Postgraduate students

Masters graduates earn around 15% more - HESA report

The two key areas of expenditure that postgraduate students will have to find funding for are Tuition Fees and living costs. Government support is available for initial teacher training and PGDip Architecture students, who can be funded by Student Finance England. For students not covered by this, there are a number of sources of support available, for example professional and career development loans and scholarships through the University and other Government funding opportunities. Students paying their Tuition Fees outright and international students paying their deposits pay the University directly. Find out how to pay.

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Tuition Fees

Tuition Fees vary depending on the type of course and subject chosen. It also depends whether you qualify as Home, EU or International student and study full time or part time. You can anticipate paying somewhere between £5,500 and £15,500 for the academic year 2013/14 and can see the exact figure by completing a search on our Fees Checker.

Download LSBU's leaflet on Postgraduate Fees and Financial Support for September 2013 (PDF 159KB opens in new window)

We offer flexible payment options and discounts for students paying their Tuition Fees up-front. To find out more, visit our section on fees payment.

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Additional fees

Some courses include compulsory residentials, the cost of which is added to your total Tuition Fee. In addition some optional modules include residentials for which you will be asked to pay separately.

Your course may require you to attend other teaching sessions outside the University for which you may be required to pay an additional fee. Some courses require registration with an external body for which a fee is also payable.

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Funding options

There is no statutory funding system for the majority of postgraduate students in the UK, except for initial teacher training and full time PGDip Architecture. As a result, most postgraduate students are self funding. It is important that you do not start a postgraduate course without having first identified a package of support to cover both Tuition Fees and living costs for the duration of your course.

While there are studentships and research grants available for postgraduate courses from research councils and other charitable sources, there are no subsidised loans for postgraduates. Support is available from a variety of resources including Professional and Career Development Loans, scholarships through this University and other Government funding opportunities. Below are further details on a range of relevant research councils, educational trusts, charities and employer sponsorship. The LSBU website also has information about other external agencies offering financial help.

Research Councils

All the research councils consider funding for individual postgraduates but you will have to compete for this funding, and getting a place on a postgraduate programme does not entitle you to an award.

Below is a list of research councils with the subject areas they cover:

  • London Graduate School Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) Studentships – nine new studentships for MA Creative Writing, MA New Media, MA Digital Film: www.nlgs.ac.uk
  • Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) – includes agriculture, food, the non-medical biological sciences and related physical sciences and engineering: www.bbsrc.ac.uk
  • Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) – includes issues of importance to business, the public sector and government: www.esrc.ac.uk
  • Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) – includes engineering, information technology and manufacturing technology: www.epsrc.ac.uk
  • Medical Research Council (MRC) – includes biomedical sciences: www.mrc.ac.uk
  • Natural Environmental Research Council (NERC) – includes terrestrial life sciences and science-based archaeology: www.nerc.ac.uk
  • Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) – includes particle physics, astronomy and physical sciences: www.scitech.ac.uk

Educational Trusts and Charities

Some trusts and charities may be able to contribute to the costs of postgraduate study, but any awards are likely to be relatively small. Students should generally start applying for funding in the year before their course is due to start. The Educational Grants Directory, Awards Almanac and Grants Register and other useful publications are available in most public and academic libraries and give information on the various charities and their provision.

The Educational Grants Advisory Service (EGAS) may be able to help you locate educational trusts – phone EGAS direct on 020 7241 7459. An alternative is to use the FunderFinder database, available from our employability service.

Employer Sponsorship

Many employers are willing to sponsor their employees on either a full-time or part-time basis as part of their career development. Students who are in employment should consider asking their employers whether they can help with funding postgraduate study.

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Financial help from LSBU

Postgraduate students may be eligible for the following financial assistance from LSBU:

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Additional financial help

Postgraduate students may also be eligible for the following additional financial assistance: