Postgraduate Fees and Funding

Postgraduate Funding for Masters courses - Wales

You can apply for loans and grants as a contribution towards your course and living costs if you are starting a course in 2021/22 academic year. 

• The maximum support available for courses starting in 21/22 is £18,025. This is made up of a mixture of loans and grants. 

• A non- means tested base grant of £1,000 is available to all eligible students

• An additional means-tested grant of £5,885 is also available dependent on household income.

• A non-means tested loan is available to all eligible students. The amount of loan will be equal to the total support (£18,025 in 2021/22) less the total grant a student is eligible for.
  
  
• The loan element is available to students under the age of 60 on the first day of the first academic year.
  
  
• Both taught and research master's courses are eligible, including MA, MSc, LLM, MRes, MA by Research, and MSc by Research courses.
  
  
• Available for full-time, part-time and distance learning master's programmes.

• You must be studying the full 180 credits of the masters course and must not be 'topping up' or using any accredited prior learning or similar towards the qualification to be eligible for funding.

To be eligible for funding through Student Finance Wales, part time courses can be of two, three or four year duration. Full time course can be of one or two year duration.

You will get the first payment after you have started your course, and your university confirms that you’ve registered.

Payments will be made in three instalments of 33%, 33% and 34% for each academic year.

Please be aware that your fees will not be paid directly to the University, you will need to make separate arrangements to pay your fees yourself.

If you wish to pay using your student funding, you can set up payments in line with the dates you receive your student funding by contacting the revenue department once you enrol on the course. 

Full eligibility criteria and details of how to apply can be found on the website below.   

Student Finance Wales 

Postgraduate Loans for Masters courses - England

You can apply for a loan as a contribution towards your course and living costs if you are starting a course in 2021/22 academic year. 

• For new students starting their course in 2021/22, up to £11,570  is available to English-domiciled students (providing you meet the residency criteria).
  
  
• Available to students under the age of 60 on the first day of the first academic year.
  
  
• Non means tested (not dependent on your family's income)
  
  
• Both taught and research master's courses are eligible, including MA, MSc, LLM, MRes, MA by Research, and MSc by Research courses.
  
  
• Available for full-time, part-time and distance learning Master's programmes.

• You must be studying the full 180 credits of the masters course and must not be 'topping up' or using any accredited prior learning or similar towards the qualification to be eligible for funding.

• To be eligible for funding through Student Finance England, part-time courses must be either part-time, lasting 2 to 4 academic years and no more than twice the length of the equivalent full-time course or part-time for up to 3 years, where no equivalent full-time course exists.

You will get the first payment after you have started your course, and your university confirms that you’ve registered.

Payments will be made in three instalments of 33%, 33% and 34% for each academic year.

Please be aware that your fees will not be paid directly to the University, you will need to make separate arrangements to pay your fees yourself.

If you wish to pay using your student funding, you can set up payments in line with the dates you receive your student funding by contacting the revenue department once you enrol on the course. 

*Full eligibility criteria and details of how to apply can be found on the website below.   

Student Finance England

Postgraduate Tuition Fee and Living Cost Loan - Scotland*

Postgraduate Tuition Fee Loan

The funding available is a loan to help you pay all or some of your tuition fees up to a maximum of £5,500 for full-time courses. If you choose to take out a loan to pay all or some of the fees, you will do so on the same terms as a student loan for living costs.

If you withdraw from your course, you may not be eligible for a loan to help with the cost of your fees. However, your university may still charge you fees for the time you have been on the course.

Postgraduate Living Cost loan

Eligible full-time postgraduate students can apply to us for a living-cost loan up to £4,500. To be eligible for the living-cost loan, in addition to meeting our eligibility conditions, you must:

• be under 60 on the first day of the first academic year of your course (normally 1 August). If you change course and are aged 60 or over on the relevant date of your second course, you will not be entitled to a student loan for your second course.
  

Further information can be found on the Student Award Agency Scotland website.

If you are due to start on a postgraduate certificate, postgraduate diploma, taught Masters or research Masters, you may be eligible to apply for a Postgraduate Tuition Fee Loan of up to £5,500 for the course, to help with the cost of your course fees. The Postgraduate Tuition Fee Loan can’t be more than the actual fee charged by the university or college, it isn’t based on household income, and you must repay it. It is paid directly to your university or college.

Please use Student Finance Northern Ireland's website for further updates, including how to apply.

Postgraduate Masters funding will be available if you don’t already hold a Masters degree or other higher qualification gained either in the UK or overseas. If you have a lower level qualification and want to ‘top-up’ to a Masters degree, you won’t be eligible for postgraduate Masters funding, as you can only get postgraduate funding for a full postgraduate Masters course. You won’t be able to get Postgraduate Masters Finance if you’ve received a Postgraduate Loan before, unless you left your course because of compelling personal reasons, such as:

• illness
• bereavement
• or another serious personal reason.

You would need to send student finance evidence to support this and can only use compelling personal reasons once.

Source: Student Finance Wales

This is similar for other funding providers. Please check with your funding provider to see how your previous study may affect your eligibility. 

Postgraduate Loans for Doctoral courses - England and Wales

You can apply for a loan to help with your course fees and living costs while you study if you are starting a full time or part time doctoral course (PhD).

• Up to £27,265 for English or Welsh domiciled students starting their course in 2020/21.

• Available to students under 60 on the first day of the first academic year
  
  
• Non means tested (not dependent on family income)
  
  
• It must be a full, standalone doctoral course (not top up) and last between 3 and 8 years e.g. PhD / DPhil, EdD, EngD
  
  
• It can be research-based or taught, or a combination of both
  
  
• You can apply for a loan if your doctoral programme includes an integrated masters (even if you already hold a masters degree)
  
  
• You will not be able to get a doctoral loan if you receive / will receive other funding for the course e.g. Research Council Funding, Social Work Bursary, NHS Bursary, KEES 2 scheme funding etc.

