Here you'll find the latest information about postgraduate loans for Master's students, our scholarships and other sources of funding.
If you have any questions about fees and funding, our Money Advice Service is on hand to offer free, specialist advice. We also run finance talks at our postgraduate Open Evenings.
We also offer information on fees and funding for postgraduate researchers.
You'll find details of fees on individual course pages, but check our tuition fees page for a general guide.
Eligible students can access a Master's Loan to help cover the costs of study. Check the 'Master's Loan' section on this page for details.
As well as tuition fees, there may be some extra, course-specific costs. You'll find details in the 'Fees and funding' section of individual course pages.
Course pages also contain details of part-time fees, which are linked to the full-time fee and may vary depending on the number of course credits you study each year.
If you're studying a postgraduate course and you already hold an equivalent qualification (for example, another Master's), your tuition fees won't vary from those listed on our course pages.
You won't need to pay fees until you've accepted an offer to study here. Fees can be paid in three instalments through our online payment system at the following times:
You won't need to pay fees until you've accepted an offer to study here. Fees can be paid in three instalments through our online payment system.
Please note: if you're studying a Masters course that lasts longer than 12 months, your loan payments will be spread across the full course duration. Our repayment plans can be adapted in these instances to suit your needs, but please discuss your case with our finance team. You can contact us at [email protected]
There are a number of eligibility criteria for the Master's Loan: see the 'Master's Loan' tab on this page for more details.
This information was updated in January 2025 but may be subject to change.
Eligible students can access a Master's Loan to study a Master's degree.
If you're an eligible postgraduate student, you can apply for a Master's Loan to cover your course fees and living costs. You can borrow up to:
The amount you'll receive is not dependent on your or your family's income. If your course lasts for more than a year, the loan will be divided equally across each year of your course.
You won't start repaying your Master's Loan until you're earning more than £21,000 a year.
The loan is available to students taking a full, standalone Master's degree, worth a minimum of 180 credits. The loan is not offered pro-rata to students taking a partial Master's ('topping up'), for example because previous study, credits or work experience have been taken into account and they are bypassing certain modules or aspects of the course.
Check your eligibility and apply for a Master's Loan at Gov.UK
The Master's Loan needs to be repaid. However, you won't start repaying until after you graduate and your income exceeds the threshold for repayments.
You do not need to pay back other student finance, for example grants and bursaries.
Generally the earliest you’ll start repaying is:
Your repayments automatically stop if either:
Repayments are only ever based on your income. Parental/partner income is not included.
There are a number of different student finance arrangements, called Plans. Many postgraduate students will be on Plan 3.
Each Plan has a different income threshold for repayments. Once you earn more than the threshold, you will start to repay your loan:
You’ll repay 6% of your income over the threshold if you’re on Plan 3.
You’ll repay 9% of your income over the threshold if you’re on Plan 1, 2 or 4.
Interest is charged on the Master's Loan, with the exact amount varying depending which Plan you're on. Currently, the rates are:
If you'd like to speak to someone, our Money Advice Service offers information and advice about all aspects of student finance. You can email the team or speak to them in-person at an Open Day.
We offer a number of ARU scholarships and bursaries to postgraduate students. Take a look at the scholarships and bursaries we offer.
Other sources of funding are available, and you may find the Alternative Guide to Postgraduate Funding useful. Anyone can access it but if you're currently studying at ARU, you can login to the Alternative Guide to Postgraduate Funding for free.
Options for funding a course include:
You may be able to apply for some additional grants, allowances and benefits to support you in your study. Some of these are income assessed.
Options include:
Full-time students may also be eligible for some welfare benefits, including Council Tax discounts. Read more about welfare benefit entitlement, and contact our Money Advice Service if you'd like further information and guidance.
We understand it’s a difficult time with the cost of living increasing, so we offer a range of discounts and free resources to our students.
Social Work funding
MA Social Work students might be eligible for funding through either a bursary or the Postgraduate Loan (see the separate tab on this page about the Loan). As a university, we're offered a limited number of bursaries, so we cannot guarantee that you will get one. Bursaries are allocated according to your interview score, which reflects current Department of Health guidance.
Social work bursaries are available if you:
Your bursary will be paid in three instalments, at the start of each semester.
To apply, download the postgraduate application form from the NHS Business Services Authority website. The website also has details of funding levels and application deadlines.
If you have any questions about social work bursaries, you can find answers on the NHS Business Services Authority website which includes links to an enquiry form and helpline.
As well as the postgraduate social work bursary, it's worth exploring other funding options that might apply to you. These include: