Going to University UK 2025

Tuition Fee Loan

UK undergraduate tuition fees are capped at £9,535/year from 2025/26 (raised from £9,250). The Student Loans Company (SLC) pays this directly to your university. Not means-tested. Available to home (UK) students. Welsh, Scottish and Northern Irish students access devolved schemes with different caps and grant elements.

Maintenance Loan (2025/26)

Means-tested by parental household income. Maximum amounts for English undergraduates:

• Living at home: £8,877 max
• Living away from home (outside London): £10,544 max
• Living away from home (London): £13,022 max
• Overseas study year: £12,084 max

Parental income above ~£25,000 reduces the maintenance loan; the floor (minimum loan) is reached at ~£62,000 household income. Above that, parents are expected to contribute the gap.

Plan 5 — Crucial for 2023+ Starters

• Repayment threshold: £25,000 (lower than Plan 2's £28,470)
• 9% above threshold
• Write-off at 40 years (not 30 like Plan 2)
• Most Plan 5 graduates will repay in full — effectively a lifelong 9% graduate tax
• Interest fixed at RPI only (no longer RPI+3% while studying)
• Repayments taken via PAYE automatically — graduate sees deductions on payslip starting the April after graduation
• See UK Student Loans guide

The combination of lower threshold and 40-year term means a graduate earning £40,000 will pay 9% × £15,000 = £1,350/year via PAYE every year until either the loan clears or 40 years pass. For most career trajectories, the loan clears around year 25-35.

Plan 1, 2 and 4 — Historical Comparison

• Plan 1 (started before Sept 2012, or Northern Ireland): 9% above £26,065, write-off at 25 years.
• Plan 2 (English/Welsh students 2012-2022): 9% above £28,470, write-off at 30 years, interest up to RPI+3% during study.
• Plan 4 (Scottish undergraduates): 9% above £32,745 (higher threshold, lower lifetime cost), write-off at 30 years.
• Plan 5 (English, started 2023+): 9% above £25,000, write-off at 40 years.

If you have multiple plans (rare, but possible if you did a master's under a different plan), PAYE deducts only from the lowest-threshold plan, with extra repayments above higher thresholds applied to other balances. The PG (postgraduate) loan is separate: 6% above £21,000.

NHS Learning Support Fund and Healthcare Bursaries

Students on NHS-funded courses (pre-registration nursing, midwifery, paramedic science, dental hygiene, radiography, occupational therapy, physiotherapy, others) receive the NHS Learning Support Fund: a £5,000-£7,500 non-repayable Training Grant per academic year (depending on course), plus parents' allowance and additional placement-cost reimbursements. The maintenance loan is still available alongside, although capped slightly lower. Application is through the NHS Business Services Authority website rather than the SLC.

Other Income Sources

• Bursaries/scholarships: ~£1,000-£3,500/yr means-tested bursaries; academic/sport scholarships £500-£10,000.
• Disabled Students' Allowances (DSA): non-repayable, covers equipment, software, support workers.
• Part-time work: typically 12-20 hours during term-time. Personal Allowance £12,570 means most students pay no income tax.
• Summer work: earnings still within £12,570 PA = tax-free across the year.
• Parental contribution: assumed by SLC where parental income above the means-test floor; varies in practice from £0 to £15,000+.

Part-Time Work, Tax Code 1257L and No Tax in Practice

The standard tax code 1257L applies to all UK employees with one job, giving £12,570 of Personal Allowance spread cumulatively across the tax year (£241.73/week). Most students working term-time earn between £6,000 and £10,000/year, well below the PA, so they pay £0 income tax. National Insurance is different: it is assessed per-job-per-pay-period rather than annually, so a £300 weekly shift attracts NI of about £4.64 even if your annual total is well below £12,570. Refunds of NI are very limited; income tax over-deductions are automatically refunded by HMRC at year-end via P800.

If you start a part-time job without a P45, your first payslip may use emergency code 0T or BR — both over-collect tax. Submit your P45 (or use the HMRC Personal Tax Account to confirm the new job) and HMRC will issue 1257L within a couple of weeks. Any over-paid tax is automatically refunded.

Living Cost Budget (£1,000-£1,250/month outside London)

• Accommodation: £400-£700/month (cheaper north, dearer south)
• Food: £150-£200/month
• Bills/utilities: £30-£80/month
• Travel: £20-£100/month
• Course costs (books, materials): £30/month average
• Social, phone, gym: £100-£200/month

London +30-40%. Total annual: £10,500-£14,000 outside London, £13,500-£18,000 in London. The maximum maintenance loan covers about 60-75% of this; the gap is parents, part-time work and bursaries.

Council Tax: Full-Time Student Exemption

Full-time students are disregarded for Council Tax purposes throughout term-time and long vacations. A household entirely of full-time students pays £0. Mixed households (e.g., a student living with a working non-student) get a 25% single-person discount. Apply through the local Council with a student status certificate from your university registry. Many universities issue certificates automatically; others require a request. Without applying you will receive bills and risk court costs — Councils do not refund retrospectively without proof.

International Student Finance

International undergraduate fees in 2025/26 typically range £15,000-£40,000/year, with most Russell Group institutions in the £20,000-£30,000 band for arts/humanities and £25,000-£35,000+ for STEM/medicine. There is no SLC funding for international students. Funding routes: family savings, government sponsorship, university scholarships (often automatic for high entry grades), and commercial international student loans through Prodigy Finance or Future Finance. The Student Visa requires evidence of at least £1,334/month for London or £1,023/month outside London for up to 9 months — these figures rise periodically.

Working hours under a Student Visa are normally capped at 20 hours/week during term and unrestricted in vacations. Healthcare access is via the NHS after paying the Immigration Health Surcharge (£776/year for students in 2025/26).

Bank of Mum and Dad: The Realistic Average

According to Save the Student's 2024 survey, the average UK first-year undergraduate receives around £8,000 from parents toward first-year living costs and one-off start-up expenses (laptop, room kit, first-month deposit, train season ticket). Households in the South East and London typically contribute more (£10,000-£15,000+); households in the North and Scotland average lower. Having an explicit pre-September conversation about expectations — what is funded, what the student covers from part-time work, and how holidays are split — prevents term-time strain.

References

• gov.uk: Student finance
• gov.uk: Repaying your student loan (all plans)
• gov.uk: Council Tax full-time student discount
• NHS Learning Support Fund
• gov.uk: Student visa