Students on unpaid placement year 22-23

[TheDrsDocMartens]

SFE offering under £3000 at the moment and dd was entitled to the full maintenance loan during uni time. It’s not even asked for my income. She will be living away but outside London. Had work over the summer but not earning enough to pay for a years rent/food/travel etc

Only certain unpaid placements are eligible for full maintenance loan - pubic sector type placements. Anything else only gets the basic. Tbh if she working she should be getting paid - the majority of organisations offering placements pay the student. What is she doing?

See https://www.practitioners.slc.co.uk/media/1215/sfeworkplacementfs1718_d.pdf

[quote titchy]See [[https://www.practitioners.slc.co.uk/media/1215/sfeworkplacementfs1718_d.pdf]][/quote]
In case the link to the document doesn't work for others (it wouldn't open for me, but ? because I'm on my phone), this is on a university site:
ask.herts.ac.uk/funding-for-students-on-a-work-placements

This is normal, sorry but can she not find a paid placement?

It’s a very specific course (6 this year) and placements are always unpaid, it’s their year abroad for want of a better term. Other years don’t seem to have had the same issue. Complicated as only a few of the students are English so they can’t compare finance.

A placement is completely different from a year abroad, so it's a bit confusing the way you've titled the thread.

The year abroad is usually for students on language type courses
for the purpose of immersing themselves in the culture and language of the country as opposed to gaining 'work experience in industry' which a placement is and why they they get paid. Yrs abroad are always like you said unpaid.

Is there any funding from the university that can be accessed?

@Kolani

A placement is completely different from a year abroad, so it's a bit confusing the way you've titled the thread.

The year abroad is usually for students on language type courses
for the purpose of immersing themselves in the culture and language of the country as opposed to gaining 'work experience in industry' which a placement is and why they they get paid. Yrs abroad are always like you said unpaid.

Actually it isn't the case nowadays that a year abroad is usually for language students. However it is the case that they would still qualify for SFE if they have a year abroad.

Does her degree allow for not doing the placement and moving on to the next academic year if she can't afford to do it?

@Kolani

A placement is completely different from a year abroad, so it's a bit confusing the way you've titled the thread.

The year abroad is usually for students on language type courses
for the purpose of immersing themselves in the culture and language of the country as opposed to gaining 'work experience in industry' which a placement is and why they they get paid. Yrs abroad are always like you said unpaid.

Years abroad aren't necessarily unpaid. DS has just completed an internship in France as part of his year abroad and was paid for that (-not a huge amount, but enough to be of help). It's also not unusual for students to work as language assistants on their year abroad and to be paid for that.

@SeasonFinale Actually it isn't the case nowadays that a year abroad is usually for language students.

Actually it is. Most years abroad are still largely language students because its an integral part of their course but it is also correct that students on other courses are opting to do their 'work placements' abroad but that is to work rather than to spend a semester in a partnered university which is what language students tend to do.

@Boosterquery A year abroad for a language student who is going to be attending a partnered university for a semester is unpaid. Of course, they can apply for SF but the distinction I was making was between that a work placement. On the other hand, if the student decides to go abroad for the purpose of work/internship then of course one would expect it to be paid.

Universities do use the language 'Yr abroad' for language students going to spend some time at another university (unpaid) and Work/industrial placement' for students who will actually be working for an employer regardless of whether its home or abroad. Student finance gives a certain amount towards maintenance for students regardless of whether they are doing paid work or not.

Sorry but I am afraid we will have to agree to disagree. Most degrees which feature a year abroad are not work placements either. Many, many universities offer either a full year or semester abroad for study purposes in a variety of countries but notably Japan, Korea, the US, Australia to name but a few . These range from psychology degrees to history degrees to even science degrees.

A quick Google may be of assistance if you don't believe this.

To add onto this, at the university I worked at, I’d say we had more non-languages students who do a year or a semester studying abroad compared to languages students. Some students studying a language do opt for a work placement abroad, but we also saw many more engineering/science/nursing students doing work placements abroad.

In this situation it is a BSL degree and placements are for language skills.

@SeasonFinale I think you may need to re-read my posts properly, no where have I said the majority of 'yr abroad's' are work placements in fact I've been saying quiet the opposite.

If at your uni most who do a yr out abroad ARE non languages students then fair enough but the point being made is, if it is a language student going abroad for a yr out to study with a partnered university, then it will be unpaid! meaning they won't be 'earning' money unlike a student on a work placement.

Of course, if they decide to do paid work in their spare time whilst there and their visa covers them for that then it goes without saying that they can be paid for it. I'm not sure what's so confusing to you about this simple fact.

I am not the one confused as can be borne out by another poster.

It is simply not the case that most years abroad are not for language courses.

Your latest post is only emphasizing my point but I'll leave it there so as not to derail OP's thread. @OP I hope you find a way around the finance maze! is that BSL as in British Sign Language? that's an amazing degree if it is. Years ago I wanted to study and do the BSL exams but didn't in the end. Good luck to her!