Are you an OU student studying in Scotland? Many regard the Scottish fees and funding regime with a green eye of jealousy, but perhaps not is all quite as rosy as it seems?
There is a still a long way to go to ensure a student financial system where part-time students have access to the same allowances, benefits and loans as their full-time peers.
What’s more, the threshold for the Part-Time Fee Grant hasn’t altered since its introduction in 2013, and we all know that inflation has seriously been on the rise since then.
So, what can I do as one student? Use your voice wisely!
The Scottish government is holding an online consultation – closing on Thursday, 9 October – asking for students' views on how HE is funded, and more specifically about the experience of students who are part-time, disabled or who have caring or parenting responsibilities. That said, the questions mainly relate to funding, with a section on disability which you can mark as N/A if this does not apply to you.
Have your say – take part in this survey
A breakdown of the questions
There are some important topics here!
- Questions 1, 2, 4, 5 relate to your study level and mode, and whether you feel that financial support for part-time and distance learning study needs to be simplified.
- Questions 6–14 relate to financial support and funding. This includes multiple questions on the Part-Time Fee Grant (PTFG), including whether £25K is a suitable threshold for access to it.
- Questions 3, 15–25 relate to health and disability, including the suggestion that allowances could be condensed into a single DSA allowance limit to support students.