Offsetting bursaries against student debt to the university
If a student is indebted to your institution, can you offset their bursary against this debt?
OFFA guidance
We have always been clear that it is for individual institutions to devise their own rules regarding the administration of bursaries and scholarships. We therefore think that it is reasonable to offset a bursary against a student’s debt to your institution provided you have made this clear in the rules of your scheme. However, only bursary amounts above the minimum bursary should be considered for offsetting. It is good practice that, where you offer a bursary for a specific purpose, such as covering the cost of tuition fees, you should not offset this against a debt incurred in a different area, for example, accommodation costs.