Previous studies

Previous study and the effect on Student Finance England funding

The information on this page applies to undergraduate students starting their degree course in September 2024.

Study on an earlier higher education course will affect your entitlement to receive Student Finance England funding for a new course.

If you studied on a full-time higher education course in the past, even for one day, but you did not obtain any qualification, this previous study will reduce your entitlement to receive a Student Finance England Tuition Fee Loan for a new full-time course. 

If you studied on a full-time higher education course in the past and obtained a higher education qualification below Honours degree level such as an ordinary degree, HND or HNC, this also reduces the number of years you can receive the Student Finance England Tuition Fee Loan for your new full-time course. This applies whether you studied the course on a full-time or a part-time basis. 

If you already hold a qualification that is equivalent to a UK Honours degree or higher you will not be eligible for any Student Finance England Tuition Fee Loan or Maintenance Loan for the entirety of your new course.

Riba Pt 11

An exception is in place for MArch RIBA Pt II Architecture students- if you studied full-time and received SFE funding for your undergraduate course and undertook one year of work experience before continuing onto MArch, you should be eligible for SFE funding for MArch. If you studied your undergraduate degree part-time or took more than 3 years gap between completing your undergraduate degree and starting MArch Riba Pt II, contact Student Advice to check your funding entitlement.

If you previously withdrew from an Integrated Masters course after completing only the undergraduate element of the course, receiving a BA qualification and now wish to start a Masters Architecture course, please contact Student Advice urgently to discuss your SFE funding entitlement as it’s likely you may not be eligible for the postgraduate loan due to complex SFE eligibility rules.

SFE funding entitlement if you already hold a UK Honours degree or a higher level qualification (eg a Masters degree) or an equivalent overseas qualification

In general, if you already hold an equivalent or higher qualification than the one you intend to study:

• Tuition Fee Loan: you will not qualify for the Tuition Fee Loan for the duration of your new course and you will be liable to pay your own tuition fees for your entire course. This applies whether you study a full-time or part-time course.
• Maintenance Loan: full-time students will not be eligible to receive the Maintenance Loan for the duration of the course. If you study Architecture there is an exception in the rules that allow a Maintenance Loan to be available for a new course.
• DSA/Dependents: you will be eligible to receive the Disabled Students' Allowance depending on your needs. If you study full-time, and you have dependent children and/or an adult dependant, you may also be eligible to receive the grants for dependants.
• These rules also apply to MSci or MEng courses.

This is a basic summary of your possible SFE funding eligibility.

These rules apply even if you did not receive any SFE funding for your previous course. They also apply if you studied at an overseas institution unless you can show that the qualification you achieved is not equivalent to a UK Honours degree. You’ll need contact Ecctis for verification of the UK equivalent of your overseas qualification and submit this to Student Finance England for consideration.

Please note: the rules are complicated and this information is a basic summary only. For individual advice please Contact Student Advice.

Incomplete previous course or qualification lower than UK honours degree

SFE provide funding for the normal length of a course plus one extra year. For example, a three-year degree course would attract four years of funding. The additional year is known as a “gift year”.

Previous study on a part-time degree level course does not count and will not reduce your funding entitlement for a full-time course.

If you’ve studied on a full-time higher education course in the past, the number of years (or part-years) you attended reduces the number of years of funding available for your new course. This applies even if your study was outside the UK.

Note: one day’s attendance on a course counts as one year of previous study under these rules.

Previous study reduces entitlement to receive the Tuition Fee Loan for your new course although you will remain eligible for the Maintenance Loan (for living costs) and any additional grants for dependents and disabilities, if applicable.

If SFE do not award you a Tuition Fee Loan to pay your tuition fees for any year of your new course, you will be liable to pay your own tuition fees.

Compelling personal reasons: there is an exception to this rule: If you did not complete your previous course because of compelling personal reasons (CPR), ie, illness or bereavement and you provide SFE with evidence of this when you apply for your student funding you can ask them to take this into account when assessing your future funding entitlement. Student Finance England can, at their discretion, award one extra year of funding if they accept you left your last course because of valid compelling personal reasons. If you repeated any years of your previous course due to compelling personal reasons, you can also ask SFE to consider this and you must provide them with evidence. SFE can award additional year/s of funding on this basis if they accept your evidence. This can alter and increase your entitlement to the Tuition Fee Loan for a new course. You should also read the information about funding for repeat years.

Contact Student Advice to discuss this before you start your course.

Previous part-time course: If you previously studied on a part-time higher education course but did not obtain the qualification, this will be ignored and should not affect your funding entitlement for a new full-time degree course. Also, any course that you paid for yourself at an entirely private institution should not count.

Higher National Diploma: if you previously studied for a maximum of two years on a two-year Higher National Diploma (HND) or foundation degree course, you will only be eligible for two years of Tuition Fee Loan towards a new three-year degree course. As above, this will be available for the last two years of your course. This means if you start in the first year, you’ll be liable to pay your own fees.

If you have more than two years' previous study, your Tuition Fee Loan entitlement will be reduced even further.

How will my funding be calculated?

Here is an example to show the level of funding you may be eligible to receive for a new three-year undergraduate course.

You studied one and a half years on a previous higher education course. This counts as two years of previous study. You left or transferred into the first year of the new course.

The maximum number of years of Tuition Fee Loan available for a three-year course is four years (the standard duration of the course plus a gift year).

Your two years of previous study are deducted from these four years, meaning that you have two years of Tuition Fee Loan left. (Remember that even if you studied for just one day on a course, it counts as one year of previous study under these rules.)

So, you will receive just two years of Tuition Fee Loan for your new course, which will cover the final two years of your course. But, for your first year, you will not receive the Tuition Fee Loan so you will have to pay your own tuition fees.

3+1=4 years (eligibility)- 2 years (previous study) = 2 years funding remaining (for year 2 and 3 of your new course)

You will however receive the Maintenance Loan for the first year (and subsequent years) of your course and if applicable, grants for dependents or disability.

Here's the calculation again:

Using the same example, if you had compelling personal reasons for leaving your last course, and SFE accept these reasons and award you an extra year of Tuition Fee Loan, then this would be awarded to fund your first year. You would receive full SFE funding for the normal three years of your new three-year degree course instead of just the last two years (without CPR).

Contact Student Advice to discuss this before you start your course.