WIBU to go on benefits to study a Masters degree?

[mummypiggg]

I'm currently working a job I absolutely love (social care related) but even at the highest level would not be able to ever live comfortably or buy a house. I can literally cover rent and bills/food and I'm left with about £50 a month if I'm lucky. I know many people live like this but it doesn't feel like much of a life, and I'd love to be able to save for a rainy day.

I did look at starting a masters after finishing my BSC but was really excited to get into work and received an offer a week after submitting my dissertation.

I'm now a single mum with no financial or childcare support from DD's dad. I have no desire to meet anybody until my DD (9 months) is a little older and would like to set us up for a better future assuming we'll be alone if that makes sense.

The trouble is, the course I want to do includes work placements, and there's no way I'd be able to work the weekends or evenings as I wouldn't be able to get regular childcare and it would be the only time I'd get to spend time with DD.

In one way I feel that I'd be unfairly using the system, but on the other hand I think it would only be for a short time (I can complete the course in a year) and would pretty much completely change our lives. Would like to get some opinions before I make a decision..

Have a look at the social work grad schemes, which are paid. You learn on the job with part-time study around it. Think Ahead, Frontline and Step Up.

Hi OP. I did the MA as a single parent a few years ago (albeit on the tax credits system). The university were great at doing all the calculations with me via student services once I had an offer so I recommend contacting them. I was in receipt of the nhs bursary which paid most of DDs childcare too, and it covered all my fees - I believe the bursary is capped now so not all students are eligible. Mine was a 2 year course and you're right, you have to gain a social work qualification to be a social worker. It was hard work, lots of juggling but I loved it and love my job now (even though it is immensely challenging). I've since done a further post grad qualification paid for by work and I'm working my way up the pay scale. I was stuck before and needed the professional qualification to move me on. It's also meant that we're now free of any benefits reliance, so it's worked brilliantly for me.

@mummypiggg turn to us is very inaccurate re UC. Use this website and join the Facebook group they will work out exactly how much you will receive according to your circumstances.
www.uceplus.co.uk/

Is there something keeping you in the south-east where rent is high? Any family or friends in cheaper places that you could move to for a year?

Right, those talking about Masters loans for a MSW (- sorry we have some non bursary students on our course so it's easy to lose track -) but pretty sure you can't get this if you get full SW bursary to fund the course,..

Where to look is
www.gov.uk/funding-for-postgraduate-study

It tells you clearly about applying for SW bursary

www.gov.uk/masters-loan/eligibility

Healthcare and social work
You cannot get a Postgraduate Master’s Loan if you:
• are eligible for an NHS bursary
• get a Social Work Bursary - unless you only get a Placement Travel Allowance
This also applies for health and social work bursaries in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

UC for students is complicated :- many students aren't entitled to it

www.gov.uk/guidance/universal-credit-and-students

Turn2us or entitled to are good at helping you work out how much you might get, think this will include HB elements too

www.entitledto.co.uk/help/Student-income-Universal-Credit

There are hardship grants and loans you can apply talking to student support team at your university, course administrators will put you in touch . It all changes as fast as SW legislation does!

The first step however is to apply to and get a place on a course Sept 2021. That's a year and 1/4 away still...

Social work placement team will try to arrange a m-f 8.30-5pm placement for you, include your caring responsibilities on your placement information requests when on the course, but as it is a challenge each year getting enough placements for all students, there is less control over options than students appreciate. Many end up in statutory placements and they tried hard to negotiate hours that suit for individual students with additional needs or caring responsibilities at Placement Learning Agreement or pre meeting points

Most courses have new parents on them, many mature students with families, so it is possible. Tight but possible, to do MSW and afford to live. Are you planning to move with your baby when you get a place or try to apply and get a place at a course local to you

@Mbear

You wouldn’t be required to look for work with a 9month old, so from that point of view it’s fine. They will take into account the maintenance part of any student finance you are eligible for so you need to take the maximum loan you can, this will then offset your UC award.

Masters loan dosent have a maintence element. You get lump sum, which has to pay course fees and living costs. For example in England you get £10000 masters loan, and from that you have to pay the tuition fees (which for many courses can be up to £9000 a year).

You’d not get any benefits. I’m starting my HNC and am not entitled to anything

@Iwonder08 if you have children and you send them to state school and/or claim child benefit the taxpayers are funding your life choices too.

OP there is some really incorrect advice coming your way I'm afraid.

I'm assuming you are planning to a 2year postgraduate degree in Social Work so you can become a fully qualified social worker, is that right?

If so, you need to be aware that Social Work degrees that are postgrad are funded very differently to most postgrad degrees, and you need to look into this carefully. The standard government masters loans aren't the source of funding for this type of course. This is the page you need: www.gov.uk/social-work-bursaries

As some other PPs have said? if your goal is to become a qualified SW, other routes might be better financially, such as Step Up, Front Line, or Think Ahead. Your local authority may also have their own schemes so it's worth contacting them, in Suffolk, just as an example, they pay you a retainer to sponsor you through an SW MA if you agree to work for them for x amount of years aftwards.

