Financial support for Higher Education (HE) students
Full-time Higher Education (HE) students
You have a range of financial support available for the duration of your course, including loans (which you have to pay back) and grants/bursaries (which you donât). What support youâre eligible for depends on your course, where youâre studying, your household income and where you live.
Important information
- Please note: tuition fees are not fixed for the duration of the course and may increase year-on-year.
- Universities and Colleges can charge a maximum of £9,535 per year in tuition fees. Students studying their first HE course who normally live in Wales can get a tuition fee loan up to a maximum of £9,535. The tuition fee loan isnât based on your household income.
- In addition to the tuition fee loan you can get maintenance support (help with living costs). Eligible students living away from home (outside London) can get £12,345 per year, made up of a mix of grant and loan. The amount of grant youâll get depends on your household income (see the examples below).
- The majority of students wonât pay anything up front.
- Students donât have to pay anything back until theyâre employed and earning over £28,470.
- If youâve studied a HE course before, itâs important that you understand it might affect your eligibility for support. For details, refer to studentfinancewales.co.uk and the section on Previous Study Rules.
The table below shows how household income determines the amount of maintenance grant you may get. All students get a minimum of £1,000 with a loan available to top you up to the full amount.
These tables show an estimate of how much you could get based on your household income:
2025/2026
| Household income | Living at home with parents | Living away from home, outside of London | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loan | Grant | Loan | Grant | |
| £18,370 or less | £3,595 | £6,885 | £4,245 | £8,100 |
| £25,000 | £4,550 | £5,930 | £5,398 | £6,947 |
| £35,000 | £5,992 | £4,488 | £7,137 | £5,208 |
| £45,000 | £7,433 | £3,047 | £8,876 | £3,469 |
| £59,200 or more | £9,480 | £1,000 | £11,345 | £1,000 |
| Total | £10,480 | £10,480 | £12,345 | £12,345 |
What do I do next?
Full details of all financial support and how to apply can be found on the Student Finance Wales website www.studentfinancewales.co.uk. Students normally living in Wales will be able to apply for support online from March onwards.
Living outside Wales?
If youâre a student living outside Wales, youâll find information on funding and application processes via the following links:
- Students who normally live in England: UK Student Finance
- Students who normally live in Scotland: SAAS
- Students who normally live in Northern Ireland: Student Finance NI
- International students can find information here: UKCISA
Other financial support
You may get extra funding if you have adults or children who are financially dependent on you, which can include:
- Adult Dependentâs Grant (ADG)
- Childcare Grant (CCG)
- Parentsâ Learning Allowance (PLA)
Part-time Higher Education students
Tuition fee support
Anyone studying in Wales can apply for a non-means tested fee loan of up to £2,625 to cover their annual fees. To be eligible you need to be studying at a minimum 25% intensity, e.g. a full-time student completes 120 credits in one year, so a part-time student would need to complete a minimum of 30 credits per year.
Maintenance (Living Costs) Support
You can apply for annual living costs support for up to a maximum of £4,553, which is a combination of grant (which you donât pay back) and loan (which you do). The amount of grant and loan youâre awarded will depend on the number of hours youâll be studying (known as the intensity of study) and your household income.
Examples of the amounts of grant and loan available at different levels of household income and study intensity can be seen on the table below.
| Income (£) | Welsh Government Learning Grant or Special Support Grant (£) | Maintenance Loan (£) | Total Grant Plus Loan (£) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Studying at 50% intensity | Studying at 50% intensity | Studying at 50% intensity | Studying at 50% intensity |
| £25,000 | £3,000 | £1,553 | £4,553 |
| £35,000 | £2,270 | £2,283 | £4,553 |
| £45,000 | £1,539 | £3,014 | £4,553 |
| £59,200+ | £500.00 | £4,053 | £4,553 |
Other financial support
You may get extra funding if you have adults or children who are financially dependent on you, which can include:
- Adult Dependentâs Grant (ADG)
- Childcare Grant (CCG)
- Parentsâ Learning Allowance (PLA)
Specialist support for higher education
Support in higher education is available through the Disabled Students Allowance (DSA) funded by Student Finance Wales.
If you are a higher education student with a learning difficulty, health condition or disability, you may be eligible for equipment and support funded through the DSA to help with your academic studies.
Who is eligible?
Students with:
- Specific Learning Differences (SpLD), such as dyslexia, dyspraxia (DCD), or ADHD
- Autism
- Physical / sensory impairments
- Mental health conditions
- Long-term health conditions
For more information visit Student Finance Wales.
How to apply
To apply you need to fill in a DSA 1 application form and submit it with evidence of the disability/condition to Student Finance Wales. You donât have to be in receipt of Student Finance to apply, so, for example, if your course is funded by your employer, then you may still be eligible.
You can apply at any time during the academic year, but it is advisable to apply as early as possible to ensure that you have the support that you need when you start your course. The application window opens around Easter for the following academic year and you can apply before you have accepted a place.
We can support you through the application process, so if you have any queries about eligibility or you just want to know how it works and what happens, please contact Jo Seabrook or aln@bridgend.ac.uk.
Once your DSA application has been approved, you will be asked to attend a Needs Assessment to identify the specific requirements of your support.
Support may be in the form of:
- A laptop
- Assistive technology, including specialist software
- Specialist and ergonomic equipment
- One-to-one specialist Study skills support
- Mentoring
- British Sign Language interpreter
- Examination access arrangements, for example, additional time
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