This briefing note addresses the following questions:
1. How much financial support will be available to undergraduate students entering university in 2014?
2. How does it vary across different types of students (e.g. by income) and groups of universities?
3. How does it compare to preceding cohorts, who enrolled in 2012 and in 2013?
4. What are the effects of recent policy changes on universities’ design of financial support schemes? In particular, how have universities responded to the unexpected cut to the NSP for the 2014 cohort (which was announced after universities made plans of student support schemes)?
The authors gratefully acknowledge funding from the Nuffield Foundation and the ESRC. This briefing note and accompanying observation are based on an earlier paper on the National Scholarship Programme and Bursaries http://www.ifs.org.uk/publications/6429, part of a project funded by the Nuffield Foundation. Our most recent analysis, taking into account the 2013 and 2014 Office for Fair Access (OFFA) agreements was funded by the ESRC though the ESRC Centre for the Microeconomic Analysis of Public Policy (CPP; grant number ES/H021221/1). The Nuffield Foundation is an endowed charitable trust that aims to improve social well-being in the widest sense. It funds research and innovation in education and social policy and also works to build capacity in education, science and social science research. The Nuffield Foundation has part-funded this project, but the views expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the Foundation. More information is available at http://www.nuffieldfoundation.org