If you're a UK or EU student looking to study a master's or PhD level course at Swansea University, you may be eligible to apply for a Government loan to help towards the cost of your studies. Explore your options below:
Master's funding for Welsh students
Applications for the Welsh funding package are NOW OPEN for courses starting in September 2020.
For more information and to apply, please visit the Student Finance Wales website.
Master's funding for Welsh students
The Welsh Government has announced a new funding package for master’s students living in Wales. This is the most generous funding package available to postgraduate students in the UK.
Funding will be available to students starting eligible master’s courses from September 2020. You may be able to receive a maximum of £17,489 for the duration of your course. Money will be paid directly to you, and you choose how to spend it. Funding will comprise of three elements:
- A non-means-tested base grant of £1,000 available to all eligible students
- A means-tested grant of £5,885, available to eligible students with a household income of up to £18,370 per year. If your household income exceeds £18,370, the amount of grant you will be eligible to receive will reduce (For every £6.937 of household income per year over the £18,370 threshold, the amount of grant you receive will reduce by £1)
- A non-means-tested loan available to all eligible students. The amount of loan that you will be eligible to receive will be calculated as follows:
Max. amount of funding (£17,489) minus base grant (£1,000) minus means-tested grant equals student loan amount
For example, if your household income is £18,000 a year, you would be eligible to receive:
- A non-repayable grant of £1,000
- An additional non-repayable grant of £5,885
- A repayable loan up to a maximum value of £10,604
Eligibility
- Available for master’s courses at Swansea University including MA, MSc, LLM, MRes, Master’s by Research and MPhil. PGCert and PGDip courses are not eligible.
- Your course must be a full standalone master’s programme (not a top up course such as an integrated master's programme). If you are intending to complete doctoral study with the support of a PhD loan after your master’s degree, your course must be a full standalone PhD programme, and not ‘topped up’ from a master’s qualification such as Master’s by Research or MPhil.
- You must normally live in Wales, and not have moved there for the purposes of study.
- You must be under the age of 60 on the first day of the first academic year of your course.
- Your course must be worth a minimum of 180 credits - please check with our Admissions team if you're unsure.
- Available to those who do not already hold a master's (or higher) level qualification (PGCert and PGDip holders are eligible to apply for funding).
- The course can be studied at Swansea University, or by distance learning. It can be taught or research-based and studied:
- Full-time, lasting one or two academic years;
- Part-time, lasting two, three or four academic years.
Applications and repayments
For more information, please visit the Student Finance Wales website.
Master's loans for English students
Student Finance England master's loan applications are now open for courses starting from September 2020. Start your online application now.
Student Finance England is providing postgraduate loans for English domiciled students starting a master's level course at any UK university (including Swansea) from September 2020.
You could borrow up to £11,222 towards the costs of postgraduate study, including tuition fees and living costs (paid directly to you).
Residency eligibility
You can get the Postgraduate Master’s Loan if all of the following apply:
- you’re a UK or EU national, or have ‘settled status’, so there are no restrictions on how long you can stay
- you normally live in England, and did not move there just to study
- you’ve been living in the UK, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man for 3 years before starting your course
Your course
It must:
- be a full, standalone master’s course (not a top-up course)
- be worth at least 180 credits - please check with our Admissions team if you're unsure.
- have started on or after 1 August 2016
Your course can be taught or research-based.
It can be:
- full-time, lasting 1 or 2 academic years
- part-time, lasting 2 to 4 academic years - no more than twice the length of the equivalent full-time course
- part-time for up to 3 years, where no equivalent full-time course exists
Examples of eligible postgraduate master’s qualifications at Swansea include:
- MSc (master of science)
- MA (master of arts)
- MPhil (master of philosophy)
- MRes (master of research)
- LLM (master of law)
- MBA (master of business administration)
You cannot get a Postgraduate Master’s Loan for a postgraduate certificate or diploma.
If you are intending to complete doctoral study with the support of a PhD loan after your master’s degree, your course must be a full standalone PhD programme, and not ‘topped up’ from a master’s qualification such as Master’s by Research or MPhil.
