Postgraduate social work students can apply for a bursary to help them with their living costs.
If you’re eligible for a bursary we’ll also pay a contribution of £4,052, in the 2019/20 academic year, towards your tuition fees.
A postgraduate social work bursary is:
- awarded to eligible students
- available to both part-time and full-time students
- not paid back
- made up of a basic grant (non means tested) and a maintenance grant (means tested so the amount you get will depend on your circumstances)
Bursary rates
For 2019/20 the basic grant rate is:
- up to £3,362.50 a year if you attend a university outside of London
- up to £3,762.50 if you attend a university within the London area
For 2019/20 the maintenance grant (means tested) rate is:
- up to £2,721 a year if you attend a university outside of London
- up to £4,201 a year if you attend a university within the London area
This is paid pro rata for eligible part-time students.
Travel costs
The social work bursary includes a contribution towards your placement travel costs. If your placement provider also contributes towards your travel costs, this will not affect your bursary entitlement.
Extra help
You may be able to apply for:
- The Adult Dependants Allowance (ADA)
- Childcare Allowance (CCA)
- Parents Learning Allowance (PLA)
- Disabled Students Allowances (DSAs)
Before you apply
View the guidance booklet.
Your guide to social work bursaries 2019/20 (PDF: 1.5MB)
When to apply
If you’re due to start or continue your studies in September or October for the 2020/21 academic year, you should send your bursary application to us as soon as you’re able to. Your bursary application will be processed by our teams.
We encourage you to send your bursary application to us by 31 August to guarantee payment for September. If you're not able to, you have until 1 November to send your bursary application to us.
How to apply
- Log into our online student portal MyFunding.
- Complete the bursary application form online.
- Print the form off and post it to us with any supporting documentation.
You can view our MyFunding guide for students (PDF 1.04MB).
Application deadlines
You have until 1 November to submit your social work bursary application and any supporting evidence we ask you to send.
What happens next
We aim to deal with your application within 20 working days from the day we receive the form and all supporting evidence.
You can track the progress of your application by logging in to your MyFunding account.