Student Loans Company Student Records Officer Conference 4th 6th April 2016 Loughborough University Kevin McMullan IAG Partner Account Manager Student Loans Company www.slc.co.uk
Objectives Understand the Postgraduate Policy Understand Payment Structure Repayment of Postgraduate Loans The Application Process Other System Interfaces IAG and Resources
Student Loans Company Postgraduate Loan Policy www.slc.co.uk
Purpose of Loan Contribution towards costs No specified target Seminar Objectives No expected default use No link to fees
Postgraduate Loan Key Summary (post consultation) Available from AY 2016/17 Students aged under 60 Taught and research Master s; any subject Maximum 10,000 loan Non Means Tested Loan Income Contingent Repayment (ICR) Repaid concurrently with other student loans Contribution to costs; paid to student
Postgraduate Loan Provider Eligibility Course Eligibility Personal Eligibility
View Student Information Provider Eligibility Authority funded HE Provider Alternative Providers with Degree Awarding Powers in the UK Postgraduate Master s education provision is a devolved matter and applicable to England only (i.e. English domiciled students studying at an institution anywhere in UK or by distance learning in England and EU students studying in England)
Course Eligibility Eligible courses: stand alone Master s courses (taught and research) starting August 2016 onwards (AY 2016/17) Eligible study modes: UK Students in attendance anywhere in UK distance Learning in England EU Students in attendance or distance learning in England only Eligible course length: Full-Time courses (1 or 2 years) Part-time courses (up to 4 years) Course QA Document released onto HEP Website
Course Eligibility - Part Time Courses - Part Time Courses - initial policy : (November 2015) 50% or greater intensity in Year 1 of the course Maintain an average of 50% intensity in subsequent years of the course Part Time Courses - revised policy : (February 2015) Institutions have confirmed that it is common for two year PT Master's to be studied as 60 credits in year one and 120 in year two (120 being the dissertation), which would be 33 / 67% split over two years. This is why the previous policy rule that the student must complete at least 50% in year one made a lot of courses ineligible. BIS have now advised that 1 year FTE Master's courses can be studied on a part-time basis over two years (effectively 50% average intensity, with no minimum intensity requirement in year one). This is for 1 year FTE courses studied part-time over 2 years only
Course Eligibility Part Time Courses Part Time Courses - further announcement : (March 2016) BIS have announced, as part of the budget policy statement on 16th March, that the government will extend the eligibility of master's loans to include three-year part-time courses with no full-time equivalent (FTE). Full list of in/eligible Part Time Courses Full Time Equivalent Length of Part Time Course 1 year FTE 2 years Eligible 2 year FTE 3 years Eligible 2 year FTE 4 years Eligible No FTE 3 years Eligible 1 year FTE 3 years Ineligible 1 year FTE 4 years Ineligible No FTE 4 years Ineligible
Personal Eligibility residency Residency rules as per undergraduate students PGL will be available to UK Nationals (and individuals with settled status in the UK) who have been ordinarily resident in the UK and Islands for three years on the first day of the first academic year of their course They must have been most recently resident in England, and must not have moved there from elsewhere in the UK and Islands solely for the purpose of attending the course EU students are eligible Three years address history required Residency QA Document released onto HEP Website
Personal Eligibility age limit Aged under 60 before 1st day of 1st academic year: 1st September Course starts 1st August to 31st December 1st January Course starts 1st January to 31st March 1st April Course starts 1st April to 30th June 1st July Course starts 1st July to 31st July
Age limit examples Elena Course start date: 15th Oct 2016 60th Birthday: 10th September 2016 AY start date: 1st September 2016 Eligible as she is under 60 on AY start date Paul Course start date: 10th January 2017 60th Birthday: 28th December 2016 AY start date: 1st January 2017 Ineligible as he is age 60 on AY start date
Personal Eligibility Previous Study Applicants are not eligible if they already hold a Master s qualification (or an equivalent or higher level qualification) Integrated Master s Stand alone Master s Doctoral degree Overseas equivalent Previous study (no qualification gained and no PGL awarded) is not taken into account. However, this is a once only loan. If PGL previously awarded (from 2017 onwards) no access to further PGL Loan No repeat PGL funding unless student has a compelling personal reasons (CPR). One year of extra funding for CPR; assessed on case by case basis reasons include ill health and bereavement
Postgraduate qualifications level
Personal Eligibility Other Key Points View Student Information Academic Year classed as a period of 12 months starting on generic date of 1st September 1st January 1st April 1st July Students can apply up to 9 months after AY start date request a Loan Amount change up to 1 month before AY end date (but not reduce to less than what has already been awarded) Applicants are not eligible if they have outstanding student loan arrears or have been found unfit for student support (e.g. Attempted fraud) in prison (Prisoner students, whether on remand or sentenced)
Student Loans Company Payment and Process www.slc.co.uk
