What's the buzz about Clearing? Six Money B's to help.

 

Be Wise – Understand what Clearing is all about.

Clearing is a very exciting period in the academic calendar. Exam result can throw a sudden change of plan into the mix and a bit of quick thinking is required.

Yet so many students just hope it won’t happen and don’t want to think about it. It is really important to consider what you would do if results day means a change of plan. It’s not failing it is just shifting stance and that is fine.

Sometimes between picking courses and results day you have changed your mind anyway about second and third choices, or perhaps the institution has changed their mind about you – for better or worse. You may have received offers from universities but no longer want to accept them and want to look elsewhere – that’s what Clearing is for.

It’s okay – it’s exciting but it’s good to have thought about where else you might want to study, have thought about the financial impact and have planned for those changes.

Clearing might turn out to be the best day ever when you look back – so embrace it.

Be prepared – it’s the early bird that catches the worm

Hopefully once you have learnt how Clearing and Adjustment works you will have a plan in mind for results day.

Universities plan their own strategies well in advance and have an army of staff on hand to deal with their customer queries and help with new offers and to hopefully win your custom.

The universities are eager to fill their courses so as the day goes by fewer places will be in the Clearing pool. It’s makes sense to act as swiftly as possible, though ensure you are comfortable with your decision. Planning ahead will help your swift response not turn into a panic.

Be an empowered consumer

Remember you are a customer of the universities. On results day, unless the university is fortunate to have filled all its courses, they will be waiting and hoping for your call.

The universities open their Clearing Lines early and keep them running until they have filled all the spaces they possibly can. It is a stressful time for the university staff dealing with all the enquiries and changes of circumstances that results day brings. The staff usually offer a responsive service to win your custom so don’t phone the Helpline thinking they are doing you a favour. This flux works both ways – they want you just as much as you want them and they are likely to be flexible on entry requirements.

As a potential customer of the university check out their terms and conditions – usually these are usually found on the website as for example

Student Regulations/University Regulation/General Regulations......

These may be dull but are very important to know about as the intuitions will follow these rules when dealing with their students.

Also see if your university has Student Charter or other form of customer service agreement.

Get to know what support services the university offers such as well-being, advice, careers, help for disabled students etc.

Understand your consumer rights by looking what the Competition and Market Authority advice for undergraduates. 

Be on top - Keep the funder informed of changes of circumstance

This seems obvious but when you are busy it’s easy to forget. If you change university, course etc then the funder (SFE, SAAS, SFW, SFNI) needs to know.

Be informed -Check out your universities of choice on OfS

The Office For Students work to ensure universities are reaching out to all potential students. Each Higher Education Institution submits an agreement about how they achieve this every year.

Read the plans from universities of choice – there may be details of extra financial help that you may be eligible for.

Be flexible on accommodation

Changing university in August can mean that your accommodation plans have to change too. Not all universities will have accommodation for all their first year students. Those who accept a place through Clearing may find this an additional challenge.

Again universities are used to this process happening year on year and will provide guidance. You may have to consider living in Private Rented instead of Halls. You may have to start looking for a place at short notice. Remember that it won’t just be you and the university may put you in touch with other students in the same situation. They may have lists of private rented accommodation providers or of shared houses with a room available.  Also prospective students often use social media to find others to share with. So be ready to respond to these options.

Signing your accommodation contract may seem a big commitment and it is. Whether the accommodation provider is a university, private halls, landlord’s agent or private landlord, you will be signing a legal tenancy agreement.

It will be legally binding for the number of weeks outlined and is likely to require the student and a guarantor to sign it.

Know what you are signing for – the number of weeks (these can vary widely 42,44,52 for example); what is the deposit; are there administration fees; what is included in the rent; how many instalments & when are they paid; what are the rules for terminating the contract......

Note that for halls of residence the instalments may not be equal. For example it is possible for the institution to front load the plan so that you pay more in the first term. This can be tough to budget for but it’s best to be prepared.

If you are looking at private accommodation, then many universities offer services to check the tenancy agreement before you sign – worth doing to be safe.

You do not have to go into halls and if you chose private rented then understand your rights fully. Look on www.shelter.org.uk and www.unipol.org.uk for helpful information. Also learn about Tenancy Deposit Schemes

Remember if you are a student choosing to live at in the parental home consider how you might contribute to the household bills from your student finance. Child benefit payments will come to an end for those who had parental responsibility for you.

