Funding Comparison

The following information has been taken from the Scottish Awards Agency Scotland (SAAS) and has been used for illustrative purposes to compare support available to Student Nurses and Midwives versus Student Paramedics.

Publication: 21st July 2020

Support Comparison

The table below compares what support is available to a non-disabled Scottish student.

Support Available	Nursing/Midwifery	Paramedic Science	Repayable?	Equal?
Tuition fees paid - first degree	Yes	Yes	No	Yes
Tuition fees paid - second degree †	Yes, all years.	Yes, capped at two years.	No	No - Paramedic students currently need to pay tuition for their third and/or fourth years if this is their second degree.
£10,000 bursary p.a. for first and second degree students †	Yes, for three years. Reduced to £7,500 for fourth year if fourth year is required.	No	No	No - Nursing and Midwifery students get given a total of £30,000/£37,500 non repayable bursary.
Lone/Single parent grants	Yes - up to £2,303 p.a.	Yes - up to £1,303 p.a.	No	No - Nursing and Midwifery students potentially receive £1,000 extra.
Dependant's Allowance	Yes - up to £3,640 p.a. & £577 for additional dependants	Yes - up to £1,303 p.a.	No	No - Nursing and Midwifery students can potentially receive more than double that of a student paramedics.
Childcare Allowance	Yes - up to £2,466 p.a.	No	No	No - self explanatory.
Independent Student Bursary	No	Yes - up to £1,000 p.a. subject to total household income being below £20,009. Only for students aged 25 or older.	No	No - Nursing and Midwifery students have the £10,000 bursary instead of this so are better supported during their studies.
Young Student Bursary	No	Yes - up to £2000 p.a. subject to household income. Only available to students under the age of 25.	No	No - Nursing and Midwifery students have the £10,000 bursary instead of this so are better supported during their studies.
SAAS Living Costs Loan	No	Yes - up to £6,750 p.a. subject to household.	Yes, with interest.	No - combining the SAAS loan with bursaries results in Paramedic students receiving less support and have increased debts.

† - if first degree was not an Allied Health Professional (AHP) degree

Illustrative Example

The following figures are based on funding available as a first degree with no resit years where the maximum possible funding is received over the duration of three years. Course fees have been excluded as both degree programmes receive equal support.

In comparison, Student Nurses and Midwives receive around 400% more support than a Young Student Paramedic and 900% more support than an Independent Student Paramedic in relation to non-repayable bursaries.

Additionally, Nursing and Midwifery students receive a minimum of £6,750 (25%) more support than Paramedic students whilst having zero student debt. Whereas, Paramedic students are required to pay their loan back plus interest leaving them in debt, potentially for decades.

Degree	Total Non Repayable	Total Repayable	Total Funding
Nursing and Midwifery	£30,000	£0	£30,000
Paramedic Science (Young Student)	£6,000	£17,250	£23,250
Paramedic Science (Independent Student)	£3,000	£20,250	£23,250

ABOVE: Figures exclude course fees, loan interest and additional costs such as dependant and/or childcare costs.

Funding Comparison

Support Comparison

Illustrative Example

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