Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans she has to allow postgraduate university students to claim universal credit.
Most full time students in education, including those undertaking postgraduate studies, do not qualify for Universal Credit.
Students are able to access funding to support their education courses through various loans and grants, which are the responsibility of the Department for Education. It is important that Universal Credit does not duplicate this support, which is designed for their needs unlike the social security system.
Exceptions are made where students have additional needs that are not met through the student support system. These provisions already allow a person undertaking a full-time postgraduate course of study to have entitlement to Universal Credit if they satisfy one of the exceptions or, where the course is not full-time, it is considered to be compatible with any work related requirements placed upon them.