Funding for Medical Students

Medical course funding

The funding available is very different for each course, and also varies by where you are from, whether you choose to be financially assessed, and the year of the course you are in. You should be aware of what funding, if any, is available to pay your course fees and help support your living costs during each year of your course.

The regional funding agency figures below may be subject to inflationary changes in future years.

2021 to 2024-entry Republic of Ireland (ROI) nationals living in the UK or Ireland, and other students from the EU, EEA and Switzerland who have been granted settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme may qualify for Home fee status and student finance from the UK government, and therefore they may also be eligible for an Oxford Bursary, if they meet the residence requirements. 

Further details on the funding available to students from Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales are available from your regional funding agency:

• Student Finance Northern Ireland
• Student Awards Agency Scotland
• Student Finance Wales

Six-year course for students with no previous undergraduate degree (A100)

Years 1 - 4

During the first four years of the six-year medicine course, government support is available through your relevant funding agency. Support for living costs is available to UK students on the same basis as all other Home undergraduate students.

Home (UK) or EU students (2020-entrant or earlier) from a lower-income household , will be eligible to receive an annual non-repayable bursary in 2024/25 to help with living costs. 

Years 5 - 6

In years five and six, course fees are paid in full by the relevant funding agency:

• The National Health Service (NHS) for students from England, Wales and the EU (2020-entrants or earlier)
• The Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS) for students from Scotland
• The Department of Health (DoH) for students from Northern Ireland

UK students can also access a maintenance loan from their regional funding agency, but this will be at a reduced rate for students from England, Wales and Northern Ireland who can apply for a means-tested NHS or DoH bursary in years five and six. Students from England and Wales are also eligible for an additional non means-tested NHS grant of £1,020.

Students from Scotland will continue to be eligible to be assessed for the means-tested maintenance loan and grant available to them in years one to four.

For budgeting purposes it is important to note that any Student Loans Company maintenance loan payments you are entitled to will not be released until after 1st August, despite your course year commencing before this date.  

Home (UK) or EU students (2020-entrant or earlier) from a lower-income household , will be eligible to receive an annual non-repayable bursary in 2024/25 to help with living costs. 

Studying for a higher degree

Students are sometimes permitted to defer entry to the clinical school in order to take further study in a related field. This is not the same as intercalation as the Oxford medicine course already comprises an intercalated bachelor’s degree after the third year of study.

If you choose to undertake other study your funding entitlement will be affected when you return to the clinical school. This is because the medicine course will be considered to be an Equivalent or Lower Qualification (ELQ) to the higher qualification that you now hold. This means that you will not be eligible for government course fee support in year four of your course, although you will still be able to receive a means tested maintenance loan. You will therefore be expected to self-fund your course fees for this year.

However, if your other study is no higher than master’s level or equivalent, the NHS may agree to fund your studies early and allow you to apply to the NHS Bursary scheme from year four of your course. This is at the discretion of the NHS Business Services Authority and further advice must be sought from them.

Different rules apply to students from Northern Ireland and Scotland. These students should seek advice from their regional funding agency.

See also: NHS Student Bursaries

Graduate-entry medicine: four-year course for students with an undergraduate degree in an experimental sciences subject (A101)

Year 1

During the first year of the four-year medicine course, government support is available through your relevant funding agency. Students from England and Wales (and EU students who commenced their studies in 2020 or earlier) are eligible to apply for a fee loan to cover some of their course fees.

Students from Northern Ireland and Scotland are required to self-fund the full amount of their course fees.

Home (UK) or EU students (2020-entrant or earlier) from a lower-income household , will be eligible to receive an annual non-repayable bursary in 2024/25 to help with living costs. 

Further details on the funding available to students from Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales are available from your regional funding agency:

• Student Finance Northern Ireland
• Student Awards Agency Scotland
• Student Finance Wales

Years 2 - 4

During years two to four of the graduate-entry medicine course, students from England and Wales (and EU students who commenced their studies in 2020 or earlier) are eligible to apply for help from the NHS and their regional funding agency towards their course fees.

Students from Northern Ireland and Scotland are required to self-fund the full amount of their course fees. 

UK students can also access a maintenance loan from their regional funding agency, but this will be at a reduced rate for students from England and Wales who can apply for a means-tested NHS Bursary in years two to four. Students from England and Wales are also eligible for an additional non means-tested NHS grant of £1,020. Students from Northern Ireland and Scotland will continue to be eligible for the means-tested maintenance loan available to them in year one.

For budgeting purposes it is important to note that any Student Loans Company maintenance loan payments you are entitled to will not be released until after 1st August, despite your course year commencing before this date.

Home (UK) or EU students (2020-entrant or earlier) from a lower-income household , will be eligible to receive an annual non-repayable bursary in 2024/25 to help with living costs.

See also: NHS Student Bursaries