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Undergraduate 2026/27

A lifetime of benefits

If you’re thinking about applying to university and are wondering how you’ll afford it, use this guide to help you understand the financial support available.

The student loan system is there to support your journey through University. All UK students are able to apply for a tuition fee loan and a maintenance loan to help with living costs. You will start to repay these loans when you start earning above a certain amount.

What do I have to pay for?

As a student there are two main costs you will have while studying:

1. Tuition fees

2. Living costs, such as housing, food etc.

Tuition fees

The tuition fee for UK students on a full-time degree will be £9,790 in 2026/27.

Sandwich Placement full year£1,955 - undertaking a sandwich work placement (paid and nonpaid) year where the periods of full-time study are in aggregate less than 10 weeks - 20% of the full time fee.

The Accelerated degree tuition fee is £11,750 for 2026/27.

Student Finance England students may apply for a Tuition Fee Loan for this amount if on an accelerated course but please note the maximum loan for Student Finance Wales is £9,790.

Living costs

See the living costs section later in the document.

Student funding calendar

1 October - January

UCAS Undergraduate application.

All applications to UK Universities for full time undergraduate courses are made online through UCAS (Universities Clearing Admissions Service).

The UCAS website has details of the dates you should submit your applications, receive your offers and make your choices.

2 February/March onwards

Applications to Student Finance in England opens, where you can apply for Tuition Fee Loans and Maintenance Loans.

Apply online early to ensure your loans are in place for when your course commences – you don’t need a confirmed place to apply.

3 March/April

Applications for student finance, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland usually open around this time of year.

4 April/May/June

The deadline for applying for funding through Student Finance for courses that start in September range from April to June, depending on where you live (more details available on the Student Finance website).

You can still apply for funding (up to nine months from when your course starts) but you won’t get it in time for the start of your course!

5 August

Results! Remember to update Student Finance online if there are any changes to your University and/or course.

6 September

The first instalment of the maintenance loan received (provided you have your Financial Notification and Payment Schedule from Student Finance).

The following year...

January: Second instalment of the maintenance loan (start of the second term). April: Third instalment of the maintenance loan (start of the third term).

Government loans

Tuition fee loan

You can apply to Student Finance England via their website

If you’re studying an undergraduate diploma and are aged 19 or over then you may be eligible for an Advanced Learner Loan

UK students (starting in 2026/27) can apply for a loan to cover all tuition fees for a degree:

• You won’t have to pay for any of your tuition in advance

• The tuition fee loan is paid direct to Bath Spa University

• The tuition fee loan is not means tested on household income.

Maintenance loan

You can apply for a loan to help with your living costs and other expenses.

The amount of the loan will depend on your household income and other circumstances; use the Student Finance calculator to find out more.

The maintenance loan will be paid direct into your bank account each term.

If your course lasts longer than 30 weeks and three days in an academic year (for example, the Accelerated degree) you might be able to get a Long Courses Loan to help towards living costs. The Long Courses Loan is part of the Maintenance Loan and to be eligible, you must be able to get the part of the Maintenance Loan that depends on your household income.

Student Finance will assess whether you can get the Long Courses Loan when you apply for your main student finance.

This table shows the 2026/27 loan amounts for Student Finance England if you’re studying outside of London, living away from home and not in the final year. Living at home and final year loan amounts are less and students from Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland have different loan amounts.

The maximum loan for living costs for 2026/27 will be £10,830 for students who are not eligible for benefits. For students eligible for benefits and special support elements and living away from the family home the maximum will be £12,345 .

The maximum loans for living costs in 2026/27 for new full-time students and continuing full-time students starting their courses on or after 1 August 2016 who are aged 60 or over on the first day of the first academic year of their course will be £4,582 .

You will need to be prepared to meet any shortfall between living costs and your maintenance loan.

Students with dependents

If you have dependants, you may be eligible for extra non-repayable support . To find out if you are, please contact Student Finance .

The maximum adult dependants’ grant will be increased to £3,545 for 2026/27.

The amount of childcare grant payable in 2026/27 will be based on 85% of actual childcare costs, subject to a maximum grant of £199.62 per week for one child only or £342.24 per week for two or more children.

The maximum amount of Parents’ Learning Allowance payable in 2026/27 will be £2,024 and the minimum £50

Students with disabilities

Disabled Students’ Allowances (DSAs) are extra help from Student Finance for eligible students who have a disability, a mental health or medical condition, Asperger Syndrome or a specific learning difficulty like dyslexia or dyspraxia.

They are non-means tested allowances for eligible UK students, which pay for extra costs incurred as a result of a disability. Please contact Student Finance England for more information.

Part-time

If you’re a part-time student studying at least 25% of a full-time course, you’ll be eligible for a tuition fee loan, payable on a pro-rata basis. For part-time students there’s also a maintenance loan (prorata based on a maximum loan for living costs for 2026/27 of £10,830).

Please note your funding arrangements may be different if you’ve previously studied (but not completed) a degree.

A UK student who already has a higher education qualification may not be entitled to funding for a second degree; please contact Student Finance England for more information about your funding entitlement if this is the case.

Repaying your loans

• You’ll only start repaying the loan once you’ve graduated and are earning over £25,000.

• The interest rate is variable and based on the RPI (retail price index) and only charged on the amount of loan that has been released.

• Loans are usually written off after 40 years and it is expected most students will not repay all of the amount they’ve borrowed.

• Only 9% of your income above £25,000 (2026/27) is taken for repayments.

This table shows some examples of repayments:

£40,000

Your student loan will not go on credit files, which is the list of money you’ve borrowed.

For more information on repayments and interest rates, please visit the Student Loan Repayment website.

Living costs

If you’re living away from home, the biggest expense will be accommodation costs. Please see our website for up to date prices.

Accommodation is usually paid at the start of each of the three terms (which corresponds to your student maintenance loan payments) by bank standing order.

We ask for £250 pre-payment of licence fee within 14 days of signing the licence. This amount is part of the total rent and not extra.

After accommodation, the next largest cost is your day-to-day living expenses such as groceries and going out.

Though the amount varies based on the individual, a single student living away from home during term time will usually need at least £1,142 a month (source: National Student Money Survey - Save the Student 2026).

Of course, if you live at home while studying, your costs will be lower.

Other expenses

Students are not automatically entitled to claim for full healthcare costs (prescriptions, dental treatments, eye tests and glasses) but you can complete a HC1 form to see if you are entitled to help based on low income.

A prescription in England currently costs £9.90 per item but if you need regular prescriptions, it may be cheaper to buy a pre-payment certificate (available online for three or 12 months). Eye tests cost between £25-£50 and a basic NHS dental checkup costs £27.40

Students bringing their own television or if watching BBC programmes on iPlayer or any live TV through apps, will need to purchase a TV Licence. The cost of a TV Licence is £180 per year.

You may find that your parents’ household insurance already covers some items but you should consider arranging cover before leaving home, to start from the date you move in. You can use a price comparison website to find the cheapest cover.

Other ways of saving money

Students are often entitled to discounts, for example on local bus travel. If you’ll be using the train to visit home, the Young Persons Railcard will give you savings on some fares.

Student discount sites like Student Beans, My Uni Days, Save the Student and Student Money Saver promote deals and discounts.

Finally, TOTUM will give you over 200 discounts in the UK. More information is available online.

Need a part time job?

If you need a part-time job to support yourself financially, contact our careers team

You’ll also need to consider coursespecific costs like books, stationery and printing. For some courses, you may need to pay for field trips, art materials and specialist equipment.

You won’t be able to plan for all expenses, so try to allow for unexpected costs, such as an extra journey home, or a broken laptop/mobile phone. Consider budgeting for occasional expenses such as birthday cards/presents, Christmas and holidays.

Full time students don’t have to pay Council Tax and you can opt to share your details with Bath and North East Somerset Council (B&NES) when completing your online registration.

If you opted not to share but need to confirm your student registration to B&NES or live outside B&NES and need a Council Tax letter, you can contact the Student Information Team via MyServices: Student Information and Support .

TOP TIP

We have also partnered with BlackBullion, an easy-to-use digital learning platform that can help our students (and prospective students) to be smart with money, covering topics such as getting money-ready for university, student life, budgeting and saving.

You will also need to use this platform to apply for a bursary or any support funds

Funding

Bath Spa University Funding

Bath Spa University offers a range of possible scholarships, bursaries and other opportunities to help you fund your studies.

Bath Spa University Bursaries

The Student Awards Team administer a range of bursaries and scholarships including the BSU Bursary, designed to help eligible students (with household income under £27,500) with the costs of studying.