This video on Fresher’s Accommodation may help you think about where to live.

Is Gimme a Tuition Fee Discount a pointless debate?

Levitate Student has written a number of times about our dislike for tuition fee discounts and fee waivers. (See for example Money Smoke and Mirrors )

Fortunately, fee waivers are less common than they were a few years ago since prospective students and their families have become wise to the very limited value they offer (especially to those students reliant on both the Tuition Fee Loan and Maintenance Loan to support their studies). Hopefully, the days have passed where Higher Education Institutions (HEI's) would wrap a pretty worthless, fee-waiver-shaped, carrot in gold leaf and dangle it before the academically able, in order to entice them in to the uni's allocated uncapped student number.

Fee waivers hit universities and colleges where it hurts anyway - their own pockets. Reducing the fee reduces the loan income from the funders, so the institution has less money to deliver services with. Let's not forget that, when the government introduced the so called variable tuition fee, the whole sector (give or take a few exceptions) opted to charge the maximum they could, across their full undergraduate curriculum. 

Over the last decade or so higher education (HE) providers have shifted to calling to their students "customers". Sending staff on customer service training and striving to attain Customer Service Excellence stamps of approval. It has been an uncomfortable shift in some quarters and not uncommon to hear staff grumble about these "darn students with their high expectations as to what they get for their £9,250". I mean how dare students feel empowered to complain!

Of course, one could argue that, with respect to income into HEI's, the amount of money in the envelope is the same as always - all coming from the government but just in a different way than before (see Funding Funnel for a bit of a clumsy potted history on this). The money in that envelope is what the sector relies on to thrive and flourish, pay their workforce, deliver academic excellence, provide facilities and drive innovation and research. The benefit to the economy, employers and society of an educated and skilled flow of graduates is not under debate in this blog post.

The government shifted the responsibility for the tuition fee loan onto the student for a number of reasons. One was to allow for no upfront fees . This eased the burden on the better-off mum and dad who had previously had to pay their students fee up front. By raising the tuition fee to a level of £9K+ meant that even the better off would struggle to manage without taking on the fee loan. Thus bringing those better-off students into the funding system of income contingent repayment, where the higher earners, beyond graduation, would be paying the most back to the public purse over time. "Progressive"! -remember? The better off became less likely to benefit from an easily affordable, subsidised higher education whilst avoiding the student loan system. Now they are more likely to contribute to the public cost of providing Higher Education alongside the less well off.

So once the student was taking on the cost of their own education, they felt more like an HE consumer. Naturally then. they had a changed perspective on course value for money. Successful or not, enjoyed it or hated it, this is a service many of these consumers will be paying for over 30 years beyond graduation, so they have a right to expect it to be good don't they?

Now Covid-19 has thrown a major spanner in the works and delivered an enormous blow to Higher Education. Not only has it had an impact on academic delivery for the 3rd term of the academic year 19/20 but also as far as the eye can see into 20/21. In addition, students' access to broader services and the whole "student experience" that they are lead to expect for the money has been thrown into disarray. Why wouldn't they expect the full service - look at the website and the glossy prospectus, this stuff is all in the price, right? 

As a consequence the media has been awash with shoutouts for discounts to the £9,250 tuition fee; not unreasonable given that the student consumer is not receiving what they signed up for or are in the process of signing up for.

Those who understand the nature of the income contingent student loan repayment system realise that, for those who rely on full funding for their studies, a slight reduction in tuition fees will have little or maybe no effect on the money the student will eventually pay back to the public purse. A little play on a repayment calculator (such as this one on www.moneysavingexpert.com) will help those who are a bit unsure as to why a discount makes little difference to get their eye in.

So are the media and students wrong to be baying for a fee discount? What is the point if a discount is worth so little in the long run? The model of students as customer paying a set price for a service falls apart when that service can not be delivered. The Tuition Fee income is vital to keep the sector from collapsing, to save guard jobs, but should a new student be expected to see this bigger picture?

So, is Tuition Fee discounting a "pointless debate"? Maybe.....but more general and perhaps more valid questions are, could current students be compensated for their reduced experience? Should prospective customers receive a meaningful incentive to continue to apply given the reduced offer?

Fee waivers are not worth much as we know, but a more tangible cash offer might be enticing. Some students arguably are receiving that now in the form of a 19/20, 3rd term accommodation fee waiver and the full payment of their 3rd term student finance. This offer though is patchy, depending on the student's accommodation provider. Those in private rented housing and especially final year students who receive a lower 3rd term Maintenance Loan are less likely to have benefited from this.

