential student and there’s a lot to organise and manage before their course starts.  Many students taking up postgraduate study will already be familiar with how to apply for students finance and my message to them is to make sure that they get their finance applications in as soon as possible. That means we can ensure everything is in place for the next step of their academic journey.”

The maximum amount of funding available for a master’s course is £18,880 made up of a loan of £11,885 and grant of £6,885.  Those students studying a postgraduate Doctoral qualification can apply for a loan of £23,395.

Loan entitlements are dependent on individual student circumstances, as postgraduate courses can vary in length and can also be studied part time.  If the course lasts for more than a year, the loan will be divided equally across each year of your course.

Prospective students can find more info at:

• https://www.studentfinancewales.co.uk/postgraduate-finance/master-s/
• https://www.studentfinancewales.co.uk/postgraduate-finance/doctoral/

Unlike loans for higher education, postgraduate students only need to apply for student finance once and are not required to submit an application for each year of their course.