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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think student loans based on household income are unreasonable

105 replies

Starsinyoureyes13 · 30/09/2022 08:48

My daughter will only be 17 when she starts uni next year, im hoping she gets into the halls of residence as then she will have her own room as currently she shares a room with her very messy and loud sister. Right now I'm currently the main earner in my home, I earn a little over 25k to support 4 of us, My partners business is going down the tubes and may have to call it a day as anything he earns is being put into the company. So come next year my daughter will get about £600 in bursary and 6100 in a loan, she won't be able to get a bar job as she is under 18 and any work she does will pay bare minimum due to her age, so looks like I'll have to fund her until she's 18 which won't be until next January. How do other parents cope with their kids at uni do you part fund them?
Its all confusing
Though still see it as unreasonable that household income dictates who gets what

OP posts:
Hoppinggreen · 30/09/2022 10:23

I agree, it’s a loan to be paid back. I don’t see how the income of people who won’t be paying the loan back is relevant at all.

mrsjohnnylawrence · 30/09/2022 10:30

I graduated in 2004 and got the full loan as my parent was on 13K

But you say 25K which sounds to me like it would be the equivalent of that now, as in it's a very low income.

I did a calculation based on 9K a year student fees and this is the entitlement:

Tuition Fee Loan
You could get a £9,000 Tuition Fee Loan each year to pay for your course.
Maintenance Loan
You could get a £9,706 Maintenance Loan to contribute towards your living costs.
How your Maintenance Loan is calculated:
£9,706 (the maximum Maintenance Loan available)

  • £0 (the amount you might not be eligible for, based on your answers)
= £9,706 (the amount you could be eligible for, based on your answers)

I didn't live in extortionate halls and rented but the loans only covered my rent so I worked more or less full-time doing care work.

The uni will have an employment agency and you can actually get some decent jobs from it too.

I lived it up and ended up with a 2:2 which was fine. Because I'd ben working throughout uni, and had my previous work experience, I walked into a job straight out of uni.

She's starting her adult life here. My parents gave me zilch when I was at uni as they were very poor.

worriedniece · 30/09/2022 13:39

Why is she going when only 17 and a year early? Maybe she could get a gap year job and defer?

Original poster
Starsinyoureyes13 · 30/09/2022 17:12

Why would she not go to uni at 17? Age wise she'll we a few months younger than others from her school class who are also going to uni? And being a few months younger didn't stop great exam results. She wants to go to uni so she has her own bedroom, something she never had and personally think it would be making of her. If she gets a job in a food place, I'd not be happy not because there's anything wrong with working in a food place, because then she'd have pulled a blinder pretending she couldn't cook and having me make all her dinners..

OP posts:
RubyWho · 30/09/2022 17:24

This was why I couldn’t go to Uni in 2003 when I was 18. Household income was high but my parents had a huge mortgage, three kids, massive debts. Even if I’d taken a year off and worked full time it wouldn’t have been enough to pay for tuition, and commuting costs (no way could I have afforded halls etc so would have had to go to uni locally, I live in London so not as limiting as jr sounds).

no way around it so I waited till I was 21, and a “mature student”, did the application on my income alone and got 2 x loans - maintenance and tuition.

is taking a year out to work an option for your DD?

howshouldibehave · 30/09/2022 17:29

Why are you judging people who make it work

I’m not judging. I’m saying it can be much easier for teenagers who get £9000k a year to spend than those who only get half that.

Boomboom22 · 30/09/2022 17:31

For me I feel household income is an old fashioned way to do it. It's OK if the parents are still together and have joint finances, but what about the many blended families who don't blend finances fully? Dad could be very poor but stepdad loaded and lives with the young person but doesn't contribute to them, yet it is their income taken into account. And vice versa, rich dad may fund them but they live with mum and get full loan.

Snoozer11 · 30/09/2022 17:35

I agree.

I was around when EMA was a thing. My parents were married and lived together, both worked low paid jobs but their combined income meant I was over the threshold.

We were far from affluent but we got by. I didn't need the money.

But there were many others in my sixth form who received £30 per week. They seemed to all have dads who earned a fortune and lived in huge houses. They were the ones who had cars and iPods and designer clothes.

It is unfair to base things on household income alone.

Original poster
Starsinyoureyes13 · 30/09/2022 17:37

RubyWho · 30/09/2022 17:24

This was why I couldn’t go to Uni in 2003 when I was 18. Household income was high but my parents had a huge mortgage, three kids, massive debts. Even if I’d taken a year off and worked full time it wouldn’t have been enough to pay for tuition, and commuting costs (no way could I have afforded halls etc so would have had to go to uni locally, I live in London so not as limiting as jr sounds).

no way around it so I waited till I was 21, and a “mature student”, did the application on my income alone and got 2 x loans - maintenance and tuition.

is taking a year out to work an option for your DD?

I feel sorry for students in London, its a very expensive city to live for the average person but tougher for students who don't have non stop funds from parents.
She's been looking at courses and has started filling out forms for next year so her hearts in it. Personally I'd keep her with me forever as she's my youngest :( I've even cried in secret because she is growing up and going to go away. If it's what
She wants I can't stop her

OP posts:
OxanaVorontsova · 30/09/2022 17:44

I’ve got twins at uni on minimum loans. I knew this would happen and have planned for it, but I do think there should be more consideration of household outgoings and other dependents.

Zizou04 · 30/09/2022 17:47

My daughter is 17 and works as a waitress in a hotel, she gets paid £9.75 an hour which is good for her age.

effieeve · 30/09/2022 17:52

My daughter is 17 though in her final A level year. She has a part time of 11 hours a week at Tesco's. Really good rate of pay. They actually want her to do more hours but she's holding firm due to academic workload. My point is that there are jobs out there. I suspect most of her undergraduate peers will be working too. It's not impossible.

Sushi7 · 30/09/2022 17:52

I’ve never known a 17 year old to go to university because they’re usually still doing their A Levels. Usually students are 18 before they start in the September. Unless you’re not living in England? How much is the cheapest accommodation in the Halls per semester? She could get a job in a cafe, coffee shop, retail, McDonalds etc before she starts university (and during).

gogohmm · 30/09/2022 17:54

I was youngest in the year but still had just turned 18 when I started university. Most universities don't like taking under 18's because they cause lots of extra paperwork (exh whinged - lot when he had a Scottish 17 year old)

Newnameforthistopic · 30/09/2022 17:56

But she is your daughter not mine or others on this thread. It is your (and your families) responsibility to educate her.
If some parents accepted that in the first place, we would all benefit. It is not a holiday with unlimited alcohol funded my muggins the taxpayer.

LIZS · 30/09/2022 17:56

Scottish students are often still 17. Retail, hospitality(other than bars), tourism roles, uni jobs all accept under 18s. She won't be 17 forever! Student finance has always been based on household income, even back in the days of grants.

catsonahottinroof · 30/09/2022 17:59

I mean why can't she wait until she's 18 to go to university? She could surely find something to do in the meantime?

Noteverybodylives · 30/09/2022 18:10

YABU

Loans are there to help the poorest in society go to university.

Before these where available, you could only go to uni if your parents were rich and then you’d have a much better income and your kids would go to uni - it was an endless cycle of the rich staying rich and the poor staying poor.

I don’t know what the threshold is but this does need to be increased as everything else increases.

17 does seem very young to go to uni though and I’d be encouraging a gap year so she can work and save up some money.

Skala123 · 30/09/2022 18:18

I'm sure you've checked but when I went to uni at 17 I couldn't get a student loan as I was under 18. The university gave me £500 hand out but other than that I had to wait until I turned 18 before I could get a loan or anything from the bank. Good on your DD though!

howshouldibehave · 30/09/2022 18:19

Student finance has always been based on household income, even back in the days of grants

I’m fairly sure that it took other dependents into account though. My brother didn’t get any grant when he went to university, but when both of us were there, we both got a bit. There had been no change in my parents earnings.

Tooshytoshine · 30/09/2022 18:24

Apply to the university for a hardship loan (not paid back) this can be £1500 per year.

For your income though, this calculation seems wrong and I would appeal it. She should be receiving maximum loan and grant. Speak to student services at the University - they are like CAB for students.

Challenge this as your funding seems wrong

RoomOfRequirement · 30/09/2022 18:27

Where are you based? If England surely she should be doing A-Levels at 17? They usually turn 18 in their last year at sixth form/college and then go to Uni.

Also there are jobs everywhere right now, I'm not sure why her not being able to work in a bar (and no idea why you'd want her to!) Means she can't get a job.

CasaDelSoot · 30/09/2022 18:30

I’ve never known a 17 year old to go to university because they’re usually still doing their A Levels.

The OP may well be in Scotland. The school intake cut off is February to February in Scotland which means the youngest in the school year turn 17 up to February in their final year at school.
Loads of Scottish students go to Uni a couple months before 18

AuntSalli · 30/09/2022 18:36

My eldest is so autistic she can hardly get herself out a bed never mind to work independently any kind of public facing job would literally be beyond her. Academically though she is brilliant so we are literally having to us an entire family including the other children make massive sacrifices to get her through university so that she can complete a masters get in to do a PhD and then have an academic career which point she’ll be off the payroll when she’s 27.

it’s extremely unfair that she can’t have £10,000 a year in support in loans which you payback, all because I had to earn a certain amount of money in order to fund the other children. If I have timed it right I should’ve gone on the dole for 12 months.

Geewhizzr · 30/09/2022 19:14

Our income changed when dd was at uni. She got help and even applied for a hardship payment from the uni.
Dds accom was v expensive as in a desirable city so all options costly. It may be worth a bit of research now.
Also if they give you a choice of halls banding costs in first year. Eg cheapest , mid, luxery room .. be prep to stick to yr guns. Just a cple things helped us !