Tuition fee and maintenance loans
You can apply for a tuition fee loan of up to £9,250 to cover your teacher training, so you don’t need to pay course fees upfront. You can also apply for a maintenance loan of up to £12,382 to help with living costs.
You can still apply for a tuition fee and a maintenance loan if you already have a student loan, and regardless of whether you get a bursary or scholarship.
You will only have to make loan repayments once you’re earning. Your repayments will not increase if you already have a student loan and take an additional loan for teacher training.
Use the student finance calculator on GOV.UK to find out how much you can get.
Bursaries and scholarships
You may be eligible for a bursary or scholarship when training to teach. These are tax-free amounts of money you receive to train in certain subjects. You don’t need to pay them back.
You’ll need a first, 2:1, 2:2 degree or a PhD or Master’s to be eligible for a bursary, as well as meeting the bursary scheme’s individual terms and conditions. Get further guidance on your eligibility for bursaries.
For a scholarship, each professional scholarship body sets its own criteria. These bodies include the Royal Society of Chemistry (chemistry), BCS The Chartered Institute for IT (computing), Mathematics Teacher Training Scholarship (maths) and the Institute of Physics (physics).
Check which subjects have bursaries and scholarships
Bursaries and scholarships are only available for the subjects listed below. You cannot receive both a bursary and a scholarship.
| Subject | Bursary | Scholarship |
|---|---|---|
| Chemistry | £24,000 | £26,000 |
| Computing | £24,000 | £26,000 |
| Maths | £24,000 | £26,000 |
| Physics | £24,000 | £26,000 |
| Classics | £10,000 | N/A |
| Languages | £10,000 | N/A |
| Biology | £7,000 | N/A |
Non-graduate bursaries
If you’re a final year undergraduate student, you may be eligible for a training bursary of £9,000. The bursary is available if you’re studying a Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) course in secondary maths or physics, or you’re studying an opt-in QTS course in secondary undergraduate computing, languages, mathematics or physics.
There are Troops to Teachers tax-free bursaries of £40,000 for former military personel undertaking undergraduate degrees leading to QTS in England. You may be eligible for the bursary if you train to teach secondary biology, physics, chemistry, computing, maths or modern foreign languages.
If you're unsure about whether you qualify for a bursary or scholarship you can chat to us.
Extra financial support for parents and carers
You may be able to get extra financial support if you have children or other caring responsibilities.
Extra financial support for students with disabilities
If you have additional needs due to a mental health condition, long-term illness or disability you can apply for Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA).
Applying for funding if you come from outside England
If you live outside England you may still be eligible for funding to train to teach via:
If you live in Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland you’ll need to contact your country’s student finance body.
Contact the education authority if you live in the Channel Islands (Jersey and Guernsey) or on the Isle of Man.
If you are an applicant from outside the UK, read our guidance on financial help for international applicants to check:
- the types of financial help available
- whether you meet the eligibility requirements
If you come from outside England, you can get advice about training to be a teacher and find out more about coming to train in England.
