Page 2 | University fees

titchy · 18/03/2023 22:48

Fees and maintenance aren't separate loans, they're added together to be the same loan

cadburyegg · 18/03/2023 23:00

Informationeededplease · 18/03/2023 22:43

The 60k I was quoting in my original post is because if it all needs paying back, then it is about 60k, regardless of if you pay it back over a lifetime….but it’s promising that you can do this, as it’s far too much money to find !!!

Unless your DD becomes a high earner it's unlikely she'd pay it all back tbh

SeaSloth · 18/03/2023 23:02

This thread has been quite helpful and also worrying. I just ran the figures for my DS starting uni in a couple of years time. It looks like we are expected to top up by £356 a month?! We have £508 left after bills to feed everyone, clothe, fuel etc so I am a bit shocked £356 will need to go on uni! Ouch.

Dotcheck · 18/03/2023 23:06

The threshold level has dropped.

OP Have a look at the Student Room- there is a student finance page.

Maray1967 · 18/03/2023 23:09

We gave ours £5k per year rising to £6k in his final Year. He borrowed the maximum he is allowed based on our income ( about £4k.) and those two funds paid his living expenses outside London. He also borrowed the £9250 each year for fees. So it has cost us £21k for a 4 year course and he will pay back about another £40k plus interest.

Original poster

Informationeededplease · 18/03/2023 23:14

I guess I’m having a hard time managing this as I’m really rigid with things like money and I’m seeing it as such a huge amount of debt to go into adult life with…. Likely will need paying back as many graduates do earn over 30k …. I’m wandering if to look more in to nhs train on the job phycology degrees and see if these exist

OP posts:

WeAreAllLionesses · 18/03/2023 23:17

Op, please don't worry. She will get enough to pay for accommodation, she will need more than that to live so either you or she will need to help. At present we give DC another £400pm or so, we do expect some good decisions (ie not takeaways every night) but equally don't want them sat in their room every night.

When / if she earns - after leaving uni - over the repayment level, she will pay back a manageable percentage. So if she earns £700 a month over the limit, shell pay about £65 or so.

I would say do encourage her to live away from home, it's been a life changing experience for mine (in a good way!).

WeAreAllLionesses · 18/03/2023 23:19

Op I think you're worrying that she'll have this enormous debt but it really isn't thought of in that way for most people. It won't be enough to seriously affect her living after she leaves uni.

Original poster

Informationeededplease · 18/03/2023 23:34

Thank you. I just don’t want her saddled with such a huge debt when applying for mortgages ect. And it just seems such a huge amount of money !

OP posts:

TheEverdelightfulsamantha · 18/03/2023 23:39

This isn’t really the point of the thread, but you mentioned Psychology and the NHS so I’m jumping to conclusions- but just be aware that if she wants to be a clinical Psychologist the NHS may cover the cost of a Doctorate - though it’s very competitive and will need lots of relevant experience- but it’s unlikely that there will be funding for her undergraduate degree - which need to be BPS accredited - Prospects website is quite useful for role profiles etc www.prospects.ac.uk/job-profiles/clinical-psychologist

im only posting as a fair number of the early years psychology students that I meet think their undergrad degree in someway qualifies them for clinical practice.

TheEverdelightfulsamantha · 18/03/2023 23:42

Plenty of other graduate jobs you can do with a psychology degree which don’t require further study though - and it’s an in demand skill set - an understand of people, society and thinking, and a strong handle on data and statistics - a really strong basis to apply to some of the higher paying graduate schemes

Twinedpeaks · 18/03/2023 23:48

SeaSloth · 18/03/2023 23:02

This thread has been quite helpful and also worrying. I just ran the figures for my DS starting uni in a couple of years time. It looks like we are expected to top up by £356 a month?! We have £508 left after bills to feed everyone, clothe, fuel etc so I am a bit shocked £356 will need to go on uni! Ouch.

It won't 'need' to. There are lots of other options including the student getting a part time job!

Original poster

Informationeededplease · 19/03/2023 00:06

Thank you for your information regarding the phycology degree

OP posts:

Paq · 19/03/2023 07:15

Degree apprenticeships allow young people to work and learn at the same time but they miss out on the university "experience".

Depending on their course, students can often manage a part time job alongside their studies.

Student debt is not treated the same as other debt for mortgage application purposes.

University open days often have a session on student finance to explain it all to parents.

Ultimately someone has to pay for universities, if not the direct beneficiaries then the tax payer, like in Scotland, and that's resulted in limited university places.

PhotoDad · 19/03/2023 07:23

Informationeededplease · 18/03/2023 23:34

Thank you. I just don’t want her saddled with such a huge debt when applying for mortgages ect. And it just seems such a huge amount of money !