You’ll need to be UK domiciled and apply to Student Finance (England, Wales, Northern Ireland or Student Award Agency for Scotland) to give consent for your household income figure to be shared with Bath Spa University.

Accommodation bursaries

For the 2026/27 academic year, we’re providing UK students whose household income is £20,000 or less with a £1,000 bursary to put towards rental payments and other housingrelated expenses.

UK students whose household income is between £20,000 and £30,000 are eligible to receive a £500 bursary.

This bursary is only applicable to first year undergraduate students living in BSU-managed or third-party nominations halls of residence.

If you’re in private accommodation you won’t be eligible.

Care

Leavers, estranged students,

young adult carers and Foyer students

If you identify in any of these groups, please contact Student Wellbeing Services. They can speak to you about your eligibility for additional bursaries, accommodation and Student Finance.

Unite Foundation Scholarships

The Unite Foundation provides scholarships of free student accommodation to young people in the UK from care or estranged backgrounds. You might be able to receive three years of free accommodation in Unite halls of residence.

Art and Design with Integrated Foundation Year Scholarship

Short-term Emergency Grant

The Short term Emergency Grant can help students with a temporary cash flow problem caused by circumstances beyond their control (e.g. delayed student loan).

Generally the standard Emergency Grant is £100 in any given week for a single person with no dependents.

To apply, please submit a Hardship Query. If you’re eligible the Team will then be able to send you a link to make an application via Blackbullion.

University Access Fund (UAF)

Bath Spa University provides a range of Access Funds for undergraduate, postgraduate, UK, EU and International students.

You will need to apply for a bursary, please see our web pages for details on how to do this.

After you progress to undergraduate level, you’ll be awarded a progression scholarship at each level of study, for years one, two and three of your BA course. The scholarship is received as a tuition fee waiver.

The scholarships you’ll be awarded are detailed below, and apply to home and international students:

Year 1

£1,250 Year 2 £1,000 Year 3 £1,000

Access Funds are to assist students who may be experiencing unexpected financial hardship or in an emergency situation.

More information about the application process is available online the Student Funding webpages.

Scholarships

We have a variety of awards that are available to current undergraduate students. The 2026/27 funding opportunities have yet to be finalised.

This funding is available to eligible students to apply for after registration. Some examples of funding we offer are below.

The International Travel Fund assists students wishing to embark on international travel placements and study trips that go beyond their studies at BSU and that will have a direct impact on their future career and employability.

Awards of up to £650 for successful applicants

Initial teacher training funding (ITT) is administered by Bath Spa University in accordance with criteria determined by the Department for Education (DfE).

Bursaries and scholarships are available to trainees on a fee-based teacher training course in England that leads to the award of qualified teacher status.

Availability is dependent on the highest relevant academic award and the ITT subject. To receive a bursary or scholarship trainees must be entitled to support under the Student Finance England criteria.

In 2026, the Gane Trust award will support up to three undergraduate students to undertake a study trip or development activity that will enhance their studies and practice within art, design or craftsmanship. This fund is only open to second year (level 5) undergraduates in the School of AFM and School of Design.

The Employability Fund is to help current students and recent graduates (UK Home students only) access financial assistance for many of the costs that can arise with accessing work experience or getting started in their early career. Whilst the Fund is unlikely to cover the entire costs associated with these activities it’s designed to provide a helping hand and contribution.

In 2026/27, eligible BSU students can apply for the Employability Fund to support:

• Unpaid Work Experience – Up to £500 contribution.

• Career Development Activity or Freelancing Essentials – Up to £300 contribution.

Trusts and Charities

Some trusts and charities offer select students limited financial support.

To see if you’re eligible contact Student Wellbeing.

Student Wellbeing

Bath Spa University’s Student Wellbeing Services can provide professional advice and guidance to applicants and students on:

• Money

• The University’s Medical Service

• Mental health and wellbeing

• Accessibility and disability

• Young adult carers

• Estranged students

• Care leavers

Managing your finances

Student Wellbeing

Student Wellbeing Services

Current Bath Spa University students: Access ‘MyWellbeing’ to ask questions, book appointments and view upcoming events. Future students: Access ‘MyWellbeing’ to ask questions and view upcoming events.

Student Awards

Please contact the team via Log in to Self-Service Portal

Student Fees

Please contact the team via Log in to Self-Service Portal