Your age
You must be under 60 on the first day of the first academic year of your course.
Restrictions
You will not be able to get a Postgraduate Master’s Loan if:
- you’re already getting payments from student finance for another course that you’re studying
- you received a Postgraduate Master’s Loan before - unless you left your course due to illness, bereavement or another serious personal reason
- you already have a master’s degree, or a qualification that’s equivalent or higher
- you’re behind in repayments for any previous loans from the Student Loans Company
You’ll still be eligible if you have a PGCE or a postgraduate diploma or certificate. You will not get extra money if you repeat a year of your course.
Repayments
- Repayments begin when you are earning over £21,000 per year. Repayments will be 6% of your income over this amount (undergraduate loans are paid back at 9% of income).
- If you have an undergraduate loan from the Student Loans Company, you will pay this back at the same time as the postgraduate loan. As an example, if you are earning £25,000 per year, this will equate to a total repayment of £50 per month (£30 UG loan and £20 PG loan).
Visit Student Finance England for more information. You can also learn more about the postgraduate loan scheme by attending one of our Postgraduate Open Days.
Student Finance England master's loan applications are now open for courses starting from September 2020. Start your online application now.
Master's loans for Scottish students
The Scottish Government has confirmed plans for a Scottish loan scheme in 2020/21. Scottish students are able to borrow up to £10,000, but only those studying at a Scottish university will be eligible.
If you are a Scottish domiciled student and would like to study at Swansea University, please visit our scholarships and alternative sources of funding pages for advice on how to fund your course.
Master's loans for Northern Irish students
Student Finance NI provides loans of up to £5,500 to Northern Irish domiciled students who wish to study postgraduate courses (up to master's level) at a UK university (including Swansea University).
Master's loans for EU students
The Welsh Government has confirmed that EU students who intend to study a master's level course at Swansea University in academic year 2020/21 will be eligible to receive loans and/or grants from Student Finance Wales (SFW). This is subject to meeting all existing eligibility criteria.
To check whether you are eligible, please visit the Student Finance Wales website.
Erasmus+ Master Loan
Erasmus+ Master Loan allow students to apply for financial support for their master's studies abroad. Loans are offered by participating banks and student loan agencies on favourable conditions to mobile students, including better than market interest rates and up to two years to allow graduates to get into a job before beginning repayment.
PhD loans
Applications for the English and Welsh doctoral loan schemes are NOW OPEN for PhD programmes starting after 1 August 2020.
Welsh students: for more information and to apply, please visit the Student Finance Wales website
English students: for more information and to apply, please visit the gov.uk website
Doctoral loans for new students undertaking PhD level programmes are now available:
Welsh students:
The key features of the loan scheme in 2020 include:
- Borrow up to £26,445 towards the cost of any PhD level programme
- Available to Welsh domiciled students aged 59 or under who are not in receipt of a Research Council scholarship
- Available for programmes at any PhD-awarding UK university (including Swansea University)
- Repayments are 6% of income over £21,000 p.a. (combined with master’s and/or undergraduate degree loan if applicable)
- Students already holding a PhD level qualification are not eligible to apply for a loan
- Your course must be a full standalone PhD programme, and not ‘topped up’ from a master’s qualification such as Master’s by Research or MPhil.
- Available for full or part-time programmes
- Non means-tested
Find out more about the Welsh PhD loan scheme.
English students:
The key features of the loan scheme in 2020 include:
- Borrow up to £26,445 towards the cost of any PhD level programme
- Available to English domiciled students aged 59 or under who are not in receipt of a Research Council scholarship
- Available for programmes at any PhD-awarding UK university (including Swansea University)
- Repayments are 6% of income over £21,000 p.a. (combined with master’s and/or undergraduate degree loan if applicable)
- Students already holding a PhD level qualification are not eligible to apply for a loan
- Your course must be a full standalone PhD programme, and not ‘topped up’ from a master’s qualification such as Master’s by Research or MPhil.
- Available for full or part-time programmes
- Non means-tested
Find out more about the English PhD loan scheme.