What Bursaries are available?
The Bursary you may get depends on when you entered higher education.
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Young Students Bursary (YSB)
Young students who started a full-time course in Scotland in 2001-2002, or later, can apply for a Young Students' Bursary. We can pay a YSB of up to £2,640 instead of part of your loan so it reduces the amount of loan you need to take out. If you are eligible for YSB you may also qualify for an additional loan of up to £785.
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Students' Outside Scotland Bursary (SOSB)
Young and mature Scottish students on full-time higher education courses at UK institutions outside Scotland can apply for the Students' Outside Scotland Bursary (SOSB). We can pay up to £2,150 if your household income is £21,760 or less a year. We will pay this instead of part of the loan so it reduces the amount of loan you need to take out. If you are a young student and you receive SOSB you may also qualify for an additional loan of up to £785.
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Independent Students Bursary (ISB)
This bursary is available to all new and continuing students for the first time in 2010-2011. It is available to independent students studying in Scotland who are eligible to receive their support from us. We can pay an ISB of up to £1,000 instead of part of your loan so it reduces the amount of loan you need to take out. If you are eligible for ISB you may also qualify for an additional loan of up to £785.
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Young Students Outside Scotland Bursary (YSOB)
Young students, who entered higher education in 2002-2003 to 2005-2006 and have not had a break in study, can get the Young Students' Outside Scotland Bursary on top of any loan they are entitled to. You will receive up to £785 if your family income is £21,760 or less a year.
For more details see our YSOB section on this site.
Who can apply for the Bursary?
The YSB and YSOB is available to 'young' students. We treat most school leavers as 'young' but even if you haven't left school recently you may be eligible. For example, if you are single and under 25. You can also apply for the YSB if you have a dependant child before the start of the academic year and, you are 24 or younger on the first day of the first academic year of the course.
The ISB is available to mature students studying in Scotland.
The SOSB is available to both young and mature students studying outside Scotland.
To get the Bursary do I have to take a student loan?
No. You don't have to.
We will work out how much of a student loan you are entitled to and show this on the award notice we send you. The amount of loan you are entitled to will go down by the amount of YSB, ISB or SOSB you receive. If you decide to take out the loan at a later date, contact us.
Do I have to pay the Bursary back?
You do not have to pay it back as long as you are still entitled to receive it. However, if you withdraw from your course, you are only entitled to support for the time you were in attendance on the course. We may ask you to pay us back some of the support we gave you.
How much Bursary will I get?
The amount you can get depends on the level of your parents' income (or your husband's, wife's or partner's income if you were eligible for a Bursary and get married or move in with your partner during your course).
If your parents' or your husband's, wife's or partner's income is £34,195 or less you will receive a Bursary. We can pay the maximum YSB (£2,640), ISB (£1,000) or SOSB (£2,150) each year for incomes of £19,310 or less. If their income is more than £34,195 you will not receive the Bursary.
If you turn 25 during an academic year you will still be entitled to apply for the Young Students Bursary from the following academic year as long as you do not have a break in study of one year or more.
How do you pay the bursaries?
We pay your bursary in monthly instalments. We will pay the instalments straight into your bank account if you give us valid bank details. The award notice we send you will confirm:
- how many instalments we will pay,
- how much each instalment will be; and
- how and when we will pay you.
You must take your award notice with you when you enrol at your college or university to allow this money to be released.