Students who are parents and/or carers
University Centre South Devon is committed to ensuring students who are parents and/or carers can access and succeed in their studies. We will support you from your first enquiry throughout your studies to graduation and into employment.
Pre-entry
Our Admissions team can support parents and/or carers to complete their university application. We give you one-to-one support to understand the application process and write your personal statement.
You might be a mature student (aged 21 or above at the start of your course) or have not been in formal education for a while. Don’t worry, our Admissions team can talk to you about how your previous qualifications and experience can be considered as part of a contextual offer, or how you can up-skill by taking an Access to HE course to gain the entry qualifications.
Our Step up to HE course is a short online course to help you gain confidence in study and computer skills before you start your degree. It is particularly useful for those who have been out of education for a while or just want to brush up on their academic writing.
Funding
You will never be expected to pay for your tuition immediately. Instead, your tuition is covered by a fee loan, which is paid directly to University Centre South Devon on your behalf by Student Finance England.
You could be eligible for extra support from Student Finance England for support with childcare. The Childcare Grant is for full-time students will children under 15, or under 17 if they have special educational needs. You may be eligible for help with your learning costs if you are a full-time student with children. This is called Parents’ Learning Allowance.
You may be entitled to the UCSD Outreach Bursary which entitles you to a £1000 bursary package which includes the £200 bursary for all full-time/part-time, first year university students. To be eligible for this package, you must have a household income of under £25,000.
The UCSD Hardship Fund provides discretionary financial assistance to help you to access and remain in higher education.
Childcare
There is childcare provision on the South Devon College campus which is managed independently by Mama Bear’s Day Nursery. Spaces are limited so you would need to apply early to get a place for your child.
We endeavour to support students who are parents, by organising timetables that allow time for you do the school run before coming to lessons. However, this differs for each programme and will depend on your commute, please speak to the Programme Leader for more details, contact [email protected]
Pregnancy
The University is committed to supporting you appropriately through pregnancy and maternity/paternity, although the level of support that can be provided will very much depend on the nature and structure of your course of study, as well as your individual circumstances.
If you are a current student, you can speak to your personal tutor for guidance and support. Please see the UCSD policy for Supporting Pregnant Students and Students with Very Young Children.
Wellbeing
During your time as a student, the UCSD Wellbeing team will be on hand to support you with any wellbeing concerns. They have considerable experience of supporting students who are parents and/or carers, and will help you to navigate any challenges you might experience.
Student support
The Student Support Hub can help you to succeed in your studies by providing information, advice and guidance related to study skills, disability, wellbeing and employability.