Good luck with whatever you end up doing, there are lots of routes into Social Work and you can probably find one that would give you enough funding to avoid having to rely on benefits.

just seen ikeptgoing has posted some similar correct advice

Masters loan dosent have a maintence element.

It has a notional maintenance element. Around £3500.

OP. There is a lot of misinformation on here.
You absolutely can claim UC as a student if you have a child.

Also, I'd be very surprised if you're not already entitled? If you want to PM me I'm happy to do a calculation for you.

OP, look for somewhere that offers your course which may also offer you a full bursary. Then you can work for up to 6 hours a week legitimately on top of the bursary afaik.

Thankyou so much for all your replies, have skim read but not much time so I'll have a proper look and reply later

Good luck with your masters, op! I started my masters this year as a single mum and I love it. It's hard work (but I work FT too) but you just have to remember it's not forever and will be worth it in the end.

Just a few pointers from my end having gone through the application process:

1. Make sure this masters will 100% give you access to the career you want.
2. Speak to the uni and ask about finance options. You will get a loan from student finance anyway, but see I know they are crying out for social workers so they may be aware of any other burseries or help.
3. Have a clear plan in your head regarding childcare. You'll do a 60 and 70 day placement and you could be asked to travel I think it is 1h30m for a placement. I didn't get any help with from student finance as a PG student for childcare, but look into what could be available to you.

4.and just a last point. When I was in dire straights, I looked at going on UC and they told me I was able to claim on the online calculator, so processed it all and went for my jobcentre interview, then several weeks later was told I wasn't entitled to anything after all 😔. So don't base your decisions on that online calculator and have a back up plan just in case e.g. Would a part time job or moving back in with a relative to save money be feasible arrangements?

Not sure if this has been mentioned, I skimmed a lot but you won't get any help for childcare from student finance or benefits. I did mine part time because of this. Good luck with everything 👍🏻

I did a master's degree part-time with the Open University with the £10k postgraduate loan (the actual course was around £6k). The loan is paid to you in intervals and you repay it in the same way you do an undergraduate one.

I fitted it around full-time work, and while I didn't have children at the time, other students did, so it is possible to work, study and care for children at the same time. I imagine it's hard though - I found it difficult enough without having children.

@titchy

Masters loan dosent have a maintence element.

It has a notional maintenance element. Around £3500.

Maybe if your course only costs £6500 per year. But many MSc courses cost £9000 per year, which leaves at most £1000 to live on.. which wouldn't even cover two months rent... if you go part time that means you are left with £500 per year as your PG masters loan is split over how ever many years study and not a new loan each year.

Obviously totally glossed over the OP potentially looking at a social working qualifying Masters and therefore other posters have given much better advice about the funding for SW masters.

Maybe if your course only costs £6500 per year.

I said notional damsondragin. That's the disregard for benefit purposes - the amount benefits will be reduced by. It doesn't matter how much the fees are - hence the word notional.

Can't believe how many people still believe you can open a new claim for tax credits. Probably still believe there is 'Family Allowance', too. All new claims became UC in December, 2018.

If you are receipt of SDA and high rate pip/dla and live alone, with under 18’s only or with another SDA pip/dla claimant yiu can make a new tax credits claim.
Can’t believe how many people still don’t know that , it’s been the case for a good while.

How dare a young a mum of a small baby who has bravely and successfully left an abusive relationship dare to better herself?!
Seriously though, you’ve had some horrendously judgemental and incorrect advice. You absolutely can claim UC as a single student parent. Social work masters degrees are funded differently so please ignore a lot of these replies. It’s not correct.
However, unless you’re looking at a programme like Frontline, I am certain you’ll need to do a 2 year masters. Social work degrees require a certain number of days of placements. Before you commit to the masters option, have a look into all the ways into SW including the accelerated programmes and SW apprenticeships.
Good luck.

Do it. As a single parent you will get full whack maintenance loan which is just over 10 grand. Approx 3500 of that is used as “income” when working out benefits.
A masters will enable you to become a social worker and provide for yourself and pay back in to the system for far longer than you claimed from it.

@Yesmate

Do it. As a single parent you will get full whack maintenance loan which is just over 10 grand. Approx 3500 of that is used as “income” when working out benefits. A masters will enable you to become a social worker and provide for yourself and pay back in to the system for far longer than you claimed from it.

Are you thinking of tax credits? If so it is no longer possible to make a new claim for Tax credits.

Fuck me, the fulminating at someone wanting to qualify as a social worker and thus greatly increase the tax they pay over the years is hilariously pathetic.