There are two main costs you will incur when you are studying. These are the costs of your tuition fess and your living costs. These are funded by a combination of loans, grants and bursaries which are dependant on your household income.

Applying online is the quickest and easiest way and this way you can track the progress of your application by logging into your student finance account. To apply online just go to the DirectGov website and register for a student finance account. Once you have registered for an account you can log in and complete the online form.

If you prefer to use a paper application form you can download the form from the DirectGov website

Once you have registered for an account you can log in and complete the online form.

You will have to send in any evidence to support your applications such as evidence of your household income or your identity.

Once you have been assessed you will receive a loan declaration form which you should sign and return to confirm you're happy with the finance you are applying for. This declaration form is one of the pages of the correspondence you will receive from your Student Finance authority which details your funding. The Student Finance Breakdown confirms the amount of loan you are eligible to apply for and how much grant if any you are eligible for. The Payment Timetable details how and when these will be paid. There are also some frequently asked questions and answers with paperwork.

NB - The last couple of pages are the pages that you need to sign and return to the SLC for your funds to be released after enrolment.

Don't delay in returning this document as you will not receive any funding until you do so.
It may be that you have not been assessed for the full amount of your loan and you are waiting to be assessed for the means tested part of your loan, even if you are don't delay returning your declaration.

Your application will be processed by your Student Finance authority; this is dependant on where you normally live:

Student Finance England
Student Finance Northern Ireland
Student Finance Wales
Students Awards Agency for Scotland

You should apply for your funding before you start University.
You can apply as soon as you apply for your course, don't wait until you have been offered a place or got your results. The dates for application for 2011/12 are shown in the table below. You can still apply after the closing date but if you do you may not receive your loan at the start of term.

	You can apply from	You should apply by
New students	16 March 2011	31 May 2011
Returning students	14 February 2011	30 June 2011

Once you have been assessed by your Student Finance authority you will receive a Student Finance Breakdown and Payment Timetable confirming the amount of loan you are eligible for and have requested. These documents also tell you if you are eligible for a grant and if so how much and when they will be paid to you.

Please ensure you check your account details and notify the SLC immediately if your account details are incorrect. You can log into your student finance account to trace the progress of your application and to check whether Student Finance are waiting for any further information from you.

You should be aware however, that the date you receive your first loan instalment may differ from that detailed on your Payment Timetable. The dates are defaulted to the first day of each term. Please ensure you check your account details and notify the SLC immediately if your account details are incorrect.

The University must confirm your enrolment with the Student Loans Company before they will pay the first instalment of your loan. Please note that we can only do this if the SLC have requested this. SLC issue the University with data file containing the names of these students who they expect to enrol at MMU. Once you have enrolled online this is matched to your record in the SLC file and sent electronically to the SLC who will then release your payment.

You should get your loan at the start of term if your application has been processed, you have returned your signed loan declaration form and you have enrolled.

Confirmation of your enrolment is key to deciding when you will receive your loan payments. The following stages lead to your confirmation:

Stage 1
You enrol with the University (new students need to collect their ID card and have it swiped, otherwise we cannot provide confirmation to SLC)

Stage 2
The SL contact us to request that we confirm your enrolment electronically.

Stage 3
We provide confirmation to SLC (this is always within 24 hours of the request)
Once confirmation is given, payment should be made within 3 to 4 days

NB: Your Payment Timetable may state that you should hand your letter to us to be scanned. We confirm your enrolment electronically as detailed above not by scanning the letter.

Your loan is paid by Bacs into your bank account. Please ensure you notify the SLC if you change your account or if your account details are incorrect on your Payment Timetable.

In order to determine what the delay might be it may be helpful to answer the following questions.

• Have you enrolled?
• Have you received your Student Finance Breakdown from your Student Finance authority?
• Does your Student Finance Breakdown have MMU as your University?
• Have you signed and returned your declaration form?
• Have you checked your online student finance account to see whether you have to submit other information?
• Are you a new student? - Have you collected your ID card and had it swiped?

If you answered yes to all of these questions then you should contact the Student Information Point or the Student Financial Support team for further assistance.

If you have enrolled and collected your ID card and had it swiped, we will have confirmed your enrolment with SLC if they have requested it. The following stages must take place for you to get you loan.

Stage 1
You enrol with the University (new students need to collect their ID card and have it swiped, otherwise we cannot provide confirmation to SLC)

Stage 2
The SL contact us to request that we confirm your enrolment electronically.

Stage 3
We provide confirmation to SLC (this is always within 24 hours of the request) Once confirmation is given, payment should be made within 3 to 4 days

If you have answered yes to all the questions under 'I haven't received my loan yet', you should contact the Student Financial Support team or the All Saints SIP so that we can assist you further. It may be that we have not received a request from the SLC to confirm your enrolment, we will be able to help you identify the issue.

If your student loan is late and you do not have access to any other funds you may be eligible for a short-term emergency hardship loan. Click on the flow chart to see if you are eligible. Or contact the Student Financial Support team.

Then contact your Student Information Point or the Student Financial Support team if you have any questions?

Useful Contacts:

Student Finance England	www.direct.gov.uk/studentfinance Telephone 0845 300 50 90
Student Finance Northern Ireland	www.studentfinanceni.co.uk Telephone 0845 600 0662
Student Finance Wales	www.studentfinancewales.co.uk Telephone 0845 602 8845
Student Awards Agency for Scotland	www.student-support-saas.gov.uk Telephone 0300 555 0505

Student Information Points

All Saints SIP	0161 247 6888  sip@mmu.ac.uk
Business School	0161 247 2838 business@mmu.ac.uk
MMU Cheshire	0161 247 5135/0161 247 5272 studentlife.cheshire@mmu.ac.uk
Art & Design and Humanities, Law & Social Science Faculties	0161 247 1751 sipsouth@mmu.ac.uk
John Dalton SIP (Faculty of Science & Engineering)	0161 247 1779 sipnorth@mmu.ac.uk

Student Life Offices:

Faculty of Health,Psychology & Social Care. (Didbsury)	0161 247 2023 studentlifedidsbury@mmu.ac.uk
Faculty of Health, Psychology & Social Care. (Elizabeth Gaskell)	0161 247 2465 studentlifegaskell@mmu.ac.uk
Hollings Faculty	0161 247 2603 studentlifehollings@mmu.ac.uk

Student Financial Support Team studentfinance@mmu.ac.uk
0161 247 3626/1045