Career Development Loan
If you want to take a vocational course, to help your career or to find work, but you do not have the funds to pay for it you may be eligible for a Professional and Career Development Loan. Whether it’s a postgraduate course like an MSc or MA or technician level training in something like plumbing, Professional and Career Development Loans are available for quite a wide range of courses.
To be considered for a Professional Career Development Loan you must:
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Be aged 18 or over
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Have been living in the UK for at least 3 years
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Have unlimited right to remain in the UK
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Intend to work in the European Union (EU) or in Iceland, Norway or Liechtenstein once you finish your course
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Not have reasonable or adequate access to funds to pay for the course yourself
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Be studying full or part-time in an approved vocational course
With a Career Development Loan you can borrow between £300 and £10,000 no repayments are due on this until you finish the course. Some lenders offer flexible repayment terms of 1 to 5 years from when you finish your course.
Courses that qualify you for a Career Development Loan must:
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Only last up to 2 years, or 3 years if they include 1 year of work experience
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Be provided by an organisation on the Professional Career and Development Loan Register
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Help with your career – but they do not have to lead to a qualification
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You should apply for a Career Development loan up to three months before you intended course starts so that the lender can process your application in time.
One month after you finish the course you have to begin making repayments on the loan. If you decide to leave the course early or you finish it sooner than expected you will be expected to start making repayments one month from the date you left.
Things to consider
As taking out any kind of loan is a big decision you should think if you have any other options before you commit to one. If you have any savings it might be beneficial to use these instead, as any interest you earn from your savings may be less than the interest you are charged on your loan.
To be allowed to take out this type of loan, you cannot have any savings over £16,000. When you take out a Career Development Loan you also have to sign a legally binding agreement with the bank stating that you need the loan for course fees or living expenses.