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Funding and Financial Support

From available Guild Funds for current students to support for student parents and funding options for Undergraduate and Postgraduate study, explore this page for lots of key information.

Guild Funds
Undergraduate
Postgraduate
Parents

Guild Funds

Brought to you by the Guild and the University of Birmingham, the below funds are offered at different points throughout the academic year to support your university experience.

a graphic of the Guild Hardship Fund logo

Guild Hardship Fund

Available to students who are experiencing an immediate short term financial difficulty. This means you may be struggling to cover the cost of food, hygiene products or travel to university.

Guild Hardship Fund

a graphic of the Graduation Hardship Fund

Graduation Hardship Fund

This fund supports students who are facing financial difficulty and are struggling to cover the cost of attending your graduation ceremony, including cost of gown hire and photography.

Graduation Hardship Fund

a graphic of the Sport Access Fund

Sport Access Fund

The Sport Access Fund reduces barriers for students accessing sport and physical activity at university; support is available for fees, memberships and the cost of kit or equipment required.

Sport Access Fund

Undergraduate Funding

Are you considering Undergraduate study, but aren't sure what funding options are available? Explore this section to start your search.

UK Students
EU Students
International Students

All undergraduate home students who meet the eligibility criteria and are studying for their first degree are entitled to a student loan from the Student Loans Company (SLC).

As a rule, you're eligible for a Maintenance Loan if you're a UK national (or have 'settled status'), or if you normally live in the UK (or the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man) and have done so for the three years prior to the start of your course.

This loan will be divided into two parts:


Tuition Fee Loan

This will be paid directly to your university to cover tuition fee costs.


Maintenance Loan

Directly paid to you and is designed to support you with your living costs.

You should refer to the Government website for the most up-to-date information and guidance. It will also tell you what bursaries you are entitled to. The amount may vary according to where you are living in the UK, your age and what your personal circumstances are.

View further information on your student funding allowance via the Government’s website, including student funding criteria, eligibility, and application processes.

To find out how much student funding you are entitled to, including loans, grants, and scholarships, please use the Student Funding Calculator.

Additional Funding & Support

Compelling Personal Reasons (CPR) Additional Discretionary Student Funding

Your studies may not always progress how you had planned. Sometimes you may need to repeat a year of study, change university or change course, in which case you may need to apply for Compelling Personal Reasons (CPR) additional funding. 

Most Student Loan companies will offer an additional year of student funding. The Government website provides information on previous study and the Compelling Personal Reasons (CPR) process for full-time, home, undergraduate students. 

If you wish for some advice on the application process, Guild Advice can support you by looking at a draft of your statement before you submit to the SLC.

Estranged Students Additional Funding

If you’re estranged from your family, either prior to starting or during your studies, you may be able to get additional student funding from both the University and the Government as part of your Student Funding loan.

The University also offers additional funding support for estranged students, which you can explore via their website. Plus, you can learn more about available financial support via UCAS.

You can access the University’s support services or visit national charity; Standalone’s website for advice and guidance on coping with estrangement.

Care Leavers Funding Support

If you are a ‘Care Leaver’ you may be able to access additional support from the University or apply for their Care Leaver’s Scholarship. For further support and information please visit the UCAS website.

Further Sources of Funding

Explore the Undergraduate Funding Database for full details of funding opportunities available to support your studies at the University of Birmingham. You can select the most relevant options on the webpage to identify funding opportunities relevant to your subject, fee status and country of domicile.

EU students (including Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, or Switzerland) may be entitled to help from the UK Government with tuition fees if studying in the UK, Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man.

Students who have lived in the UK for three consecutive years before the first day of their academic course and have ‘settled status’ may also be entitled to some maintenance funding.

Learn more about funding options available for EU students and be sure to use the student finance calculator to calculate your entitlement.

Funding for international students is often limited in the UK because international students are expected to have sourced their funding from their home country before applying for their student visas. So, funding for international students is not readily available in the UK after the start of your studies.

However, we appreciate that sometimes unexpected financial issues can occur due to problems with your funding sources; be it parental support, a private loan from your home country, scholarship support or from economic issues arising within your home country.

If that’s the case, you may wish to explore alternative financial funding options during your studies. We would suggest looking at the following financial support options that international students could apply for, they are not guaranteed, and success would be dependent upon meeting the eligibility criteria.

It could be helpful for you to look at the University’s website to learn more about Loans and explore Scholarships available to International Students.

Postgraduate Funding

Are you considering Postgraduate study, but aren't sure what funding options are available? Explore this section to start your search.

UK Students
International Students

UK Students that wish to continue their studies and complete a postgraduate course will have to think carefully about how they will manage the costs of study, including both the tuition fee costs and living costs for the length of your course. We would recommend that you research your funding before registering onto a course. You can get funding for postgraduate study through loans, studentships, bursaries and grants - you might also be able to get help from your employer.

If you are an eligible UK citizen and who is thinking of starting a master’s course, you could be eligible for a loan from the UK Government to help with course fees and living costs.

