Year 12s: what will be the first way you research your future options? >>

Need help! SFE being comically harsh with my application.

Hi Mark.

I wanted to enquire if there's anything I can still do to still receive student loans. I was looking forward to starting a degree in late September and I was relying on student finance to supply me with loans but they are being almost comically harsh with my application. As I was born overseas, I need to prove my last three years of residency in the UK. I proved the last 2 years 11 months, all except September 2011 as I was changing my banks at the time and don't have a record from that month. I supplied SFE with numerous documents proving that I lived in UK as recently as late August 2011, plus I highlighted common sense factors: as I was a permanent resident already, I remain a permanent resident of the UK unless I leave the country for 3 months and that if I got a new bank account in early October then I was a UK resident for at least a couple of weeks and even then I needed proof of tenancy to even get the bank account, setting me even further back. However, all of these documents have been quickly ignored as SFE only accept bank statements or tax records, something that not every teenager is going to have. On paper my course starts on 29th of September. Judging from the accommodation offer I received, I can only guess that the beginning of the course is allocated to irrelevant freshers activities and the actual lectures will start in October. I would hate to miss on having a chance to attend the course because I can't prove two days of my existence a manner that SFE finds acceptable. Is there anything that I can do or am I supposed to give up? Also, I would appreciate actual advice rather than a suggestion to call the SFE. I called them many times and the phone advisors are as clueless and unhelpful as human beings can be.

Yours Sincerely,
Julius Nazarenko

Reply 1

Mark Lee - SFE Official Adviser

Official Rep

Hi there.

Due to new regulations we require all students to be resident in the UK for the full 3 years before the start of their course with no exceptions. For students who cannot demonstrate they have been here for that full 3 years then we will be unable to accept their application and award funding.

You mentioned you were a teenager and do not have a bank account or tax information. For minors, we can accept letters/awards from schools or even tax credit awards/child benefit letters from the parents of students, as long as the student is named on these.

Thanks.

Reply 2

jnav89

Thanks for your advice.

I was already over 18 at that point. In that case, would a letter from my former university in Scotland be treated as a proof as I've spent early parts of the month I need to prove enrolling in person and could get some sort of document to prove it? It shouldn't affect my application as I've dropped out very quickly because I didn't receive any financial help back then either.

Quick Reply

Related discussions

Latest

Articles for you

Student finance – how to apply

Full-time students – taking a break or withdrawing from your studies

What is an LLM and how could it benefit your career?

Powerful questions business students forget to ask their career advisers