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Why does SFE say i'm entitled to such a small maintenance loan?

Hello
I have been made an offer from the university of Portsmouth via clearing and am now trying to register and apply for student loans. I am going to be staying at home/commuting to university and my household income is below £25,000, therefore I believe I should be able to receive the max amount of £7,987. However when checking my details before actually submitting my claim it says "up to £4,538" as "a higher amount of Maintenance loan" which just is not enough. I want to know if that's the final number before submitting or if it will change once my household income has been confirmed. I am also starting this academic year if that's relevant.
I also found some of the questions fairly vague, such as does an adult financially depend on you. I help contribute to rent and know my mum wouldn't be able to make it otherwise however it's not as if I am the sole provider in my family so I said no and I worry that's a contributing factor as to why the maintenance loan is so low.

Reply 1

University of Portsmouth Student Rep

Official Rep

Hello,

I am sorry to hear that you may receive less student loan then you were expecting, I would try to contact Student Finance to understand the reasoning for the amount you will receive and discuss further with them. You can contact Student finance England through this webpage https://www.gov.uk/contact-student-finance-england. If you are using Student finance Wales this is the contact page https://www.studentfinancewales.co.uk/contact/.

The University of Portsmouth also do offer financial aid for those eligible so I would take a look at the following website link- https://www.port.ac.uk/student-life/guidance-and-support/finance-and-money-support. I would also contact the University finance and support department to see what you may be eligible for, the contact details are on the webpage link above.

I do hope this is helped and hope you are looking forward to starting with us this September!

Loren Snowden
Official University of Portsmouth Ambassador

Reply 2

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

Normally when SFE assess you for funding, they will initially greenlight you for the minimum maintenance loan if you are eligible, and then continue assessing your application and increase it if you are determined to be eligible for a higher maintenance loan.

If in doubt though, it's worth calling them to check they have the correct information and to understand what you are eligible for and what you might not be based on that.

Note that if you are under the age of 25 you will normally need to have your parents submit their income information to be eligible for the higher maintenance loan amounts. If your parent has not submitted that yet then you will likely only be granted the minimum maintenance loan, so make sure that gets done!

(edited 2 years ago)

Reply 3

bear22x

Thank you!! I've been looking for a way to try and contact them (SFE) . I'll also investigate the University finance support department as well, thanks again :smile: