Doctoral Loan for Postgraduate Research

This is an excellent opportunity for UK & EU students who wish to undertake Postgraduate Research at Northumbria University. The UK Government will provide a Doctoral Loan to help fund your course fees and living costs.

Doctoral Loan to Fund Your Postgraduate Research

This information is for UK and EU students who wish to apply to undertake Postgraduate Research, such as a PhD. Carefully check eligibility as terms and conditions apply.

This is an excellent opportunity for students who wish to undertake Postgraduate Research at Northumbria University. The UK Government will provide a Doctoral Loan to help fund your course fees and living costs.

The amount you may be able to apply for will depend on when you started your course:

You have to repay your Doctoral Loan at the same time as any other student loans you have. You’ll be charged interest from the day you get the first payment. Your loan is paid directly into your UK bank account.

The following information has been provided by the Government website, which provides step-by-step information about the loan and the application process. You can find all the information here.

Personal Eligibility

You won’t be able to get a Doctoral Loan if:

You're over the age of 60 on the first day of the first academic year of your course.
You’re already getting payments from student finance for another course that you’re studying.
You have received a Doctoral Loan before - (unless you left your course due to illness, bereavement or another serious personal reason).
You already have a PhD, or a qualification that’s equivalent or higher.
You’re behind in repayments for any previous loans from the Student Loans Company.

Your Nationality or Residency Status

You can get the Doctoral Loan if all of the following apply:
You’re a UK or EU national, or have ‘settled status’, so there are no restrictions on how long you can stay.
You normally live in England, and didn’t move there just to study.
You’ve been living in the UK, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man for 3 years before starting your course.

You may also be eligible if you’re an EU national and all the following apply:

You’re living in England on the first day of the first year of your course.
You’ve normally lived in the European Economic Area or Switzerland for the past 3 years (this is also known as being ‘ordinarily resident’).
You’ll be studying at a university or college in England.

You could also be eligible if you’re:

The child of a Swiss national.
The child of a Turkish worker.
A refugee or a relative of one.
An EEA or Swiss migrant worker, or a relative of one.
Under humanitarian protection or a relative of someone who has been granted it.
18 or over and have lived in the UK for at least 20 years or at least half your life.

Further Information

Click here to find out more information about Tuition Fees for Postgraduate Research.
Find information on your fee liability, should you exit your course early here.
Find information on how to pay your fee click here. .
If you are a current Northumbria student, and would like to review fees from previous years please visit MyNorthumbria.
If you have any further queries about fees and funding, and you would like to speak to an adviser, drop-in to Student Central, Library Building, City Campus West. You can also contact us via email, or call 0191 227 4127.