This information is taken from the www.direct.gov.uk website. A full entry on Career Development Loans is included in the PostgraduateStudentships.co.uk Funding Database.
You can use a Career Development Loan to fund a variety of vocational courses with a range of organisations. You can take out a CDL whether you are employed, self-employed or unemployed. CDLs are available through an arrangement between the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) and three high street banks.
In summary:
- you can borrow anything between £300 and £8,000 to help you fund up to two years of learning (or up to three years if the course includes one year of relevant practical work experience)
- you can get CDLs through Barclays, The Co-operative Bank and The Royal Bank of Scotland
- the LSC pays the interest on your loan while youre learning and for up to one month after youve stopped training
- you then repay the loan to the bank over an agreed period at a fixed rate of interest
Remember that a CDL is a personal loan between you and the bank, and you are responsible for repaying it to the bank. Before taking out a loan, check how much your monthly repayments will be, and that you feel confident that you will be able to make them.
