HN and Degree Guide 2022/23 | Page 68

Finance Options

Tuition Fees ( Full-time Students ) Repaying a student loan
Part-Time Students

Studying in Scotland

Depending on your eligibility , if you are going to be studying full-time , you can apply to have your fees paid directly to your college or university . These are non-repayable if you study in Scotland , but you must submit an application every year . If you are studying elsewhere in the UK you can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan , up to £ 9,250 ( more information on this below )
Living costs ( Full-time Students )
Once you start your first job with a salary over the threshold you will start repaying your loan .
The payments are taken directly out of your salary by your employer so you do not need to remember to make payments or to adjust amounts if you get a pay rise , this all happens automatically .
For up-to-date examples of loan repayment costs go to www . studentloan-calculator . co . uk
If you and your course are eligible for support , you can apply for the Part-time Fee Grant ( PTFG ) to assist with the cost of your tuition fees . The amount of tuition fee that SAAS will pay will be pro-rata based on the number of SCQF credits you are doing . SAAS will pay the PTFG straight to your college , university or private provider . If the cost of your tuition fees is greater than the amount that SAAS award you , you will need to make your own arrangements to cover the shortfall .
You can apply for a bursary and loan to help with living costs . How much you get depends on your household income and if you are a young or independent student . You can choose how much loan you want to take ( up to £ 4,750 per year ) regardless of your household income .
Young Students ( Full-time Students )
You must meet all of the following criteria :
be under the age of 25 at the start of the academic year
not have supported yourself financially outside of education for three years ;
not be married , in a civil partnership or living with a partner ; and
have no dependent children .
Independent Students ( Full-Time Students )
If you don ’ t meet the young student criteria , you are classed as an independent student .
How to apply
You apply for funding via the SAAS website at www . saas . gov . uk from April , as soon as you know the course you want to study . If you don ’ t get on the course you want , you can change / cancel your application through your SAAS Account . Submit your completed application at www . saas . gov . uk and send any supporting evidence via their SAAS Document Uploader . Apply as early as possible and before 30 June so that your funding is in place for the start of your course ( you ’ ll need time to gather your supporting evidence ).
Options for paying fees if you are self-funding
If you have sufficient funds available , then you can just pay the fees to Fife College when we request them and you do not need to worry about the rest of the information on this page .
If you do not have sufficient funds available , then you can apply to Student Awards Agency Scotland ( SAAS ) for a Fee Grant Loan for either part of or all of the fees .
This loan is NOT MEANS TESTED so it is available to everyone irrespective of household income .
This is a LOAN and you will need to repay it once you start working ( more about this later ).
If you are looking at SAAS information , all loans in Scotland fall under the Plan 1 conditions .
68 | Higher Education and Degree Pathways Guide : 2022 / 23