Funding and financial support

As an asylum seeker in the UK, you are not eligible for government funding, so you will receive: 

• £20,780 as a stipend for living costs
• full funding for tuition fees (at ‘home fee level’), which will be paid directly to the University.  

What does the scholarship stipend cover? 

The scholarship only covers your costs and does not provide financial or practical support for family members and other dependents (for example, no accommodation costs will be provided for anyone other than the successful scholarship applicant).  

If you have asylum seeker status and you receive Home Office support, you may be more secure remaining on Home Office support rather than taking the scholarship funding as you may lose access to Home Office accommodation and Legal Aid. In the short term, the loss of this government support may be manageable but could cause challenges once you finish your studies. 

Further guidance is available from Student Action for Refugees

If you choose to stay on asylum support, Education Beyond Borders cannot legally provide you with any living costs. However, you can receive funding from Education Beyond Borders towards your tuition fees plus study and travel costs only. This only applies if you are based in Edinburgh or within a commutable distance.

It is important to think this through carefully before applying for this scholarship. 

If you are eligible for UK government funding, for example you hold refugee status, you are expected to apply for the government funding and the scholarship will cover all remaining costs to fund your studies and living costs.

Tuition fees 

You must apply for government postgraduate funding for your tuition fees and we will pay the difference of what your tuition fees costs (home fee level) directly to the university. 

How much of your tuition is covered by the scholarship is dependent on where you usually reside.

• Scotland: You are eligible for up to £7,000 towards tuition fees which is paid directly to the University by SAAS and we pay the rest of your tuition fees, also directly to the University.   
• England: We will pay your tuition fees in full directly to the University.   
• Wales: This is currently under review.
• Northern Ireland: This is currently under review.

Fees for taught Masters

Living costs  

You must apply for government funding for living costs.

Education Beyond Borders will provide an additional stipend up to a maximum of £20,780 for your living costs. The amount you receive from us depends on what you receive from government funding for living costs.  

• If you usually live in Scotland, you are eligible for up to £6,900 from SAAS towards living costs, and you will receive up to £13,880 from Education Beyond Borders.  
• If you usually live in England/Wales/Northern Ireland, you are eligible for varying levels of funding, and we will provide additional funding up to a value of £20,780. For example, if you live in England, you are eligible for up to £7,922, and you would receive up to £6,766 of Education Beyond Borders Postgraduate Scholarship funding.  
• If you are eligible but decide not to apply for a loan, you must provide proof that you can cover the rest of your tuition fees and living expenses.
• If you are not eligible for a loan, we require an official confirmation letter as evidence. If this is the case, you will be considered for full funding. 

What does the scholarship stipend cover? 

The stipend, along with any student finance you receive, will allow a good standard of living, covering costs for accommodation, food, bills, travel and study costs in Edinburgh.

The scholarship only covers costs for individuals and does not provide financial or practical support for family members and other dependents. This includes support for living or accommodation costs for anyone other than the successful applicant.  

How will the scholarship be distributed? 

We will provide information about the scholarship's distribution in a 'payment schedule', which will be issued once we have confirmed that you have met the conditions for your degree course entry.

UK Government student financial support is available to those who meet the nationality and residency criteria set by the government body that distributes the funds.  

The funds partially cover tuition fees and living costs to support students in their studies, and they are often called a ‘student loan’.  

Different government bodies distribute funding in specific UK regions (Scotland, England, Wales, and Northern Ireland).

Generally, people who are eligible for a student loans in the UK are those who:

• hold immigration status (or are dependant) of ‘Refugee’ (including ‘Leave to Remain’), or
• have permission to remain under one of the eligible resettlement schemes, or
• have been granted ‘Humanitarian Protection’.

We advise you to do your own research to check your own individual eligibility.

While student loans are funding that you will eventually have to pay back, they work differently from a bank loan.  

You will only start repaying this loan to the regional student loans company when your income is over a certain amount (the ‘threshold’ amount) at some point after completing your degree.  

When you start earning the threshold amount (currently £32,745 in Scotland), the loan payment is deducted monthly from your pay slip.

The amount you pay back monthly depends on which company you have taken the loan from, how much you borrowed and how much you earn.  

All scholarship applicants who are eligible for government funding must apply for and receive all UK financial support available to them. This will usually be a loan for part of their tuition fees and living costs.  

If you are not eligible to apply for student finance, you must provide evidence of this.  

To prevent any delays, we advise that you apply for your study loan as soon as you have received an offer from the University of Edinburgh. 

The funding you can apply for depends on the region (Scotland, England, Northern Ireland, Wales) where you usually live.  

It is your responsibility to apply for eligible funding. If you have any questions about what you are entitled to, please get in touch with the relevant funding body. 

Funding bodies 

The below figures are an example based on the funding issued in the 2025/26 academic year, and funding amounts may differ in 2026/27. It is your responsibility to ensure you have the most up-to-date information at the time of your application.

We recognise that some students may not wish to take out a loan for religious or personal reasons, such as Sharia/faith-based beliefs. 

The University of Edinburgh has been provided with this guidance from the UK Fatwa Council, which advises why student loans are permissible in these circumstances and is on their website.

UK Fatwa Council