Cash bursaries and fee reductions for new undergraduate and certificate of higher education students
We’re committed to doing everything we can to help students finance their studies and are offering a range of generous financial support packages to complement the student loan scheme. These include:
- reduced course fees, resulting in a smaller loan and a shorter repayment period
- cash bursaries paid directly to you to support the other costs of study (such as books, childcare, travel). Note: Cash bursaries are non-repayable; you never have to pay this money back.
Reduced course fees
The National Scholarship Programme, funded by the government and Birkbeck, is available to new undergraduate students with household incomes of less than £20,000 a year. Under this scheme, eligible students can get a reduction of up to £3,000 on their course fees.
Eligible students can receive a fee reduction of up to £3000 applied to the first 120 credits of study for all programmes that qualify for the scheme. This ensures that all eligible students receive the same fee reduction, regardless of whether they study full-time or part-time.
Eligibility for fee reductions is assessed in each year of study.
To illustrate, eligible three-year degree students will receive the fee reduction of £3000 in their first year, four-year degree students will receive a fee reduction of £2250 in their first year and £750 in their second year.
| Study mode/course load | Intensity | Credits | Fee reduction Year 1 | Fee reduction Year 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full-time, 3-year degree | 100% | 120 credits | £3000 | £0 |
| Part-time, 4-year degree | 75% | 90 credits | £2250 | £750 |
Eligibility
- You are eligible for a reduction in your course fees if you:
- Have a household income of less than £20,000* a year (if you have children you may be eligible even if your household income is more than this - see below for further details). (*The income threshold for autumn 2013 has yet to be confirmed)
- Are a Home/EU student
- Are not ordinarily resident in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland
- Are not sponsored by your employer.
- And if you are on a certificate of higher education course, you must be:
- studying at least 30 credits
- studying a certificate of higher education programme or module/s with fees of £1,500 or more for 30 credits (see our course listings for details of fees)
Definition of ‘household income’
- For part-time students, ‘household income’ is personal income + spouse/partner income. Parental income is not considered for any part-time students.
-
Number of dependant children Eligibility threshold for reduced course fees 0 Under £20,000 1 Under £22,000 2 Under £23,000 - Add an additional £1,000 for each additional child
- Full-time students under 25 may have their parents’ income included if they are considered ‘dependants’. For further information, please check the government website.
When to apply and how the fee reduction will work
- If you are eligible for a fee reduction, you will make your application when you enrol on your course (it’s part of the online enrolment process so you don’t need to worry about applying separately for this). The number of scholarships available is limited, and you should enrol on your course as soon as possible to secure your fee reduction.
- Enrolment for courses starting in autumn opens in May 2013. You will receive an email telling you when you can enrol online.
- Once confirmed, the fee reduction will be made against the total fee payable and your student loan will be adjusted accordingly.
Birkbeck undergraduate cash bursary
In addition to the National Scholarship Programme, Birkbeck has a very generous cash bursary scheme for students with household incomes of less than £25,000* a year (*the income threshold for new students starting in autumn 2013 is to be confirmed). Eligible students are entitled to cash bursaries of up to £1,000.
The size of the bursary varies depending on intensity of study:
| Study mode/course load | Intensity | Credits | Cash bursary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full-time, 3 year degree | 100% | 120 credits | £1000 |
| Part-time, 4 year degree | 75% | 90 credits | £750 |
| 60 credits study | 50% | 60 credits | £500 |
| 30 credits study | 25% | 30 credits | £250 |
Eligibility
- You are eligible for a cash bursary if you:
- Have a household income of less than £25,000* a year (if you have children you may be eligible even if your household income is more than this - see below for further details). (*The income threshold for new students starting in autumn 2013 is to be confirmed)
- Are a Home/EU student
- And if you are studying a Certificate of Higher Education, you must be studying at least 30 credits.
Definition of ‘household income’
- For part-time students, ‘household income’ is personal income + spouse/partner income. Parental income is not considered for any part-time students.
-
Number of dependent children Eligibility threshold for reduced course fees 0 Under £20,000 1 Under £22,000 2 Under £23,000 - Add an additional £1,000 for each additional child
- Full-time students under 25 may have their parents’ income included if they are considered ‘dependants’. For further information, please check the government website.
When to apply and how you get it
- If you are eligible for a cash bursary you will make your application when you enrol on your course (it’s part of the online enrolment process so you don’t need to worry about applying separately for this). Note that the number of bursaries available is limited and you should enrol on your course as soon as possible to secure your bursary.
- Enrolment for courses starting in autumn 2013 opens in May. You will receive an email telling you when you can enrol online.
- Your cash bursary will be paid directly into your bank account in termly instalments.
Students with disabilities and/or dyslexia
Students who meet the above eligibility criteria and have a disability are guaranteed to receive a fee reduction scholarship and/or cash bursary.