Two comforting things for you. Firstly, student debt isn't counted for mortgages (except that if you're paying it off it reduces your take-home pay). Secondly, any remaining debt gets written off after a time! Most students never pay back anything like the full amount (only high earners do).

The bad news for your DD is that the time-limit before writing off has just changed to 40 years rather than the existing 30 years. But it's still not like a normal loan!

Ciri · 19/03/2023 07:45

It’s really tricky imo. I doubt any child goes to university thinking they will be a low earner. However without the student loans it’s simply unaffordable for most people. The reality is that for the vast majority of people it’s simply the cost of going.

The bit that comes as a surprise for many is the parental contribution (for middle income families)

My dc are at independent school. A significant number don’t take the loans since the cost is broadly similar to school fees and they assume the DC will be higher earners

meditrina · 19/03/2023 07:56

Ciri · 18/03/2023 22:39

To be fair a lot of us went to university before student loans and it can come as a shock to parents on higher incomes to discover that their child is only eligible for the minimum maintenance loan and they are expected to top it up by £5k a year. If you haven’t planned for this it can be difficult, particularly if you will at some point have more than one child at university at the same time.

But you would have gone through on grants, which were also scaled by income and which parents needed to top up

The need for parental top-up has existed pretty much since the end of WW2 (ie when grants were introduced)

Minimum grant was abolished mid 80s, so no government assistance for living costs at all for those of us (roughly in our 50s) who went between then and the introduction of loans a few years later

(Yes, I know tuition fees meant our total bill was less, but parents or own work/savings/private (repayable regardless) loan had to cover all living costs)

wildseas · 19/03/2023 07:58

I think that at the end of the day the decisions here are your daughter’s really.

She could take a year off and work before uni, living with you to keep expenses low. She could choose a uni close to home and live at home. She could choose another path. She could investigate earning power and aim to be a higher earner once she leaves.

But ultimately she may well feel that the expense is worth it for the qualification and experience. In which case if you can afford to support her with 200-300 a month that will make a huge difference.

Ciri · 19/03/2023 08:02

meditrina · 19/03/2023 07:56

But you would have gone through on grants, which were also scaled by income and which parents needed to top up

The need for parental top-up has existed pretty much since the end of WW2 (ie when grants were introduced)

Minimum grant was abolished mid 80s, so no government assistance for living costs at all for those of us (roughly in our 50s) who went between then and the introduction of loans a few years later

(Yes, I know tuition fees meant our total bill was less, but parents or own work/savings/private (repayable regardless) loan had to cover all living costs)

Show quote history

I was on full grant and also had a scholarship but I think the issue comes because people know there is such a thing as a student loan and they perhaps assume it covers everything and don’t appreciate that it is part means tested.

WhereIsMyRefund · 19/03/2023 08:04

Please try and be positive whilst being realistic with your daughter. It is stressful but kids to go to university with parents earning less than you do. Don’t crush her dreams. She may be a fabulous psychologist one day and we need them. Let her flourish.

DustyLee123 · 19/03/2023 08:04

I paid DD’s accommodation, she lived on the loan, and worked for extra.

remotecontrolleddog · 19/03/2023 08:06

SeaSloth · 18/03/2023 23:02

This thread has been quite helpful and also worrying. I just ran the figures for my DS starting uni in a couple of years time. It looks like we are expected to top up by £356 a month?! We have £508 left after bills to feed everyone, clothe, fuel etc so I am a bit shocked £356 will need to go on uni! Ouch.

I think you are not the only one to be shocked by how much you are expected to contribute, it results in lots of families really struggling to support their kids at Uni.

PhotoDad · 19/03/2023 08:08

For anyone who is new to thinking about this, there are a couple of really good, informative, threads over in "Higher Education" which are worth skimming, from parents of current students and those about to apply.

CantFindTheBeat · 19/03/2023 08:09

OP,

I felt overwhelmed too when DS was viewing and applying for university.

DH and I didn't go to uni so it was brand new to us and felt very daunting and such an important thing to get right.

Suffice to say, we are a year in know and it's been fine!

There's a great Facebook group - "What I wish I knew about university" WIWIKAU which has lots of parents in the same situation.

You'll get some great advice there, as well as on here too.

Testina · 19/03/2023 08:09

YABU.

”I hate that people are just expected to know this or be able to understand all the complicated systems”

In what way are you “just expected” to know? There’s an official website with clear information, and a zillion other websites that explain it. And your daughter - who is almost an adult - can have it explained in school.

You’re being ridiculous.