In November 2024 the Government announced that for the academic year 2025/26 tuition fees for home students are set to increase by 3.1% to £9,535 for undergraduate degrees in England. We’ve put together a short summary of what this will mean for Kent students.
Subject to final ratification in parliament, this tuition fee rise will apply for all undergraduate home students studying at the University of Kent for the 2025-26 academic year – both new and returning students.
If you have a student loan, the fee rise will not result in any new upfront cost for students, and how you repay your student loan remains the same. The loan repayments you make each month when you have a job in the future are based on how much you earn rather than how much you have to repay.
The Government also announced an increase in maintenance loan support to help students manage the cost of going to university. We have several cost-of-living measures at Kent alongside this to help you make the most of your time with us.
FAQs
What does this mean for international and postgraduate students?
Tuition fees for international and taught postgraduate students are decided through a different process and are unaffected by this Government announcement. You can view the 2025-26 tuition fees for international and postgraduate students on the Kent website.
When will fees rise and does it impact current students?
Tuition fees may rise annually, but for UK undergraduates are capped by the Government. See Kent’s Tuition Fee Increase Policy for more information. Both the tuition fee and maintenance loans for UK undergraduate students will rise in the 2025-26 academic year.
What will the 2025-26 tuition fees be?
Tuition fees will rise in line with inflation for the first time since 2017, this means current fees will increase from £9,250 a year to £9,535 (full-time).
| 2024-25 | 2025-26 | Uplift | |
| Full-time | £9,250 | £9,535 | £285 |
| Part-time | £6,935 | £7,145 | £210 |
How much is the maintenance support increasing by?
Maintenance loans have increased each year however the increases haven’t kept up with inflation. The Government announced that maintenance loans will also increase in line with inflation from September 2025. This means the students who rely on maintenance loans will have more money in their pockets from the next academic year. If you are currently facing financial hardship, please see cost of living support at Kent.
| 2024-25 | 2025-26 (max loan) | Uplift | |
| Living at home | £8,610 | £8,877 | £267 |
| London | £13,348 | £13,762 | £414 |
| Elsewhere | £10,227 | £10,544 | £317 |
| Overseas | £11,713 | £12,076 | £363 |
Does this change my student loan repayments?
If you apply for a tuition fee loan, this money is paid directly to the university to cover the cost of your course. If you apply for a maintenance loan, it is paid directly to your bank account to help with the costs of going to university.
You will not need to repay tuition fee or maintenance loans until you have completed your degree or have left the university. Even though the amount you borrow will be different, the student loan repayment process remains the same.
Cost of Living Support at Kent
If you are struggling with the rising cost of living, here’s some of the support available at Kent:
- Emergency funding – we have funds and emergency short term loans for students facing financial hardship.
- Finance support contacts – here are some useful contacts to help you with your finance questions and offer advice.
- Supplemental food support – KSU’s Campus Pantry at Canterbury is open Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday 12:00-16:00. There are no questions asked the first time you use the service.
- Rutherford Meal Deal – head over to Rutherford (Canterbury) for the £3.50 Meal Deal. Open for lunch and dinner, you can choose between 2 hot meals (one plant-based) with 2 sides.
- £3 sub and drink meal deal and other offers at The Deep End (Medway).
- Pick up free sanitary products from KSU’s Mandela Student Centre and the laundry facilities on the Canterbury campus, and from the Deep End at Medway.
- Campus lounges have microwaves and hot taps so you can reheat leftovers or make yourself a hot drink. See warm spaces map.
- Borrow a laptop for up to 12 hours for use in the Templeman Library and across our Canterbury campus. In Medway you can use LapSafe in Drill Hall Library (same day or 7-day loans available).
See all the above support and more on our cost-of-living webpages.