New students to the academic year 20/21, could be offered a monetary incentive to register and enrol this Autumn. Unlike a fee waiver this could make a real difference and make up for the wobbly start to their "Student Journey". 

A stepping stone payment could be the gesture of good will needed for those still brave enough to take the plunge, who are prepared to trust that their new HE provider will take a firm grip of their eager hand in these unsteady times. 

Can You Save The World

This may be useful for when lockdown eases - a bit of fun

Why pay Rent & Accommodation costs 3rd term 2020? - it's a Dilemma

Student's really must be wondering what to do about their third term installment of rent when they have left to go "home home".

Some accommodation providers have released their tenants from their contracts where they have  chosen to return home due to the current pandemic. Others accommodation providers have not and Student Unions and others are lobbying hard for the cause.

Here is some information to help those wondering what to do and considering their options.

• Most rent payments particularly to the Higher Education Institutions and large student accommodation providers are paid by direct debit. Student's often do not realise that they can cancel direct debits themselves with their banks. Banks often need at least 3 working days notice to amend or cancel direct debits. This may be an option to choose while negotiating with the landlord about a way forward. 

Student Bedroom

• Most accommodation contracts or tenancy contracts are valid legal agreements and the current pandemic does not render them void.
• It is an option for a tenant to write to the landlord or accommodation provider and ask for their discretion to release them early from the terms of the contract. However the landlord is not obliged to do so.
• For most Assured Shorthold agreements, action against a tenant for not paying their rent (arrears) can not be taken (by the landlord or accommodation provider) until 2 months rent arrears has accrued. Generally this means that a landlord can not begin Possession Proceedings on the grounds of rent arrears until 2 months rent is owing.
• Due to the pandemic, the government introduced new rules which extend this period to 3 months, introduced as of 26th March.
• So for many students this is likely to take them to beyond the end of their contract. This 3 month grace period could allow time for negotiations and the outcome of lobbying to be reached. 

Shelter provide information on what action might be taken if the landlord does not waive the rent for the third term and the tenant does not pay the rent they are liable for. 

Student in accommodation

It is an interesting dilemma, as some students are having to stay in their rented accommodation. Perhaps because they are from overseas or they are estranged from their family or are a care leaver. Should these students have to pay their rent while others with the same legal contractual obligation not have to pay? Given that the funders appear to be awarding the full third term installment of maintenance loan, this would make those students with no "home home" to return to, financially worse off. 

Also worth remembering is that not all private landlords are able to afford the unexpected loss of income either. 

It is a tricky matter, so do always seek specialist housing advice and guidance (see below). 

For Housing Advice see

www.shelter.org.uk 

www.citizensadvice.org.uk

www.nationaldebtline.org.uk

Levitate Student; Student Finance 2020

Aimed at students .....

• studying a first undergraduate degree
• who normally live in England before their course begins
• who will apply to Student Finance England for student finance
• who will be studying at a Higher Education Institution outside of London

N.B. This presentation is for information only, it should not be construed as advice and should not be used in place of information provided by the government and Student Finance England on www.gov.uk 

Reference Sources 

www.gov.uk 

https://www.practitioners.slc.co.uk/media/1750/financial-memorandum-for-202021.pdf

https://www.practitioners.slc.co.uk/media/1750/financial-memorandum-for-202021.pdf 

Levitate Student - Can You Please Stop Dumbing Down Student Money Advice!

I have worked tirelessly over the years to establish student money advice services that have safe service boundaries and appropriate quality measures in place.  I have worked to ensure staff providing Information Advice and Guidance have the appropriate competency levels to be delivering such services. 

When I first moved from Citizens Advice to the HE Advice sector my new manager told me that I would be able to "get my supervision from Citizens Advice" (where I still volunteered some of my time). I could not believe it!! It was clear I had joined an employer and a service that had no professional supervision mechanisms in house. No one was checking the quality or consistency of the advice been given by the various team members and the team were free to advise on what they fancied - from student money to benefits and debt matters, you name it. No framework, no limits no boundary.

I wondered whether to run for the hills immediately or stay and try and do something to change things. I chose the latter and over time introduced appropriate competency ring fencing around the advice service. I introduced a method for the advisers to peer review each others work and coach one another to ensure quality, consistency and improvement. I drew up clear distinctions between which areas of IAG we would provide specialist advice on and which we would limit to generalist guidance with signposting to specialists.

