Jane Smith Fact File

1. Jane Smith Fact File Information from TES Student Finance Presentation

2. Meet Jane Smith • She is 26 years old. • She lived in Southampton with her family before she went to university. • She has just graduated from Lancaster University. • She has just received a 1st Degree in Law. • She has managed to get a graduate job at a top Law firm in London. • Her starting Salary will be £30,000. • She will not start her job till September 2014 so she is going on holiday for a few weeks first. • She is here to tell you her story.

3. Important Info • When making the decision to go to university I was very concerned about how I would be able to afford to go. • It’s so important to understand the costs involved - tuition fees, rent and money to live, etc. • There is a lot of misinformation out there. I'm not here to discuss the rights and wrongs of the new student system – just to give you the facts and nothing but the facts. • The only other thing I'll say is that going to university is an investment, a big one, but it’s an investment in yourself and it’s for the long term, its not like a car or a computer, but something that lasts a lifetime and will pay you back. • Getting a degree is good for your job prospects and good for your earning prospects. But now let's look at the finances.

4. Facts • Firstly, university can charge up to £9000 a year for full time courses and £6,750 for part time – which is an increase from previous years. • Fees will vary by university and by course. So before you decide where you want to go, you need to find out exactly how much your top-choice universities are charging. • But the most important thing to remember is that you don’t have to pay any of your tuition fees up front. • You can apply for a tuition loan which will cover your course costs and be paid by the government direct to the university that you attend. • You can also take out more in government loans to cover your living costs while you're at university. These loans are available to anyone - but the amount you can borrow is dependent on where you live, where you study and your family's annual income. • As it's more expensive to live in London, for example, you can borrow more if you study in London or if your family isn't well off, again you can borrow more.

5. Paying the loans back • If you do take out a loan you'll only have to start to pay it back when you start earning £21,000 or more a year. • So if your first job pays £10,000, or £15k or £20k, you won't have to pay back a penny. • If your salary falls below £21,000 – or if you stop working completely, you stop repaying your loan. • Like most other loans, though, you will have to pay it back with interest, the rate of interest will be based on inflation – and also on how much you earn. • In practice, once you start earning £21,000 a year, the loan repayments will automatically come out of your salary at the end of the month. The amount per year is 9% of your income above £21,000. • Let's say your salary is £25,000 a year: you'll pay 9% of £4,000. in case you're wondering, that works out at just under £7.00 a week or under £30.00 a month. • So, as I've said, the more you earn, the more you'll eventually pay back – but even if you're on a good wage, your monthly repayments will always be manageable, and less than under the current system.

6. Budgeting • University is completely different to school and costs a lot more. The living costs loan will help you with these costs, however there are different things you have to budget for and manage. • In 2012 the living costs loan went up to a maximum of £5,500 for people living away from home, up to £7,675 if you go to university in London and £4,375 if you live at home. • Your rent, books, food and of course socialising are a big part of university life and cost quite a bit too. Fresher's week (this is what they call the first week for new students at university) is always amazing but can cost a fortune, it’s all about budgeting. • In the first year when my living costs loan went into my bank I didn’t know what to do with all of this money, let’s just say I was the best dressed fresher! The money soon ran out though and I was onto beans and toast! • Basically I just learnt to budget so I didn’t end up with beans on toast for breakfast, lunch and tea!!

7. Grants • From September 2012, if you’re a new full-time student and your parents’ household income is £42,600 or less you could qualify for a living cost grant (also known as a maintenance grant). • THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IS THAT GRANTS DO NOT HAVE TO BE REPAID. • Like the living cost loan, the grant is designed to help with everyday costs like food, travel or accommodation. You could receive: • the maximum grant of £3,250 a year, if your household income is £25,000 or less • a partial grant if your household incomes is between £25,001 and £42,600 • If you can find from your parents what your household income is, you will be able to work out what you might be entitled to by using the grant calculator on the student finance website. • In addition to the loans and grants that are available from the government, there is other financial support available. For example most universities offer their own bursaries and scholarships. These are paid annually, usually in the form of cash and like grants, you don’t have to pay the money back. • Every university is different and therefore the criteria you need to be eligible will vary so you must do your research with your chosen Uni. As a guide most universities will give you a bursary if you’re eligible for a full grant and sometimes even if you are only eligible for a partial grant, so it’s definitely worth doing the research!

8. Summary • If you can take anything away from today it’s to look at all the funding options that are out there so that you know what you’ll be entitled to. It may be much more than you think. • No one wants to come out of university with lots of debt and so for me it was all about budgeting whilst I was there. After my beans on toast experience in the first year I set up a spreadsheet to manage my incomings and outgoings to allow me to really budget. • I even got a part time job at the student union, which was great for me as they allowed me to work my hours around my studying. This meant that I was able to use my loan for the important costs, rent, food, etc. and my part time job funded some of the nice things to have; nights out, the odd new shirt, etc. it was a great way for me to manage my money and still do the things I wanted to. • Even if you do get into financial trouble there are lots of people out there, at university in particular to help and advise you. You’re never truly on your own, which is always good to know.