Funding for PhDs

If you're doing a PhD and you're from England or Wales, it's worth applying for a Postgraduate Doctoral Loan (PDL). Please see the Government website for the eligibility criteria and application process.


How Postgraduate Loans Work

  • You can use your loan however you like – towards your tuition fees, living costs, any associated costs.
  • The loan is not means tested.
  • It will be paid directly into your bank account in three instalments during the academic year.
  • If your course is longer than one year, the loan will be divided equally across each year of your course.
  • If you study part-time, you can only get payments in the first two years of your course.
  • You’ll repay the loan once you’ve finished or left your course and are earning over the threshold.


How To Supplement Your Income

  • If you are employed, you can ask your employer to partially fund your further study if it has a vocational element to it.
  • Save up before you start your studies.
  • See whether you can get a Postgraduate Loan (PGL) from a High Street bank. Most banks do offer PGLs, and you can search the web for the most competitive rates.
  • Work part-time to support your studies
  • See whether your family can offer financial support during your studies.

The Government believe that PG study is a choice that you make to continue studying and you are expected to supplement the costs towards it yourself.

Additional Funding & Support

You could also look at the Postgraduate Funding Database to learn about scholarships and funding opportunities available to support postgraduate taught and research programmes at the University of Birmingham.

Funding for international students is often limited in the UK because international students are expected to have sourced their funding from their home country before applying for their student visas. So, funding for international students is not readily available in the UK after the start of your studies.

However, we appreciate that sometimes unexpected financial issues can occur due to problems with your funding sources; be it parental support, a private loan from your home country, scholarship support or from economic issues arising within your home country.

If that’s the case, you may wish to explore alternative financial funding options during your studies. We would suggest looking at the following financial support options that international students could apply for, they are not guaranteed, and  success would be dependent upon meeting the eligibility criteria.

Please look at the Government website to see if you are eligible for support via UK Scholarships.

It could be helpful for you to look at the University’s website to learn more about Loans and explore Scholarships available to International Students.

Additional Funding & Support

Chevening Scholarships

This is the UK Government’s global scholarship programme, funded by the Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) and partner organisations.

Visit Website

The Commonwealth Scholarships and Fellowships Plan

For students from particular Commonwealth countries.

Visit Website

British Council

You could also look at the funding available from the British Council.

Visit Website

Postgraduate Scholarships for International Students

Visit the Government website to view available Scholarships

Visit Website

The UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA)

Serves the interest of International Students and provides information and support on all issues facing you, including funding.

Visit Website

EFA- International Financial Aid and College Scholarship Search

Enables you to explore further scholarships. You will need to register to view full details.

Visit Website

If you are struggling to fund your studies, it may be useful for you to get in contact with the University’s International Student Team to check to see if there will be any visa implications. 

If you are unable to source any alternative funding and you believe these funding issues are going to be ‘long term’, you may wish to consider taking a Leave of Absence from your studies (put them on pause) whilst you return home to manage your financial funding situation.

Student Parents

If you are a full-time student with dependent children, you may be eligible for additional support through Student Finance England.

Child Benefit
The Childcare Grant
Benefits

You can claim Child Benefit if you are 'responsible for the child' and they are under 16 years old. Or if they are under 20 years old and in approved education or training.

Please see the Government’s website for more information on claiming.

The Childcare Grant (CCG) helps with registered childcare costs if you have children under 15, or under 17 if they have special educational needs.

Your childcare provider MUST be on the approved Government registration list.

You can apply for CCG online as part of your main student finance application. If your application is approved, you’ll get an email from the Childcare Grant Payment Service (CCGPS). This email will direct you to set up an account with them, where they’ll be able to pay your childcare provider directly. Your childcare provider will also need to set up an account to get payments

The Childcare Grant does not usually affect entitlement to most benefits.  Students must not be in receipt of the Childcare Element of the Working Tax Credit, the Childcare Element of Universal Credit, Tax-free Childcare from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) or NHS funded childcare grants at the same time as the Childcare Grant.

Postgraduate students are not normally eligible for the Childcare grant unless they are studying on certain Initial Teacher Training (ITT) or PGCE courses funded by Student Finance England.

If you are a student parent, you may be eligible for some support via Universal Credit - a monthly payment to help you with your living costs. You usually can’t get Universal Credit if you are a full-time student, but there are some exceptions, including for student parents.

You may be eligible if:

You Are Under 21

You are under 21, in full-time non-advanced education, and don’t have parental support. This includes if you’ve left care provided by the local council or you’re without parental support.

You Are Responsible For A Child

You are responsible for a child. The child may be adopted or a foster child.

Partner Eligible For Universal Credit

You live with your partner and they are eligible for Universal Credit and you make a joint claim.

If you’re a part-time student, you may be able to access Universal Credit, but you will need to meet other eligibility conditions, such as being available to work. Check Gov.uk to see if you meet the criteria and view information on how to apply.

Papyrus Prevention of Young Suicide is a UK charity dedicated to the prevention of suicide and the promotion of positive mental health and emotional wellbeing in young people. You can also explore all wellbeing support available at the University of Birmingham.

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