Over the years it became clear that the quality of money IAG provision in the HE sector is patchy to say the least. Student Unions are much more likely to be accredited with a recognised advice quality mark than services provided by the universities themselves. While the National Association of Student Money Advisers have introduced an "accreditation" , it seems to be limited to a form of confirmation of engaging with Continuous Professional Development rather than establishing any minimum standards or competency framework. That said I would argue it is not something they should be required to provide, rather it is the responsibility of the Higher Education Institutions (HEI's) to ensure the quality of  the services they deliver.

There is a tendency in some HEI's to "keep it simple" when informing their prospective students and their families on money matters. They don't need to know the nitty gritty after all do they?. Unfortunately there is nothing simple about student finance rules and regulations and the way these impinge on and conflate with other rules and regs such as those governing welfare benefits etc. Open Days are often fronted by teams from Admissions or Recruitment who have little specialist knowledge on the complexities of money matters. They have a neat little powerpoint covering the basics (which is fine) but how many of these staff in the corporate T-shirt with the matching corporate smile, simply fold, guess and ultimately mis-guide when asked a tricky money question by a customer?

One such member of staff said to me that in their view it simply isn't appropriate to be talking about "personal stuff" like divorce or family break down or illness at an Open Day stand. I presume they felt a customer with a question about whether they might lose their benefits on moving university or what to do because they have been kicked out of home, needs to just step aside and stop putting a dampener on the lovely event. I mean look at the lovely balloons - we don' want to be talking about fleeing violence today!!

At one Open Day a concerned and confused staff member came to find me to say that in a lecture an Academic was telling a group of postgraduate pre-registration NHS students and their families that they could get a £13K tuition fee loan. Was this right she asked me. Er no!! 

It was quite amusing and a tad intimidating when told of my concern, the Academic came marching up to me to inform me the law had changed for NHS students and now they could get the student loan to pay the fee. When I asked him what regulation he was referring to he was very light on detail. I made him aware of the regulations that had actually recently changed  and the rules that limited the fee loan available to £9,250. Also of the right of institutions had to charge more than the £9,250 for this sort of course if they so choose. However I guide him and the faculty accountant and the finance director that it would be challenging for these students to make up the difference themselves  for a course fee of £13K given (were eligible) they would only have access to the £9,250 fee loan. We took steps to contact all the customers and correct the mis-guidance, signpost them to our service for help and to bring in the Student Loans Company to provide some training in the Faculty of Health. 

Given my role as a manger with student finance expertise - why hadn't I been consulted prior to the Open Day? Because Student Finance is a subject that many folk reckon they can have a reasonable guess at - because its bound to work like this, right??

I was talking again this week about discussing student finance with prospective students and their families. Keep it simple - a very short talk was the steer. In Citizens Advice if a client comes to talk about Universal Credit the advisers don't think, I will keep it dead simple, I won't mention this rule, or flag up that timeframe - its too complicated for this client and not simple. No - they have a duty to advise in a complete manner and account for the advice given in a thorough record. They are trained and skilled at ensuring clients receive appropriate, correct and complete information irrespective of the clients level of understanding, prior knowledge, vulnerability, level of English etc. It takes skill, patience, support but it doesn't involve giving incomplete help though...information about their rights and responsibilities are not dumbed down.

Money Wordcloud

Universities and HEI's should have a similar duty of care and service quality standards or stop advising. How many students have made incorrect choices based on poor guidance they have received from an HEI? Who knows, as in many cases the conversations and "advice" given won't be recorded anywhere. In a recent role I faced a fairly high level of indignation when I joined as a new service as manager and insisted that the team stop saying they were Advisers.  None of the required quality measures and competency frameworks where in place so I restricted their activities to Information and Guidance only. I brought in trainers from AdviceUK to provide some basic training on the difference between these and to add gravitas to my insistence of what changes would be needed before Money Advice could be given. This service had of course been running for many years before I arrived......

The problem lays with the senior managers who appoint staff to deliver these services with little to no understanding of what is required and what "good practice" is. Like I did way back when, many staff try to make these services safe themselves where there is a dereliction of responsibility by their employer. That's not okay and it's not fair.

I would love the Office for Students to set minimum quality standards for HEI's delivering Student Money Advice services - and it should never be dumbed down.