Finding Out the Cost of my Masters (and Then Funding it!)

Hi, I’m Eva and I'm currently doing my Masters in Management with the Business School at the University of Edinburgh. I come from a bit of a mixed background as I'm Spanish and American. I grew up in the Netherlands and I've been in Scotland for quite a few years now. With such a varied background, it was important for me to understand what fees I need to pay, what funding I can apply for and where to find the right information. In this blog, I cover all the ways I made sure I was on the right path.

How I found out about the programme fees and what I’d be paying

I had lived in Scotland for a few years already and have pre-settled status so I was eligible for home fees. I understand this might be less common now because of Brexit. I was lucky to be considered for home fees; otherwise, I would have had to pay international fees because I'm not British.

I made sure to check the university website, specifically the programme I was looking at, and then researched all the different links from there. I would recommend doing that first.

I also used Unibuddy to speak to some students who were currently on the course. Although they weren't in the exact same situation as I was, it was nice to hear about their experiences. The next step was to look for funding and I started by looking through government websites.

Funding options

I did a lot of research into the kind of funding available to me because, as I said, I'm both Spanish and American.

I found that there were many options for government scholarships and grants, so I’d recommend spending some time going through their websites. It doesn’t necessarily need to be from the country that you're living in at that time. If you're from another country, you can look at the different types of support available to you from both. Most government websites allow you to filter and search through scholarships.

Universities will usually spread your tuition costs. The University of Edinburgh allows you to pay in instalments, and mine are paid in three different ones throughout the year. This worked better for me as I was able to spread out the cost rather than having to pay it upfront when I started.

There are also many options for part-time work, including jobs with the university, if you’re looking to top-up your living costs. I would recommend keeping an eye out for any vacancies over the summer before your Masters starts as some jobs are listed during that period. However, balancing your work and your studies is very important. To manage my time while studying, I make sure to have a clear understanding of the various commitments I have and the activities I’m a part of. I’ve found that setting them out in my Outlook calendar, combined with my classes and any other deadlines, really helps.

Applying for my course and the funding

I made sure to do all the research before I actually started applying for my Masters. Since I had that in place, I knew I wasn't applying to a course I may not be able to fund.

I would recommend doing all the general research first. You might need to wait to get any funding or loan until you're actually accepted onto a programme. You’ll probably need the certificate of enrolment when applying for funding. You need an offer to apply for most of the scholarships offered by the University of Edinburgh, but you don’t have to be fully enrolled yet.

In my experience you should start with researching as many options as you can and then setting yourself a plan for the exact courses and funding you’ll apply for. It might seem daunting at first but with the right strategies, it’s definitely possible. And remember, you can always reach out to your university if you’re unsure at any point!

You may also like...