Healthcare students

Additional funding is available to students studying certain healthcare courses.

Additional funding is available for students studying the following healthcare undergraduate degree courses:

  • Nursing (Adult, Children’s, Learning Disabilities and Mental Health)
  • Midwifery
  • Allied Health Professionals (Occupational Therapy, Paramedic Sciences, Physiotherapy, Diagnostic Radiography, Radiotherapy and Oncology).

Some UWE Bristol’s courses are longer than 30 weeks each year. Depending on the course and year of study, you could receive an additional means-tested £116 per extra week (or £77 if you live with your parents during your studies).

Student smiling at her friend

NHS Learning Support Fund

Pre-registration healthcare students who want to study a Nursing, Midwifery or allied health professions course (as listed above), and who are eligible for a maintenance and tuition fee loan from Student Finance, can receive additional non-means tested, non-repayable grants from the NHS. These include:

  • NHS training grant of £5,000 (with up to an extra £1,000 specialist subject payment for those on specified courses)
  • parental support of £2,000 (for students with children under 15 or 17 if registered with special educational needs)
  • travel and dual accommodation – a reimbursement of excess costs incurred on practice placement for travel and temporary accommodation costs
  • a means-tested Exceptional Support Fund of up to £3,000 (for students in exceptional hardship, this is subject to eligibility and assessment).

This additional funding is not available to students doing the BSc Social Work, BSc Sports Rehabilitation, BSc Optometry or the Health Professions Foundation programme during the foundation year. This fund is not available to international or offshore students.

Student Finance England funded students

If you already hold a HE qualification, or have previously studied at HE level, this will not prevent you from getting full funding to do a pre-registration Nursing, Midwifery or allied health professions course. You can get full funding to do one of these courses as a second degree.

Full funding for a second degree does not apply to the following courses (ELQ – Equivalent or Lower Qualification rules will apply):

  • Paramedic Science
  • Sports Rehabilitation
  • Optometry
  • Foundation Programme Health Professions.

If you are planning to study Social Work as a second degree, see ELQ (Equivalent or Lower Qualification).

Student Finance Wales funded students

For students funded by Student Finance Wales, the rules on previous study and ELQ (Equivalent or Lower Qualification) will apply to all healthcare courses.