You will get the first payment after you have started your course, and your university confirms that you’ve registered.

Payments will be made in three instalments of 33%, 33% and 34% for each academic year.

Full details on eligibility and how to apply can be found on the relevant authority websites below

Student Finance Wales 

Student Finance England

Doctoral Loans are not currently available to students ordinarily resident in Northern Ireland or Scotland.

Details regarding how you will need to repay your postgraduate student loan, including how this will work if you also have an existing undergraduate student loan, can be found on the Student Loan Company's website.

Future Finance

Private loan providers, such as Future Finance, can potentially provide loans to assist with tuition fees and costs of living, with variable interest rates depending on your credit history. These are some of the key facts:

• Future Finance loans may be available* to USW students that have a UK address whilst studying (assuming they meet the appropriate credit checks and are 18 years or over)
• Loans can include living costs as well as tuition fees

* Further details of eligibility requirements, interest rates and other key terms of the loan are available by visiting the Future Finance website.

Bank Loans

You may also wish to speak to other banks etc. to see if there are any loans that they are able to offer for study. You should ensure that you are aware of all the terms and conditions of these loans and that they are appropriate for your needs before taking one out. 

USW Postgraduate Alumni Discount 2021/22

The University of South Wales is offering a 20% reduction in tuition fees for all University of South Wales * graduates starting a taught MA, MSC, LLM, MBA course or the PCET course from September 2021 (this includes students starting their course in January/ February 2022.

*This includes graduates from the University of South Wales, University of Glamorgan, University of Wales Newport, the Polytechnic of Wales, RWCMD.

Find out more

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Welsh Government Bursaries 2021/22 

The Welsh Assembly Government have announced that the Welsh Government bursaries (STEMM bursary, Welsh Medium bursary and 60+ bursary)  will continue in 2021-22 for eligible Postgraduate students commencing their studies in the 2021-22 academic year.

Find out more

Lydon Hodges Bursary

For postgraduate research students who have already completed either a USW undergraduate or USW taught postgraduate course, Lydon Hodges Bursaries are awarded annually to individuals who can best demonstrate why they feel entry to a postgraduate research course will be beneficial to them – personally or professionally, and how they will be approaching their studies. The Bursary is to provide financial relief upon entry to studies for new students, and successful Bursary applicants will demonstrate how postgraduate research studies are a personal or professional enabler. Find out more

Refugee Sanctuary Scheme

The USW Refugee Sanctuary Scheme is a scheme providing support to a limited number of eligible refugees via free English language tuition prior to starting a course at the University

Find out more

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USW Sport Scholarship

Our Sports Scholarship is available to students performing to a high standard in their chosen sport, and representing the University in the British Universities and Colleges Sports (BUCS) league. It is designed to support potentially elite athletes and sports people who are competing at least at junior national or international level in their sport. 

Find out more.

Diagnostic Assessment Bursary  

Enrolled USW students studying a minimum of 60 credits in 21/22 academic year, may be eligible to receive a free internal dyslexia assessment with support from the Diagnostic Testing Bursary.  Please note that the Bursary fund is limited and assistance with assessment fees is not guaranteed.  

 Find out more  

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EU Scholarship 21/22

For information on the scholarships for EU students starting in 21/22, please see here 

USW Postgraduate Alumni Discount 2022/23

The University of South Wales is offering a 20% reduction in tuition fees for all University of South Wales* graduates starting a taught/online** MA, MSC, LLM, MBA, DBA course or a PcET/PGCE course from September 2022 (this includes students starting their course in January/February 2023). 

*This includes graduates from the University of South Wales, University of Glamorgan, University of Wales Newport, the Polytechnic of Wales, RWCMD.  

Find out more

USW Asylum Seeker Bursary

The Asylum Seeker Bursary will support up to two Postgraduate students each academic year. A University Panel will assess all bursary applications at the same time following the closing date and will award up to two bursaries from all these applications. Find out more

Refugee Sanctuary Scheme

The USW Refugee Sanctuary Scheme is a scheme providing support to a limited number of eligible refugees via free English language tuition prior to starting a course at the University

Find out more

Grants, Trusts, and Charities can be a great source of funding. All will have their own individual criteria, eligibility and methods of application. Many can award partial funding for your studies.

Applications for funding from external bodies can take a considerable amount of time to process so you would need to be prepared to wait.

Find out mot through our Alternative Funding webpage

Some students may be entitled to state benefits or tax credits while studying. Please see our Student and Benefits page for further information.

The University is keen to offer support to student carers, including providing a Bursary from its Student Support Fund to help those who are in need of financial support, as it is recognised that caring often has financial implications (such as less availability for paid work and increased travel costs). Find out more.

In addition to the support offered through your funding body, the University of South Wales is committed to providing support for students from care and those leaving care who want to go on to higher education.

We at the University of South Wales can help you at every stage of your university experience, with specialist help and advice before, during and after you are a student with us – leaving you to concentrate on your studies and enjoy university life. 

To ask further questions and start to access the support available to you as a Care Leaver please contact the Care Leaver Coordinator

If you not quite sure if you qualify as a Care Leaver please contact us and we can advise you further. If you are a social worker or work on behalf of an organisation such as Barnardos please feel free to contact us also. 

In addition to the support offered through your funding body, the University of South Wales is committed to providing support for students who are estranged from their parents or become estranged during their studies.