The Student Room Group

I want to drop out

I’m in 3rd almost finished my first semester but I want to drop out been thinking about this for awhile I just don’t enjoy studying law at all it’s mentally draining. But i don’t know what happens in terms of finance loans etc. I just want to be a care assistant been applying but not been successful yet. I want this to be my full time job.
Original post
by Anonymous
I’m in 3rd almost finished my first semester but I want to drop out been thinking about this for awhile I just don’t enjoy studying law at all it’s mentally draining. But i don’t know what happens in terms of finance loans etc. I just want to be a care assistant been applying but not been successful yet. I want this to be my full time job.

If you withdraw, normally you will need to notify SFE of your withdrawal. They will then stop any further tuition fee payments to the university and any further maintenance loan payments to you.

If you withdrew in the middle of term (e.g. early November) you would have been expected to repay part of your maintenance loan that you received at the start of the year pro-rata based on how far in term you are. However if you withdraw at the end of term, as you will have "earned" the full (or nearly full) amount of the maintenance loan disbursement you were paid, you will not normally need to repay any of it (or sometimes only very little if e.g. one week of term left you might need to repay £100 or something). It's usually convenient to time withdrawing to the end of a given term, a little before your next maintenance loan disbursement would be.

You will still have the loan "debt" as if you graduated, although of course the total principal of the loan is much lower so won't be as much to pay off. You will still only make repayments when earning over the threshold and this will still be a proportion of your income, so you won't repay more than you can afford normally. So it's not really going to impact you - you'll have those loan repayments coming out of your payslip with your NI contributions/income tax etc for a while until it's paid off, if you're earning over the threshold, and if not you won't be repaying anything. Also either way, 40 years after taking it out it'll be written off.

There are potentially other practical finance considerations though beyond SFE, namely your accommodation tenancy contract. You'll need to check this if there is a break clause or if e.g. you need to find a replacement tenant - otherwise you will be liable for the rent for the remainder of the contract (regardless of whether you are receiving SFE funding or not). Bear in mind also you normally can't live in student halls after withdrawing if you're no longer a student! So this is something to keep in mind, and so sometimes may be more practical to consider withdrawing at the end of the academic year instead to avoid a financial obligation for rent on the accommodation, which you may not have the means to pay without SFE funding.

Reply 2

Original post
by artful_lounger
If you withdraw, normally you will need to notify SFE of your withdrawal. They will then stop any further tuition fee payments to the university and any further maintenance loan payments to you.
If you withdrew in the middle of term (e.g. early November) you would have been expected to repay part of your maintenance loan that you received at the start of the year pro-rata based on how far in term you are. However if you withdraw at the end of term, as you will have "earned" the full (or nearly full) amount of the maintenance loan disbursement you were paid, you will not normally need to repay any of it (or sometimes only very little if e.g. one week of term left you might need to repay £100 or something). It's usually convenient to time withdrawing to the end of a given term, a little before your next maintenance loan disbursement would be.
You will still have the loan "debt" as if you graduated, although of course the total principal of the loan is much lower so won't be as much to pay off. You will still only make repayments when earning over the threshold and this will still be a proportion of your income, so you won't repay more than you can afford normally. So it's not really going to impact you - you'll have those loan repayments coming out of your payslip with your NI contributions/income tax etc for a while until it's paid off, if you're earning over the threshold, and if not you won't be repaying anything. Also either way, 40 years after taking it out it'll be written off.
There are potentially other practical finance considerations though beyond SFE, namely your accommodation tenancy contract. You'll need to check this if there is a break clause or if e.g. you need to find a replacement tenant - otherwise you will be liable for the rent for the remainder of the contract (regardless of whether you are receiving SFE funding or not). Bear in mind also you normally can't live in student halls after withdrawing if you're no longer a student! So this is something to keep in mind, and so sometimes may be more practical to consider withdrawing at the end of the academic year instead to avoid a financial obligation for rent on the accommodation, which you may not have the means to pay without SFE funding.


Thanks for this.
Original post
by Anonymous
I’m in 3rd almost finished my first semester but I want to drop out been thinking about this for awhile I just don’t enjoy studying law at all it’s mentally draining. But i don’t know what happens in terms of finance loans etc. I just want to be a care assistant been applying but not been successful yet. I want this to be my full time job.

Hello,
i hope you are doing well,
i'm sorry to hear that you aren't enjoying your course,
i would recommend speaking to the health and wellbeing team at your university and student success coaches if your university offer them, they are great at helping you to find your way, especially if you're thinking of dropping out, they may be able to find a solution for you.
In terms of student finance, you will be responsible with notifying them that you are withdrawing from the university and they will stop any further payments in terms of maintenance loans and tuition fees, you will still have the debt, as you have already received money from them for the previous 2 years and 1st semester of your third year.
sanam - forensic investigations - coventry university

Reply 4

Original post
by Anonymous
I’m in 3rd almost finished my first semester but I want to drop out been thinking about this for awhile I just don’t enjoy studying law at all it’s mentally draining. But i don’t know what happens in terms of finance loans etc. I just want to be a care assistant been applying but not been successful yet. I want this to be my full time job.

Hi there,

You have received some good information about student loans, so I won't repeat this except to say if you do want to drop out I would let SFE know as soon as possible before you get your next loan instalment.

In general, if you are struggling at uni I would really suggest talking to the wellbeing/student support team at your un as they will be there for you and will be able to help you out by talking to you and seeing what your options are in terms of dropping out or staying. It is also good to just talk to them about how you are feeling and it has always helped me while I have been at uni so I always recommend this.

It's good that you have an idea of what you want to do as a job. Is it something you are doing now? If not, it might be a good idea to see if you can talk to anyone who has that as their job so you can see what it will be like and if it is for you before you drop out.

If you do drop out, there is nothing wrong with this and so many people do it, so don't worry about this. I am sure everything will work out for you!

I hope some of this helps,

Lucy -SHU student ambassador

Reply 5

Original post
by Anonymous
I’m in 3rd almost finished my first semester but I want to drop out been thinking about this for awhile I just don’t enjoy studying law at all it’s mentally draining. But i don’t know what happens in terms of finance loans etc. I just want to be a care assistant been applying but not been successful yet. I want this to be my full time job.
Hey,

Firstly, I just want to say it’s actually really great that you’ve been able to work out what you do and don’t want to do. That takes a lot of self-awareness, especially this early on, and it’s not an easy thing to admit at all!

I worked as a care assistant and it was genuinely one of the most rewarding jobs I’ve ever done. It gave me so much perspective and confidence, and it’s actually what led me into studying later in life and now working as a qualified ODP in the NHS. So please don’t see where you’re at right now as a waste or a failure….it really isn’t. You’ve come this far, you’ve learned something important about yourself, and it’s incredibly brave to say “this isn’t right for me” and choose what actually feels meaningful to you.

Caring work is hard, but it can be so fulfilling, and if that’s what’s pulling you right now then that matters. And who knows, studying later in life might be on the cards for you too, just like it was for me. There’s absolutely no rush to have everything figured out straight away.

I can’t really advise on the finance and student loan side of things, but I’d definitely suggest reaching out to your university’s student finance team, wellbeing or student support services, and also Student Finance England. They can give you clear, accurate advice about what happens if you withdraw and what your options are, which will help take some of the anxiety out of it.

Be kind to yourself. Wanting to step away from something that’s mentally draining doesn’t make you weak, it means you’re listening to yourself. Whatever you decide, it doesn’t close doors….it just redirects you!

Good luck! Sophie 🙂

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