Postgraduate loans

Take advantage of government-backed loans of up to £12,471 for postgraduate study. The loans are available for any subject and are a contribution to costs including fees and living costs. Worried about repayments? See how much your repayments will be using the calculator.

EU students may also be able to get a postgraduate loan for a Master’s course at an English university or college. You'll need to have settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme or indefinite leave to remain, and meet the relevant residency requirements.

Am I eligible?

You can apply for a Postgraduate Loan if you:

are studying a taught or research Master's course and

are under 60 years old at the start of the first academic year of their course, and

normally live in England.

What courses can I use the loan for?

The loans are available for taught Masters and research Masters degrees (but not PhDs which have their own funding options).

The loans are not available for PGCert or PGDip qualifications, nor are they available for our Graduate Diploma in Psychology or Graduate Diploma in Law conversion courses. They are not available for PGCE initial teacher training courses as eligible students are able to apply for loans in the same way that undergraduate students do.

Postgraduate loans will be available for all eligible full-time, part-time and distance learning Master's courses.

If you are not studying full-time, you must be studying at a rate that is at least 50 per cent of the full-time course to be eligible for a Postgraduate Loan. For example, if the full-time course is one year long, you may be eligible for a Postgraduate Loan if you take the course over two years part-time, but you will not be eligible if you wish to take a one-year full-time course over three or four years as you'll be studying at a rate of 33 or 25 per cent respectively, less than the government-required rate of 50 per cent. For more details, please visit the government website.

How will I repay my Postgraduate Loan?

Repayments for postgraduate loans will be 6% of income earned over the threshold. Overseas thresholds are based in Price Level Indices.

Repayments are based on your income, not what you borrow. If you study full time you’ll start making repayments the April after you finish or leave your course.

If you're studying part time, you’ll start making repayments the April two years after the start of your course or the April after you finish of leave your course, whichever comes first.

No repayments towards Postgraduate Loans will be taken before April 2023 and only once your income is over £403 a week, £1,750 a month or £21,000 a year. You'll pay 6% of what you earn over this amount.

If you have loans for your undergraduate course you will also repay these loans. If you are repaying both loans you will have a total deduction of 15% of your earnings above the threshold taken from your salary (6% for the PGL and 9% for the undergraduate loan).

How much will I repay if I already have loans for my undergraduate course?

How much you pay back each month will depend on your income and when you started your undergraduate course and the plan you're on.

Find out more about undergraduate loan repayments.

Can I get a loan if I already have a postgraduate qualification?

You won't be able to get the loan if you already have a qualification which would be an equivalent level or the Masters you are applying for is at a lower level than a qualification they have already taken (ELQ)

The loan is not available for students who have any of the following:

Integrated Masters
Overseas equivalent
Doctorate
Stand-alone Masters

If you have a PGCE/ PGCert/ PGDip you can apply for the loan if you are applying for taught Masters and research Masters degrees and do not already hold an ELQ qualification.

Not eligible?

If you're not eligible for the government loan, there are other ways to fund your postgraduate degree. Self-funding students choose to use money from a variety of sources such as savings, family or full or part-time work throughout their studies. You may also be sponsored by your employer to undertake a postgraduate degree.

Find out about self-funding funding options

Postgraduate loan calculator

To check your repayment amount, simply select the country you'll be receiving a postgraduate loan from and input your salary. The calculator will then work out what your repayments will be each month:

Postgraduate Loan Repayment Calculator

Loan Scheme:

Annual Salary (£):

Estimated postgraduate loan repayment:

£ 20 per month

Source:FindaMasters

How does the calculator work?

The calculator works out your postgraduate loan repayments by subtracting the repayment threshold for your loan from your suggested salary. This gives the amount of earnings you will make repayments on.

The calculator then uses the repayment rate (%) for your loan to work out how much you will have to repay in a year.

Finally, it divides this amount by 12 to give the typical monthly repayment amount that would be automatically deducted from your salary by HMRC.

Things to bear in mind

Please note that the results given by our calculator are meant as a guideline only. Details of repayment rates and thresholds may be changed.

We recommend you double check the details of your postgraduate loan before making repayment assumptions. You can find further details for each UK loan scheme here.

You should also remember that the calculator only gives postgraduate loan deductions.

You can apply now on the GOV.UK website.

What should you do next?

Come to a Postgraduate Open Day

Come to one of our Postgraduate Open Days to meet our subject academics, find out more about your course in detail and learn more about postgraduate finance.

Book your place

Download our postgraduate guide

Our Postgraduate Guide provides details of all our postgraduate taught and research courses. It also provides information about the research environment at Birmingham City University

Download the guide

Apply for a course

So, you’re interested in applying for postgraduate study? Here’s a step-by-step guide covering all you need to know to apply. Unlike undergraduate degrees where you will apply via UCAS, you can apply straight to the University for a postgraduate degree.

Find out how to apply

Sign up to find out more

Our emails are a great way to learn more about the University and find out what it's really like to study with us.

Get advice on your personal statement

Not sure what's required of you in a postgraduate personal statement? Don't worry, our guide has top tips, examples from real students and all the guidance you'll need.

Download the guide