HELP - Medical degree funding - confused and help needed

[pandafunfactory]

Help!

Dd has completed 3 years of medical school and 1 year intercalated degree. 4 years total. She has been funded for all four years by tuition and minimum maintenance loan from student finance England.
She has applied for the nhs bursary but hadn't been told she HAD to do that, she thought student finance continued to pay tuition.
She has received an award letter with no tuition and reduced maintenance loan. She's rung up to ask and they seem as confused as she is. The nhs bursary is still showing as pending because they need evidence of student finance.

I have googled extensively and everything says for years 5 and 6 you can apply for a nhs bursary, I think it should actually say you MUST? Unless you have tuition plus living expenses lying around.

Can anybody spell out how years five and six are funded and what she should expect? It's a Scottish uni so a lot of the students don't pay fees hence I think a lack of explanation in general circulation.

Just wondering if we need a second mortgage......

Confused bump

I know in years 5 and 6 my sister applied for a fees only bursary from the NHS and then claimed living from SFE. There was about a 40% reduction in money available from SFE once she applied for NHS bursary.

I'm not sure Scottish students are eligible for NHS bursaries (feel free to shoot me down if I've remembered wrong!) because she looked at Edinburgh (my dad is in Scotland and she has lived there for 5 years) for her placement and SAAS funded all years within the medical degree for Scottish students. She chose a UK university in the end.

I just had a look and found this document which I think gives the info. about funding www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/sites/default/files/2019-07/NHS%20Bursary%20Funding%20for%20Medical%20and%20Dental%20Students%202019-20%20%28V1%29%2006%202019.pdf

I see it’s for last year, but maybe you can find the updated version?

Are they treating her as a 4th rather than 5th year as year 4 was intercalated?

I don’t know if there are differences if it is a Scottish uni but this is what I know based on my Dd who is about to go into her final year.

Dd also intercalated. Student Finance generally only pays your undergraduate tuition fees for four years so the NHS pays the tuition for the remaining years (usually one or two depending on course length & if you have intercalated).

They give a non means tested bursary for living expenses of around £1000 which is paid weekly. You can also apply for an additional means tested amount if you qualify. I assume it’s a similar process to Student Finance (Dd just got the basic amount)

You can also get a maintenance loan from Student Finance for those last 2 years but it is reduced. In 4th year Medicine ( ie the 5th year at uni) the total of the NHS Bursary & the student loan was a little less than the full student loan would have been.

For final year the student loan amount is reduced even further. I reckon the shortfall overall will be around £1500. I am not sure why it is reduced. Dd thinks it’s because you effectively have a shorter year so it only covers Sept-June not Sept-Aug.

For medical students who can’t work in the summer between 4th year & final year this is not great. Luckily Dd has been working quite a bit in the holidays & during the lockdown to supplement the loans.

Forgot to say that I think the final deadline for the NHS application is not until September so your Dd has plenty of time to sort it out.

All very helpful thanks! I think she's got her head round it now. Nobody - not student finance, not the uni has ever actually said you don't get student finance, you must get the bursary. Everything she had seen said you can get it which makes it sound optional. Very confusing.