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Since the introduction of top-up fees in 2006-07, the world of student finance has changed significantly. Though tuition fee loans ensure that you don’t have to worry about £3,000 of debt per year during your course, the income-assessed maintenance loan is another matter. Whilst you will get 75% of the full maintenance loan, the other 25% is only available depending on your financial circumstances. This means that anyone’s family whose income is higher than £39,780 will be expected to contribute £1 towards your maintenance costs for every £9.50 that they are over the income limit. However, there is an apparent fault with this system – not all families who earn over £39,780 will be able or willing to put this much funding towards their child’s University fees. Ultimately, whatever amount of loan you are allotted it is most likely that you will have to find additional finances during your course.

There are, of course, government grants and bursaries available for certain students, most of which will again be income-assessed. However, for those who do not qualify for these additional funds but are still in need of extra money, there are other options. One of the most sensible ways to ensure that you stay on top of your finances is to set up a savings account with a good interest rate. Alliance and Leicester’s eSaver savings accounts can be opened with as low a balance as £1, and has an interest rate of 6.50% AER (variable), which should ensure that your money continues to grow. This option can be very useful, particularly if you have a little extra money you can afford to set aside, for example from a part-time job.

An equally good way to make sure you’re getting the most from your money is to ensure that you get a student account with helpful extras, such as an interest-free overdraft and a decent interest rate to increase your money when you’re in credit. Smile currently offers the highest interest rate on a student account at 2.52% AER, though they are an internet-only company so are not as easily accessible as branch based banks. Meanwhile, NatWest offer student current accounts with a 5 year Young Person’s Railcard as an incentive, and an extensive overdraft facility.

In the end, though it’s always worth checking with your local authority as to what additional funding you could get for University, don’t panic if you find you don’t qualify for the bursaries etc. There are always other options to help you maintain a healthy bank balance. Also remember to take care of what you do have – it doesn’t hurt to spend a little extra on insurance for your possessions, particularly not when you consider that you might lose out if you have to replace something yourself! For more information, head to Student Finance Direct.

Rates quoted are correct at the time of writing (13.04.08) and may be changed at the discretion of the product provider.



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