Full Time Higher Education Learners
You have a range of financial support available for the duration of your course, including loans (which you have to pay back) and grants/bursaries (which you don’t). What support you’re eligible for depends on your course, where you’re studying, your household income and where you live.
Important information
- Universities and Colleges can charge a maximum of £9,250 per year in tuition fees. Students studying their first HE course who normally live in Wales can get a tuition fee loan up to a maximum of £9,250. The tuition fee loan isn’t based on your household income.
- In addition to the tuition fee loan you can get maintenance support (help with living costs). Eligible students living away from home (outside London) can get £11,726 per year, made up of a mix of grant and loan. The amount of grant you’ll get depends on your household income (see the examples below).
- The majority of students won’t pay anything up front.
- Students don’t have to pay anything back until they’re employed and earning over £27,295.
- If you’ve studied a HE course before, it’s important that you understand it might affect your eligibility for support. For details, refer to studentfinancewales.co.uk and the section on Previous Study Rules.
- The table below shows how household income determines the amount of maintenance grant you may get. All students get a minimum of £1,000 with a loan available to top you up to the full amount.
These tables show an estimate of how much you could get based on your household income:
2023 to 2024
| Household income | Living at home with parents/partner/alone | Living away from home, outside of London | ||
| Loan | Grant | Loan | Grant | |
| £18,370 or less | £3,065 | £6,885 | £3,620 | £8,100 |
| £25,000 | £4,020 | £5,930 | £4,773 | £6,947 |
| £35,000 | £5,462 | £4,488 | £6,512 | £5,208 |
| £45,000 | £6,903 | £3,047 | £8,251 | £3,469 |
| £59,200 or more | £8,950 | £1,000 | £10,720 | £1,000 |
| Total | £9,950 | £11,720 | ||
What do I do next?
Full details of all financial support and how to apply can be found on the Student Finance Wales website www.studentfinancewales.co.uk. Students normally living in Wales will be able to apply for support online from March 2021 onwards.
Living outside Wales?
If you’re a student living outside Wales, you’ll find information on funding and application processes via the following links:
- Students who normally live in England: UK Student Finance
- Students who normally live in Scotland: SAAS
- Students who normally live in Northern Ireland: Student Finance NI
- International students can find information here: UKCISA
Other Financial Support
You may get extra funding if you have adults or children who are financially dependent on you, which can include:
- Adult Dependent’s Grant (ADG)
- Childcare Grant (CCG)
- Parents’ Learning Allowance (PLA)
Part Time Higher Education Learners
Tuition Fee Support
Anyone studying in Wales can apply for a non-means tested fee loan of up to £2,625 to cover their annual fees. To be eligible you need to be studying at a minimum 25% intensity, e.g. a full-time student completes 120 credits in one year, so a part-time student would need to complete a minimum of 30 credits per year.
Maintenance (Living Costs) Support
You can apply for annual living costs support for up to a maximum of £5,111.25, which is a combination of grant (which you don’t pay back) and loan (which you do). The amount of grant and loan you’re awarded will depend on the number of hours you’ll be studying (known as the intensity of study) and your household income.
Examples of the amounts of grant and loan available at different levels of household income and study intensity can be seen on the table below.
| Income (£) |
Welsh Government Learning Grant or Special Support Grant (£) |
Maintenance Loan (£) |
Total Grant Plus Loan (£) |
|||
| Studying at 75% intensity | ||||||
| £25,000 | £4,500.00 | £611.25 | £5,111.25 | |||
| £30,000 | £3,952.50 | £1,158.75 | £5,111.25 | |||
| £35,000 | £3,404.25 | £1,707.00 | £5,111.25 | |||
| £40,000 | £2,856.00 | £2,255.25 | £5,111.25 | |||
| £45,000 | £2,307.75 | £2,803.50 | £5,111.25 | |||
| £50,000 | £1,759.50 | £3,351.75 | £5,111.25 | |||
| £55,000 | £1,211.25 | £3,900.00 | £5,111.25 | |||
| £59,200 | £750.00 | £4,361.25 | £5,111.25 | |||
| Studying at 50% intensity | ||||||
| £25,000 | £3,000.00 | £407.50 | £3,407.50 | |||
| £30,000 | £2,635.00 | £772.50 | £3,407.50 | |||
| £35,000 | £2,269.50 | £1,138.00 | £3,407.50 | |||
| £40,000 | £1,904.00 | £1,503.50 | £3,407.50 | |||
| £45,000 | £1,538.50 | £1,869.00 | £3,407.50 | |||
| £50,000 | £1,173.00 | £2,234.50 | £3,407.50 | |||
| £55,000 | £807.50 | £2,600.00 | £3,407.50 | |||
| £59,200 | £500.00 | £2,907.50 | £3,407.50 | |||
Other Financial Support
You may get extra funding if you have adults or children who are financially dependent on you, which can include:
- Adult Dependent’s Grant (ADG)
- Childcare Grant (CCG)
- Parents’ Learning Allowance (PLA)