Loans Tuition Fee Loan

Student loans are there to help cover the cost of your education.

UK students planning to study full-time or part-time can apply for loans to help cover the cost of tuition fees and living costs.

Some EU/EEA students who meet EU Settlement Scheme and residency requirements may also be able to apply for one or both of these loans. Check out gov.uk for more information or email our Student Money and Accommodation Advice team at smaa@londonmet.ac.uk. 

The following student loans are available to those in the UK:

• Tuition Fee Loan for full-time students
• Tuition Fee Loan for part-time students
• Maintenance Loan for full-time students and new part-time students to help with living costs

To get an idea of what loans and grants are available to you, use the Student Finance Calculator (full-time students only).

Tuition Fee Loan for full-time students

The Tuition Fee Loan will cover the cost of your course to a maximum of £9,250 if starting a course in 2022-23 or 2023-24. It will be paid directly to the University by Student Finance England.

Tuition Fee Loan for part-time students

Part-time students are eligible for the Tuition Fee Loan.

• The amount paid to the University will be the actual cost of your course to a maximum of £6,935 if starting a course in 2022-23 or 2023-24.
• Your course needs to be at least 25 per cent of a full-time course to qualify for the loan.

Check the Student Finance England website for more information.

Repaying student loans

The full-time Tuition Fee Loan and Maintenance Loan do not need to be repaid by 2022-23 starters until you have finished your course and are earning more than £27,295 per year (£25,000 per year for 2023-24 starters).

The earliest you'll start to repay your loans as a full-time student is the April after you have left your course. As a part-time student you may start making repayments while you're still studying (from the April four years after the start of your course), provided your earnings at that point are more than £27,295 per year (£25,000 per year for 2023-24 starters).

You will pay 9 per cent of your annual income over the repayment threshold of £27,295 (£25,000 for 2023-24 starters). If your income falls below £27,295 (£25,000 for 2023-24 starters) your repayments will stop.

For 2022-23 starters, the interest on the loans is calculated at the rate of inflation plus 3 per cent whilst you study, then at the rate of inflation plus 0–3 per cent depending on your earnings. The interest rate is currently capped at 7.1% until 31 August 2023. For 2023-24 starters, the interest on the loan will be calculated at the rate of inflation.

Any outstanding balance on your loans will be written off 30 years (40 years for 2023-24 starters) after the April you were first due to repay.

Previous study

If you have previously studied at degree level anywhere in the world you may find that you are not entitled to the Tuition Fee Loan. If you already hold a degree, you may find that you are not entitled to receive any funding at all for your course. If you are not entitled to funding you will need to pay the tuition fees yourself.

How to apply

You will need to apply online for your Tuition Fee Loan. For more information, visit the student finance section of the gov.uk website.