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A student loan is money lent to a full-time or part-time higher education student to help them pay for the costs of university and college.
There are two types of student loan - a student loan for tuition fees and a student loan for living costs.
Student Loan for tuition fees
The tuition fee loan can be up to the full amount of your tuition fees. (ie. £3145 in 2008)
You only pay back 9% of your earnings above £15,000 per year, so someone earning the average graduate starting salary of £18,000 would repay £5.19 per week.
Student Loan for living costs
The Student Loan for Maintenance can help pay for accommodation and your living expenses. The loan amount depends on your own circumstances, as well as on the course you choose and where you will live while you study. The loan is less for students who live at home than for students who move away to live at the university.
Most students automatically qualify for 75% of the full loan. 25% of the loan is means tested and depends on your household income.
The loan is from the Student Loans Company, not from the university.
After you have finished at university and got a job, you pay the loan back from your income.
You do not start making repayments until you earn more than a set amount (currently £15,000 per year). You then pay a small percentage of your income as tax until the loan is repaid.
Repayment amounts are linked to earnings - the more you earn the more you have to repay. If your salary falls below a certain amount then you can defer payments for a period of time.
Your eligibility depends on your circumstances, your household income and on what you want to study.
If you also take up a Tuition Fee Loan, both loans will be added together, so you only have to make one repayment to the Student Loan Company.
Students on part-time Initial Teacher Training courses are eligible for the full student loan as well as to the other support available to full-time students.
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