‘Whole point of this degree is to widen access’: doctor slams ‘discriminatory’ NI loan barrier
Graduate Entry Medical course funds not option for aspiring medics here
A LOCAL doctor has criticised the “absurd” situation whereby students from other parts of the UK can access a second loan for a Graduate Entry Medicine course but those from Northern Ireland cannot.
Bill Hunter, a paediatric doctor at Craigavon Area Hospital, said he has been trying to fix this issue for close to 10 years.
He undertook a Graduate Entry Medicine degree in Southampton in 2015 when he couldn’t access a loan as a student from NI.
Dr Hunter was grateful that his mother, who is herself a doctor, was able to financially support him. But, he said, people from disadvantaged backgrounds do not have the same option, therefore this acts as a barrier to a career in medicine.
After considerable delays, a Graduate Entry Medical School opened at the Ulster University Magee campus in Derry in 2021.
It is a four-year intensive version of the normal five- or six-year medical degree and applicants must have a 2:1 degree, along with other requirements, to be accepted, similar to a master’s or PHD.
The Graduate Entry Medical course is open to people from science and non-science backgrounds, as well as to those from different socio-economic backgrounds.
People from NI can’t access a student loan or NHS bursary, meaning it is more likely for wealthy or international students to enrol.
If, on the other hand, you want to do a master’s degree in physician associate studies or advanced nursing practice then you are entitled to a loan and possibly grants.
Speaking to the Belfast Telegraph, Dr Hunter said it is an “absurd” situation for NI to have different rules.
“Northern Ireland won’t fund this. England, Scotland and Wales all give students a loan and bursary to make up for the fact it is longer than three years,” he explained.
“The whole point of this degree is to widen access to medicine. Most doctors in the country
are from middle- or upper-middle-class backgrounds, whose parents are doctors or professionals.
“Students from Northern Ireland are having to take out ruinous bank loans, work multiple jobs or drop out altogether — to say nothing of those who have had offers and had to reject them once they learned of this discrimination.
“I was fortunate enough that when I did one of these degrees in England, my mother could go back to work to pay for it. Most don’t have that chance.
“The maintenance loan which we can get doesn’t even cover rent.
“If there was a loan, it would mean that people who don’t have £36,000 in the bank to pay their fees upfront can still come and study medicine on this course. “It’s such a nonsense issue. “I’ve spoken to so many MLAS and MPS about it and they all agree that it should be changed. They just haven’t bothered because I’m the only person raising this.”
Ultimately, he said, if NI students were offered loans, they would be paying back interest, which puts more money in Stormont’s coffers.
In response, the Department of Health said health and student finance are devolved matters and support arrangements vary across the UK, reflecting the resources available to each administration and their assessment of workforce supply priorities.
“These arrangements therefore vary markedly,” a spokesperson said.
“For example, England-domiciled students pay significantly higher tuition fees than their Northern Ireland peers.
“The Education (Student Support) (No.2) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2009 preclude students who already hold a primary degree awarded by an institution in Northern Ireland or Great Britain from obtaining fee loans or maintenance grants for a second primary degree. This is not an error but a deliberate approach based on the principle that the financial resources available should be targeted at primary-degree level, thereby allowing a greater number of students to experience third-level study.”
The Department of Health said Graduate Entry Medical students on the medical degree programme are eligible to receive a maintenance loan, according to individual circumstances.
The department pointed to medical courses being oversubscribed in NI.
“Whilst the support arrangements for Ni-domiciled medical students are kept under constant review, there are no current proposals to increase the support provided to Northern Ireland students undertaking medicine as a second primary degree, not least given the very challenging financial situation facing the department,” a spokesperson concluded.