Hyslop announces new loans for postgraduates

The Scottish government has announced plans to expand the postgraduate loan system as part of its economic recovery plan.

Postgraduates who currently benefit from the Career Development Loan (CDL) scheme, receive between £300 and £8000 a year. At present the number of those being rewarded under the CDL scheme at the moment is 1200. Under the pilot announced last week, this will rise to 3600.

In addition, education secretary Fiona Hyslop has suggested upgrading the upper limit to £10,000 annually, helping students further cover costs.

Mrs Hyslop said: “Helping individuals and Scotland’s businesses during the current economic downturn lies at the heart of our economic recovery plan. Key to that recovery is ensuring that individuals are supported to continue to develop their skills so that they can get into work, stay in work and contribute to Scotland's future economic success.”

As it stands today, the loan is designed to cover all book costs and up to 80 per cent of the course fees, as well as related expenses such as travelling and childcare. Living costs can also be considered for those who do not work more than 30 hours a week.

The students eligible for the new loans are those who undertake part-time courses within the government’s economic priority sectors, such as energy, business, life sciences and tourism.

The pilot loans scheme will run throughout the current economic downturn and aims to assess the feasibility and benefits of eventually offering similar funding for postgraduate students outside of the specified priority areas.

Dr Janet Lowe, chair of the Scottish funding council’s skills committee, said: "The skills committee welcomes Mrs Hyslop’s news on the provision of more financial support for both part-time and full-time postgraduate students. This will extend opportunities for people to develop advanced skills and knowledge that will contribute to the future recovery and success of Scotland’s economy."

Mrs Hyslop’s office confirmed to The Journal that Scottish universities were involved in developing the scheme, and that “a considerable amount of discussion had taken place with the universities and other stakeholders.”

Universities have been invited to bid for funding through a pilot scheme which, in its first year, will provide support for around 150 Scottish part-time postgraduates.

Invitations for applications are to be sent to all Scottish universities, with a submission deadline set at the end of April. Applications have to prove a market demand for the course in question, and government priority will be given to new and innovative courses.

The lending scheme is to be supported by retail banks such as Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland and the Cooperative Bank.

Earlier last week Mrs Hyslop admitted that teaching in Scottish universities is underfunded following intense pressure from Edinburgh University Students' Association (EUSA).

Adam Ramsay, outgoing EUSA president, told The Journal that he was “delighted that after months of EUSA campaigning, the Scottish government has finally admitted universities are under-funded.”

Mr Ramsay stressed that it is crucial for the government to follow through on this point, allowing teaching to reach the standards students deserve.