Payment dates Payments will be released following receipt of confirmation from the HE Provider that the student is in study and on track to complete the course within the specified course duration. This must be confirmed at the start of each academic year of the course. Students doing 1 year courses can request up to 10,000 Students doing 2 year courses can request up to 5,000 max in year 1 Payments of PGL will be made in three equal instalments, 33%, 33%, 34% per academic year at : Payment 1: Course start date upon the HE Provider confirming the student is in study Payment 2: 4 months after the course start month Payment 3: 7 months after the course start month
Payment Dates No payments will be released until the applicant has supplied their valid National Insurance Number (NINO) where they have one. Students can amend the amount of loan requested up to one month before the end of the AY Provider responsibility to ensure student is still in study during census period prior to each of the two further payments Timely submission of Withdrawals : Retrospective withdrawal to result in overpayment and immediate repayment by student SLC to monitor Provider compliance and performance regarding registration reporting and CoC submission in line with the Service Management Framework
Payment dates examples Course starts on any date in August or September 2016: 1st payment: course start date (confirmation of study received) 2nd payment: last Wednesday in January 2017 3rd payment: last Wednesday in April 2017 Course starts on any date in October 2016: 1st payment: course start date (confirmation of study received) 2nd payment: last Wednesday in February 2017 3rd payment: last Wednesday in May 2017 Course starts on any date in January 2017: 1st payment: course start date (confirmation of study received) 2nd payment: last Wednesday in May 2017 3rd payment: last Wednesday in August 2017
Student Loans Company Repayment www.slc.co.uk
Repayment terms Plan 1 loans Loans for HE courses that started pre 1st September 2012 Plan 2 loans Loans for HE and FE courses that started from 1st September 2012 (excluding PGL) Postgraduate Loans Loans for PG Master s courses starting from 1st August 2016
Repayment threshold Repayments due from April 2019 UK threshold 21,000 Overseas thresholds based on Price Level Indices Thresholds frozen until April 2021 6% of income over threshold deducted Voluntary repayments at any time (without penalty)
Interest Rate and write off RPI + 3% interest rate while the borrower is: in course out of course (whether making repayments or not) Balance written off: 30 years after repayments due Borrower dies Borrower permanently disabled and cannot work due to disability
Student Loans Company The Application Process www.slc.co.uk
Application Summary Application launch Summer 2016 Only one application per course, no necessity to apply per year Online or paper application As per undergraduate process, as application relates to a new course, further identity check required e.g. passport number requested Re-use of NINO if held, otherwise requested and validated with DWP Excludes EU students if NINO not held Questions define length of course and amount of loan per year Paid over the first 2 years of course
Login to Gov.uk
Finance Application
Undergraduate or Postgraduate
Question Flow
Questions regarding Loan If the student has selected a 1 yr course
Questions regarding Loan If the student has selected a 2 yr course
Repayment questions Information will be provided here to inform the applicant about how the interest and repayment works with the loan and what happens if they also have previous loans
Details for 2 contacts For repayment purposes we ask for and capture contact details of two people, family members not at the same address or a friend
Student Payment Summary
Student Loans Company Course Management Service (CMS) www.slc.co.uk
CMS course collection Design validated with CMS User Group on 8th December 2015 All relevant providers to enter both full and part time Postgraduate course details on CMS from March / April 2016 Details of all Postgraduate courses to be submitted by providers for MI purposes approx 25,000 courses expected Full and part time Postgraduate course entry format is the same PGL service anticipated to go live Summer 2016
CMS changes CMS has been developed to ensure Postgraduate courses can be identified when a student applies on-line The Copy Course functionality has been switched back on in CMS to assist with course data entry CMS Export includes Funding Level to enable providers to distinguish between Postgraduate and Undergraduate courses Course Search facility will be extended to include Postgraduate and Undergraduate
How to add a Postgraduate Course to CMS Introduction of Funding Level
How to add a Postgraduate Course to CMS Only the Course Start Date is required to be entered in CMS for both FT & PT courses Date entered will trigger the first payment and determines subsequent payment dates
Student Loans Company Student Information Service (SIS) www.slc.co.uk
Change of Circumstances categories Withdrawals: SLC to be notified immediately to prevent payments being made to the student when they are no longer in study. Any payment made after student left study treated as loan overpayment Course Transfers: Between eligible Postgraduate Master s courses internally Provider Transfers: Any New Provider must transfer in student (no transfer out CoC available) Suspension & Resumption: As is process with enhanced screens
Student Loans Company Postgraduate Loans Resources www.slc.co.uk
IAG April More detailed information, including Printed quick guides about the application process and repayment Quick guides to order from the practitioner website Continued activity on social media channels Customer facing films on YouTube and the practitioner website Launch Apply Now messaging on social media channels Postgraduate Loans Main Guide and Terms and Conditions on the practitioner website and Gov.uk
Postgraduate Loans - Resources
Objectives - revisited Understand the Postgraduate Policy Understand Payment Structure Repayment of Postgraduate Loans The Application Process Other System Interfaces IAG and Resources