Maintenance loan for masters?

[MojoJojo71]

DS is in the final year of MEng joint maths and computer science. He’s really interested in a career in computational neuroscience but has been turned down for PhD due to a lack of life science background. He’s now looking at MSc courses in neuroscience for next year with a view to reapply for PhD afterwards. As he will already have a masters level qualification he is not eligible for a loan to cover the fees for the MSc but has savings that will almost cover them and will get a part time job to pay the rest but would he be eligible for a maintenance loan for this year do you think? He may not be able to make it work without one.

Some providers offer private postgraduate loans, might be worth taking a look.
www.findamasters.com/funding/guides/bank-loans.aspx

Has he approached any of the MSc course providers to see if they provide additional funding for well qualified students. DS2 hasn't a previous masters but still found the cost of the conversion masters he was most interested in way above the loans available . He decided to apply anyway and when he got the place they sent him a list of additional funding to apply for.

He’s in the process of asking @ClerkMaxwell but the courses he’s applying for are pretty competitive so everyone will be well qualified. We may find he has to lower his expectations a bit and come home for a year to study at a local uni.

If no funding available then worth asking if MSc provider employs masters students to help out with undergraduate tutorials in maths/computing. Back in the day when I did my masters this was common and lucrative (and not much work as few students turned up).

Has he looked at freelance IT/computing work. It pays well and doing this part-time with a part-time MSc might work if he's set on a non-local uni.

You don’t get maintenance loan for any Masters as far as I’m aware, just the 11k sum which has to cover the fees and any left over is to live on

That being said, if he has very good grades maybe worth applying for some Masters scholarships which cover the fees? If I remember correctly Sheffield give out 100 of these a year in various disciplines although that might have changed! Hope he finds something that works for him

He won't be eligible for anything for the Masters I'm afraid. Even if he only had a BSc the Masters loan is a flat £11k ish which is supposed to cover both fees and maintenance.

Options: Does his current uni offer the course? Many are doing up to 20% fee discount to alumni which might help. Or would a PG Diploma be cheaper and suitable? Or study part time and work as well. Or distance learning often cheaper. Or as you said he could come home!

Is the course offered part time? Most people I know with masters earned them whilst working full time.

Thanks everyone

@nocoolnamesleft it is offered part time and he thinks he may be able to get a job alongside it from a company he did some work for last summer so that may work.

Neuroscience does not translate well via zoom. I'd wait for normality to resume.