Passing requirements for Student Allowance

If you studied part-time and were approved 'limited full-time' for the last course you got a Student Allowance for, we'll look at the:

• total amount of EFTS you studied
• total amount of EFTS you passed.

You need to have passed more than half of the total amount of EFTS you studied.

Example

You studied 0.6 EFTS on your last course.

Your passing requirements for us is more than 0.3 EFTS.

If you haven't passed more than half, you may still be able to get another Student Allowance. It depends why you didn't pass.

• If it was for a reason beyond your control, you may still be able to get a Student Allowance.
• If you don't have a good reason, you won't be able to get another Student Allowance until you meet certain conditions.

Didn't pass for reasons beyond your control

You may still be able to get a Student Allowance if you've had something significant happen in your life that means you didn't pass your course.

It could be that you had a serious:

• illness that put you out of action for some time (e.g., glandular fever)
• accident and ended up in hospital for a while.

Or you may have other special circumstances, eg you've been in a Civil Defence emergency, like a flood or earthquake.

It doesn't include reasons like:

• pregnancy
• you couldn't afford to study
• you weren't interested in the course.

If you’re not sure, email us with 'Student Allowance' as your topic, or call us to tell us about your situation.

What you need to do

1. Apply online for a Student Allowance (if you haven’t already).
2. Get evidence of the reason you didn't pass (e.g., a medical certificate). This needs to show how your study was affected and how long this lasted.
3. Get evidence that you can now return to study (e.g., a medical certificate confirming you are fit to return to study).
4. Log in to Connect and upload your documents.

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Didn't pass and don't have a good reason

If you didn't pass your course and you don't have a good reason, you won’t be able to get another Student Allowance until you either:

• study another course:
  • at a tertiary education provider that's approved for Student Allowance
  • and either:
    • pass more than half the EFTS that the course needs to be considered full-time or
    • pass more than half the EFTS that you study for that course, if you were approved 'limited full-time' for your last course
  • without getting a Student Allowance (e.g., you can get a Student Loan)
• repay the full amount of Student Allowance you received for the course, where you officially withdrew from the course before the official examination period began.

Passing another course

Once you've passed another course

1. Apply online for a Student Allowance (if you haven’t already).
2. Get evidence of your grade (e.g., results from your education provider).
3. Log in to Connect and upload your document.

Repaying your Student Allowance

If you've withdrawn from a course (so you didn't pass) and the course was:

• 32 weeks or more, you'll need to pay the full amount back within 12 months of the start of the course.
• less than 32 weeks, you'll need to pay the full amount back before the end date of the course.