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All you need to know about student loans
When do you repay?
Loans and Support in Wales
Loans and support in Scotland
Loans and support in Northern Ireland
Tips and Advice
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If you are thinking about going to university to study for a degree, then you might be wondering how you are going to afford to pay for it. Here we give you a quick, but hopefully detailed guide to the loans and financial support you can arrange for yourself.

The system for student loans has changed almost on an annual basis. Originally designed to reform the system of grants, the government now allows for loans to cover both some living costs as well as tuition fees. This is administered by the Student Loans Company; a subsidiary of the UK government.

Tuition fees used to be around £1,100 and are almost certainly due to rise from the current level (£3,225 maximum). No UK political party has committed to reducing, eliminating or freezing fees. Some sources in the New Labour government have been quoted as saying fees will rise in the new Parliament to around £7,000 a year.

So what can you borrow for, how much, and when do you have to start repaying? As in all things ‘simplified’ by a government organisation, it depends on where you live and what course or university you are applying to.

Student Loans and Support in ENGLAND
If you are one of the vast majority of applicants who are English or live in England, then you will be expected to pay tuition fees even you study in Scotland. The maximum tuition fees for an undergraduate degree course are currently set at £3,225. Not all universities charge the maximum, so check.

English Tuition Fee Loans
So how do you pay for fees, and what will you live on? Fees can be paid for by arranging a student loan, whereby the fees are automatically paid to your university.

English Maintenance Support Loans
Similarly, you can arrange further financial support to help with your living costs via student loans. The maximum amount you can ask as a maintenance loan for living costs varies upon where you live, or intend to study.

If you intend to live at home and study relatively locally, then you can expect a maximum support loan of £3,838 a year except for your final year, where it drops to £3,483.

If you intend to live and study away from home then you can receive a maximum of £4,950 a year, dropping to £4,583 in your final year.

If you intend to live away from home and study in London, then you can expect a maximum of £6,928 – dropping to £6,307 in your last year.

If you want to figure out how much all of this could cost, the government has produced an online calculator that you can access at.
http://www.studentfinance.direct.gov.uk/calculator/studentfinancecalculator