Financial support for your Master's study
See what additional support could be available to you.
If you have a disability, mental health issue or long-term illness, a Disabled Students’ Allowance can help cover your extra study costs
Disabled Students' Allowances (DSAs)
If your application for DSAs is successful, you can use the allowances to help with travel costs, to fund specialist equipment like a computer, or to pay for a non-medical helper to assist with your academic needs. DSAs don't cover costs unrelated to your study.
How much you receive
The amount you receive is based on your needs, not your income. The maximum allowance for full- and part-time postgraduate students is £20,000, to cover all aspects of any disability-related costs.
How to apply for DSAs
To apply for DSAs, you need to be a UK student studying a postgraduate degree (the allowance is also open to undergraduates). If you’re studying part-time, you'll need to be studying the equivalent of 25% of a full-time course, such as 30 credits a year on a typical postgraduate degree.
You can apply for DSAs as part of your application for student finance through Student Finance England. If you’re not applying for student finance, you can download an application form.
It can take up to 3 months to process your application and arrange for an assessment, so we recommend you apply as soon as possible.
Further help and support if you have a disability
You can also get help and support from our Additional Support and Disability Advice Centre (ASDAC), who can offer advice once you start university and help with your DSAs application.
The ASDAC team supports all students who have a condition which may impact on their ability to access our campus, curriculum, teaching, learning, assessments and any other student-focused service.
The services and support ASDAC offer includes:
- Confidential advice from disability professionals for all students UK, EU and International
- Advice on funding to cover disability-related support costs (this may include the Disabled Students’ Allowance but we have access to additional funding mechanisms)
- Discussion and agreement on reasonable adjustments
- Liaison with other University services and facilities eg. Library
- Sign posting for note-taking, mentoring and other academic support services
- Specialist study skills tuition and Assistive Technology training
- Screening for Specific Learning Difficulties such as dyslexia
- Liaison with external services eg. Autism Hampshire, Clear Links
To contact the ASDAC team, email asdac@port.ac.uk or call +44 (0)23 9284 3462.