Tuition Fees
While on placement, you still must pay course fees. These fees vary depending on when you started your course.
In the academic year 2025/26 the fee for all undergraduate students completing any part of their placement year in the UK in 2025/2026 is £1,905
The fee for all undergraduate students completing their whole placement year outside the UK in 2025/2026 is £1430.00
You will need to apply for a Tuition Fee Loan in the usual way through Student Finance:
www.gov.uk/student-finance.
Maintenance Loans
If you will be undertaking a placement, if eligible, you can apply to Student Finance England for a reduced rate maintenance loan. This reduced rate maintenance loan will not take your household income into account - the loan is non-means-tested - and varies according to where you will live during the placement.
The amounts for the 2025-2026 academic year are:
- £2,396 if living at home
- £3,194 if living away from home and outside of London
- £4,485 if living in London
Students with children or an adult dependant, or students with Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA), are not usually eligible for this support when in receipt of a reduced rate maintenance loan.
Students undertaking certain specified unpaid placements may be eligible for full funding, providing the placement meets one of the following criteria. These are:
- Unpaid service in a hospital or in a public health service laboratory or with a clinical commissioning group in the UK
- Unpaid service with a local authority in the UK acting in the exercise of its functions relating to the care of children and young persons, health or welfare, or with a voluntary organisation providing facilities or carrying out activities of a like nature in the UK
- Unpaid service with a local authority acting in the exercise of public health functions in the UK
- Unpaid service in the prison or probation and aftercare service in the UK
- Unpaid research in a UK institution or, in the case of a student attending an overseas institution as a part of their course in an overseas institution
- Unpaid service with a Special Health Authority, the NHS Commissioning Board, the National Institute for Care and Excellence, the Health and Social Care Information Centre, a Local Health Board, a Health Board or a Special Health Board in Scotland, or a Health and Social Services Board in Northern Ireland
- Unpaid service in the UK Parliament
Funding for students with dependants while on placement
Students with children or an adult dependant are not eligible for grants for their dependants during their placement year – unless they are on one of the placements as specified as ‘unpaid service’ – see above for details.
Students with children may be able to get Universal Credit during their placement year. To qualify lone parents must be working 16 hours per week or more. If you are part of a couple, you must both be working 16 hours per week or more unless one of you is incapacitated. Further details on Universal Credit for students and how to claim can be found by accessing the following:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/universal-credit-and-students
Disabled Students' Allowance (DSA)
During placement years, you are not normally eligible for DSA. This means it is very important that you ensure you have all the necessary equipment you require prior to starting a placement year. You may be eligible for Access to Work and should speak to your employer about this.
Council Tax
You are still regarded as a full-time student even when on placement. This means you are exempt from Council Tax. Further details regrading Council Tax and how to request an exemption can be found at:
https://liveplymouthac.sharepoint.com/sites/x70/SitePages/Council-tax.aspx?web=1
Income Tax
Everyone, including students on placement, must pay income tax once their income exceeds the earnings threshold.
For 2025/26, the threshold is £12,570. Some employers may pay you a bursary or other allowance which is free of income tax.