Student funding and finance

This page provides a guide to sources of information about finance and funding for students.

Quick links

Note that the Office for Students does not provide student loans or finance.

Students in England

Universities and colleges in England can charge up to £9,250 a year for higher education courses.

If you normally live in England and you’re studying for your first degree or other higher education qualification, you won't have to pay tuition fees upfront. Government loans are available to cover your fees and help with living costs. 

Repayments of loans are based on your future income, not what you borrow. You won't repay anything until you’ve left university and your income is over £25,725 a year. You'll repay 9 per cent of the part of your income which is above this level.

As well as government loans, there may be other sources of funding you can get to support your higher education, from bursaries to sponsorships.  

There’s lots of information, for students in both higher and further education, on the GOV.UK website. 

You can also visit the student finance zone at The Student Room.

Is your provider registered?

If you are studying in England and want to apply for a government tuition fee loan, you must be studying on an eligible course at a place of higher education that has registered with us (the Office for Students).

All English universities and colleges that provide higher education need to register with us for their students to be eligible for student support.

No English higher education provider will be able to confirm whether you can claim student support until they have successfully registered. 

You can find out whether your choice of university or college is registered with us by asking them, or by checking our Register.

Please note that we are still in the process of registering universities and colleges - we are working through the registration applications as fast as we can. If your university or college is not registered at the moment, it might get registered soon. We recommend you check again before you make your final decision about where to apply.

However, no course provider will be able to confirm whether you can claim student support until they have successfully registered.

Students outside England

Different finance arrangements apply to students normally living outside England. If you’re resident in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, you should contact these organisations for more information: 

Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS)

Student Finance Wales (SFW) 

The Education Authority in Northern Ireland (SFni) 

If you are a student living outside the UK, different fee levels apply. UK government loans may not be available. For information you can visit the UK Council for International Student Affairs.

Published 02 April 2018
Last updated 07 January 2020
07 January 2020
Links to new Value for Money section created.

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