Briefing for Parents and Partners

Academic excellence for business and the professionsAcademic excellence for business and the professions

Briefing for Parents and Partners

Peter SmithAssistant Dean For Recruitment


Overview• Aim: to help you support the

students in their decision-making process.

• We’d like to spend some time on:• Finance• IT job market

• Then, over to you…


How Much Will HE Cost Me?• Tuition Fees

• Living Expenses

• £9,000 (2012/13)• Increases each year with inflation

• £800-£1,000 per month living in London• £600-£700 per month outside London


Student Loan for FeesAll Home/EU students can take out a Student Loan for Fees

charged by the University • Paid to the University• Not means-tested• Loans are repayable once students have left their course

and are earning over the threshold: £21,000 p.a. • 9% of Gross above threshold of £21K

Annual salary after graduating

Repayment (per month)

£20,000 £0

£22,000 £7.50£25,000 £30£28,000 £52.50

• Interest rate currently 3.0%+ RPI (after graduation, interest rate depends on income).

• Variable, set each September


Student Loans for Maintenance• For living and study costs such as rent, food & books• Repayable after graduation• Paid in three instalments, direct to bank account

Living circumstances Maximum loan

Away from home, study in London £7,675

Away from home, study outside London £5,550

Living at parent’s home £4,375

direct.gov.uk/studentfinance


Maintenance Grant• Worth up to £3,250 per year, depending on

household income• Household income < £25,000 = full grant• Independent status, household income = £0,

full grant• Household income between £25,000 - £42,600

= partial grant• Paid in 3 instalments, directly into students’

bank accounts• Doesn’t have to be paid back


How To Apply• Visit direct.gov.uk/studentfinance• Apply from Autumn for the following academic

year• National Insurance Number (NINO)

• No NIN, no student loan• Job Centre Plus - www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk

• Apply each year of your course

http://www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk/


University Bursaries and Scholarships• Lord Mayor’s Scholarships

• Based on Academic Excellence• National Scholarship Programme

• Half Government Funded, Half University Funded

• Eligibility Based on Household Income


The Lord Mayor’s Scholarships• Awarded For Exceptional Academic Performance.

• The award extends over three or four years and is available to anyone who meets the grade criteria.

• The Scholarship is a cash-back award.• The award for Computing courses is as follows:

• A*AA - £3000 per annum• AAA (or BTEC DDD) - £2000 per annum• AAB - £1000 per annum


National Scholarship Scheme• Half government funded, half university funded• Home and EU students can be considered• Eligibility to be based on household income as assessed

by SFE• 150 scholarships on offer• Awards of £3,000 each for first year

• £1,000 of which can be paid to the student

• Priority groups will also be a factorFull list on www.city.ac.uk/2012funding

http://www.city.ac.uk/2012funding


Access to Learning Fund• Government fund, administered by

universities.• ‘Hardship fund’ for Home UK students• Additional consideration given to:

• Students with children• Students previously in care/homeless• Undergraduate final year students• Students with disabilities

• Can apply each year between September and July.


Other Funding• City University London Hardship Fund

• Replaces Access to Learning Fund when funds run out.

• Richard Reeves Foundation• Block grant given to City University London• Must have lived, worked or studied in Islington

or Camden• Must apply for all eligible funding first• Individual grants following application and

interview• Other Charities and Trusts:

• Funderfinder.co.uk


Extra Allowances• Dependents allowances• Parents Learning Allowance• Child Care Grant• Disabled students allowances (DSA)

• Needs-tested, not means-tested• Non-medical helpers• Specialist Equipment• Other expenses• Learning Success – 0207 040 0246


Survival tips at University• Check you are aware of all help available – From

the University, SLC, DWP and Local Housing Authority

• Shop around for a student bank account• Keep a spending diary and make a budget• Attend money management workshops• Check out the Careers Service for part-time work

advice if your course permits


More Information• Directgov:

direct.gov.uk/studentfinance• Online Student Calculator:

www.studentcalculator.org.uk/• Student Centre, City University:

www.city.ac.uk/studentcentre• Additional Questions:

[email protected]

http://www.direct.gov.uk/studentfinance

http://www.studentcalculator.org.uk/

http://www.city.ac.uk/studentcentre

mailto:[email protected]


Current IT Job Market• Over 1m IT workers in the UK

• half in the IT industry, half embedded in other industries.

• Inter-quartile range of advertised IT salaries is £33-61K per year, median is £43K (jobstats.co.uk, 29/3/10).• Employers place emphasis on “soft” skills such as

business awareness as much as technical skills.• IT Professionals are “professional problem-

solvers”• Growth in demand for higher-level skills, decline

in the lower-skilled sectors of the IT market.• Off-shoring is a factor, but not a threat.

• Some IT job losses, but secondary effect of recession.• Finance, retail and manufacturing worst hit.


www.jobstats.co.uk• Charts advertised IT

job vacancies.• However – this

denotes a recruitment downturn, NOT job losses

• Employees are staying in their jobs , hoping to ride out the recession

• Companies are hiring cautiously for the same reason.


Consider the Fundamentals…• Digital Economy comprises ~8% of GDP

• Larger than agriculture and transport combined• It is where growth is expected, and makes other

industries effective.• Over 50% of UK GVA in in IT-intensive

industries• E.g. finance, creative industries, high-value

manufacturing…• Effective IT key to UK competitiveness• Government Commitment To IT – New

School Initiative

Academic excellence for business and the professions

Return on Investment?

• IT has the highest employment of any STEM subject after 6 months.

• Over the coming years 141,000 new IT professionals are needed per year.

• But they must be of suitable quality.


Some Advice…• Universities have changed

dramatically• Much of your experience may not be valid!• No degree is a “meal ticket” - competitive job

market• Employers look for more than paper qualifications

• The applicant has to take the course….• Motivation/interest is everything! HE not for all…• Any other reason is inviting drop-out…

• We can only deal with applicants themselves• There are data protection issues• It’s the applicant who needs to convince us!• This counts double in clearing/confirmation

Documents

Briefing for Parents and Partners