[shiv2169]

After searching the internet etc I am confused about student finance. I know you can get a loan to cover the tuition fees but what I'm wondering about is the maintenance loans and grants. Are these 2 different things or not? I live with my boyfriend in a rented property and am hoping to start uni soon which will obviously mean giving up full time work. How much and how often do you recieve the maintenance loan and is a grant another loan all together? I need to get all this straight to know I will be able to afford uni which I'm hoping I am! Thanks in advance to anyone who can help me. xxxx

[mabrookes]

(Original post by shiv2169)
After searching the internet etc I am confused about student finance. I know you can get a loan to cover the tuition fees but what I'm wondering about is the maintenance loans and grants. Are these 2 different things or not? I live with my boyfriend in a rented property and am hoping to start uni soon which will obviously mean giving up full time work. How much and how often do you recieve the maintenance loan and is a grant another loan all together? I need to get all this straight to know I will be able to afford uni which I'm hoping I am! Thanks in advance to anyone who can help me. xxxx

IThe grant and loan are separate, but a certain amount of the grant you get replaces some of the loan to make the amount you pay back less. They are dependent on your income, and you have to have your income assessed to get the grant. You can get 72% of the loan without income assessment.

Unless you are earning 20 or 30k it shouldnt make much difference to you anyway.

use the calculator and fill in and edit all the details http://www.direct.gov.uk/studentfinancecalculator

[shiv2169]

(Original post by mabrookes)
IThe grant and loan are separate, but a certain amount of the grant you get replaces some of the loan to make the amount you pay back less. They are dependent on your income, and you have to have your income assessed to get the grant. You can get 72% of the loan without income assessment.

Unless you are earning 20 or 30k it shouldnt make much difference to you anyway.

use the calculator and fill in and edit all the details http://www.direct.gov.uk/studentfinancecalculator

hey thanks for replying, at the moment, before i start uni, i am working full time so will they go on that? (only £12k anyway!) when i do start i will be working an absolute maximum of 16-20 hours per work as i think i will need to due to renting a property. Do I just apply through directgov for this? Also, do you know if applying for a student bank account via halifax for example includes a credit check? As my credit rating is horrendous lol. Thanks again for replying xxx

[Doodles89]

They go on your income the year before or least they did with my mum..because you live with your boyfriend I think they'll take his income into it as well.. I think xD!

[mabrookes]

(Original post by shiv2169)
hey thanks for replying, at the moment, before i start uni, i am working full time so will they go on that? (only £12k anyway!) when i do start i will be working an absolute maximum of 16-20 hours per work as i think i will need to due to renting a property. Do I just apply through directgov for this? Also, do you know if applying for a student bank account via halifax for example includes a credit check? As my credit rating is horrendous lol. Thanks again for replying xxx

Applying online is the easiest way, http://www.studentfinance.direct.gov..._schema=PORTAL and click on register and apply. Just work your way through it but I would hurry to make sure it is done in time. Have you applied through UCAS?

A student account does have a credit check, even if you don't want the overdraft they will refuse to give you an account without one because it is still an option on the account. There is no harm in trying (as long as you are not applying to lots of paces it won't affect your rating). If not the only real difference is the overdraft.

[Vinchenko]

(Original post by shiv2169)
hey thanks for replying, at the moment, before i start uni, i am working full time so will they go on that? (only £12k anyway!) when i do start i will be working an absolute maximum of 16-20 hours per work as i think i will need to due to renting a property. Do I just apply through directgov for this? Also, do you know if applying for a student bank account via halifax for example includes a credit check? As my credit rating is horrendous lol. Thanks again for replying xxx

Mine with Barclays only included a credit check because I applied for an overdraft, so only maybe. Call and ask/FAQs on website if you're worried about that.

When you start, it'll be on the basis of your and your boyfriend's combined incomes, if you're living together. Everyone is guaranteed the minimum living costs loan, which is 72% of the maximum, and you get the absolute maximum if household income is around £50k. Below that, the overall amount you get increases, but the loan amount decreases, and you get a bursary amount too. Use the student finance calculator on the website, as someone else mentioned. By far the easiest way to apply is on the student finance/direct gov website, though I would point out, it is an absolutely useless website and will take you hours to do...

[mabrookes]

(Original post by Vinchenko)
Mine with Barclays only included a credit check because I applied for an overdraft, so only maybe. Call and ask/FAQs on website if you're worried about that.
.

Unfortunately all the banks credit check for any current account now - supposedly because they have the option to have an overdraft and also have a cheque book etc but I imagine the real reason is just greed. Some banks even credit check for basic accounts now, so you can imagine how likely the banking sector is to give current accounts away.

[Vinchenko]

(Original post by mabrookes)
Unfortunately all the banks credit check for any current account now - supposedly because they have the option to have an overdraft and also have a cheque book etc but I imagine the real reason is just greed. Some banks even credit check for basic accounts now, so you can imagine how likely the banking sector is to give current accounts away.

Oh ok - maybe I just didn't need a credit check for my normal student account without overdraft because I'd been with my bank for a couple of years already? Because I set up all my student banking (took well over an hour....) on friday, and I know we didn't get to the credit check bit until it was all set up and my money was in there and we were sorting out the overdraft.

[mabrookes]

(Original post by Vinchenko)
Oh ok - maybe I just didn't need a credit check for my normal student account without overdraft because I'd been with my bank for a couple of years already? Because I set up all my student banking (took well over an hour....) on friday, and I know we didn't get to the credit check bit until it was all set up and my money was in there and we were sorting out the overdraft.

I imagine if you already had an account, it would have already have been a current account so there was no need to credit check to convert it into a student account (just another type of current account) without the overdraft. The overdraft application is what would have then been checked for.

[Vinchenko]

(Original post by mabrookes)
I imagine if you already had an account, it would have already have been a current account so there was no need to credit check to convert it into a student account (just another type of current account) without the overdraft. The overdraft application is what would have then been checked for.

So I guess the moral of this story is: sign up for a young person's account before you can even get a credit rating, and then it's a lot easier to get a student account etc....or, just don't get a bad credit rating in the first place

[hypocriticaljap]

don't get a bad credit rating in the first place

hammer, nail, head.

[xoxAngel_Kxox]

Hi, how old are you? If you're under 25 unfortunately student finance will go off your parents income, not yours. So it doesn't matter how much you or your boyfriend earn, it's still your parent's income that matters. I was in this situation myself this time last year, and no amount of letters telling them that I no longer speak to my parents and certainly won't be getting any money from them helped.

[MelodyPond]

(Original post by xoxAngel_Kxox)
Hi, how old are you? If you're under 25 unfortunately student finance will go off your parents income, not yours. So it doesn't matter how much you or your boyfriend earn, it's still your parent's income that matters. I was in this situation myself this time last year, and no amount of letters telling them that I no longer speak to my parents and certainly won't be getting any money from them helped.

Although if you're under 25 but have supported yourself for at least 3 years (either through work or benefits) then you are classed as an independent student.

[xoxAngel_Kxox]

(Original post by MelodyPond)
Although if you're under 25 but have supported yourself for at least 3 years (either through work or benefits) then you are classed as an independent student.

Very true. LOVE your username by the way .

[shiv2169]

(Original post by hypocriticaljap)
don't get a bad credit rating in the first place

hammer, nail, head.

LOL bit late for that now I believe! :P xx

[shiv2169]

(Original post by xoxAngel_Kxox)
Hi, how old are you? If you're under 25 unfortunately student finance will go off your parents income, not yours. So it doesn't matter how much you or your boyfriend earn, it's still your parent's income that matters. I was in this situation myself this time last year, and no amount of letters telling them that I no longer speak to my parents and certainly won't be getting any money from them helped.

Hi I'm 23. Will they still go off my parents income even though I don't live there anymore? If thats the case what will my parents have to do, will they need to prove this? xxxx

[xoxAngel_Kxox]

(Original post by shiv2169)
Hi I'm 23. Will they still go off my parents income even though I don't live there anymore? If thats the case what will my parents have to do, will they need to prove this? xxxx

Yes they will, same as any other student, they'll have to fill in a section of the form too. It's a silly system but sadly it doesn't look like it's going to change anytime soon .

[hypocriticaljap]

(Original post by shiv2169)
Hi I'm 23. Will they still go off my parents income even though I don't live there anymore? If thats the case what will my parents have to do, will they need to prove this? xxxx

Your parents will need to fill in a PFF2 form each.
downloadable here
http://www.direct.gov.uk/prod_consum.../dg_194354.pdf

[shiv2169]

(Original post by hypocriticaljap)
Your parents will need to fill in a PFF2 form each.
downloadable here
http://www.direct.gov.uk/prod_consum.../dg_194354.pdf

many thanks xx