There are very few courses at postgraduate level that automatically come with a guarantee of funding, and it is common for students to be self-financing, achieving this through a combination of loans, overdrafts and part-time work.
Possible sources of funding include:
Public funding bodies
The Student Awards Agency for Scotland offers awards for certain courses on a quota system, while teacher training attracts a mandatory award. See www.student-support-saas.gov.uk or contact the Careers Service for further information. Students from England and Wales should contact their Local Education Authority to check if any funding for postgraduate study is available and the Department for Employment and Learning in Northern Ireland provides funding for Northern Ireland domiciled students and students from the rest of the UK and the EEA who wish to study in Northern Ireland. Local Education Authorities and Library Boards can also be contacted about funding for postgraduate study.
The Research Councils (including the Arts and Humanities Research Council for arts and social science students) award studentships to individual postgraduates. As with all postgraduate funding, it is necessary to obtain a place on a course prior to applying for funding and competition is great. Therefore, the earlier you can apply, the better your chances of success.
Other options
For comprehensive information on funding see www.prospects.ac.uk. You can also contact the Careers Development Centre for information and advice on how to use Funderfinder - a searchable database of sources of funding.
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