Tuition Fees Loans

Yes. Because Open College of the Arts (OCA) courses are fully accredited degree programmes, our undergraduate degrees qualify for LLE, provided you meet the eligibility criteria.

• Repayments are based on what you earn, not how much you borrow.
• You only start repaying once you have left the course, and your salary exceeds the government income threshold, paying a set percentage of your earnings above that line. Your employer deducts your repayments automatically through the UK tax system.
• If you haven’t finished repaying your loan after so many years, it will be written off, and your monthly payments will stop.

To qualify for a Tuition Fee Loan from LLE, you generally need to meet the following criteria:

• Nationality/Residency: Eligibility criteria for the LLE will track existing higher education student finance nationality and residency rules. You are a UK national or have ‘settled status’, and have lived in the UK for at least three years before the start of your course.
• Previous Study: For returning learners, the amount they can borrow will be reduced depending on the funding you have previously received to support study.
• Course Intensity: You commit to studying at a pace that meets the minimum part-time intensity requirements. 
• Age limits: You must be under the age of 60 on the first day of your course to be eligible for a tuition fee loan. Learners who are aged 60 or over at the start of their course may still qualify for maintenance support if eligible. 

Generally, no. Because OCA courses are delivered via part-time distance learning, they do not typically qualify for a Maintenance Loan (which is designed to help with day-to-day living costs).

Exceptions may be made if you have a specific disability that prevents you from attending a physical campus. You will be asked to send evidence that you are undertaking distance learning study for this reason, so you may find it helpful to have a conversation with them about this first.

Applications for LLE funding will officially open in September 2026.  

You will need to:

• Step 1: Submit an OCA enrolment form through the course information page. 
• Step 2: Create or log into your personal account on the official gov.uk Student Finance portal. Through this personal account dashboard, you will be able to monitor your remaining lifetime LLE loan balance.
• Step 3: Submit your tuition fee loan application. 

If your course with Open College of the Arts starts in September, October, or November 2026, you may apply for Student Finance England funding under the current system. 

For any course start dates from January 2027 onwards, please be aware that the new Lifelong Learning Entitlement (LLE) will be in effect. 

If you plan to start a course with OCA before January 2027 and apply under the current Student Finance system, but do not complete registration in time for the November 2026 at the latest, you will no longer be eligible for Student Finance and will need to reapply under the new LLE system. 

If you are already a student with OCA and your course started before January 2027, you can usually continue to apply for Student Finance England for the duration of your studies. If you have a break in study, you may need to switch to the LLE system.