The Student Assistance Fund will close for the current academic year on March 29th

All applications to the Fund must be submitted and completed by close of business March 29th. If you are considering making an application you must do so before then. 

About the Student Assistance Fund (SAF)

The Student Assistance Fund provides financial assistance for full-time higher education students who are experiencing financial difficulties while attending college, if you are a part-time registered student for the academic year 2022/23 please visit our Financial Aid Part-Time Fund for further details. 

The Student Assistance Fund is partly supported by the Irish Government and the European Social Fund as part of the ESF Programme for Employability, Inclusion and Learning 2014-2020. 

The Student Assistance fund is a means-tested fund, with income thresholds in-line with SUSI. Funds are limited and not all applicants may be eligible and/or may not be awarded funding. One application per academic year can be made and if successful awards are a once-off payment.

There is no official closing date for the Student Assistance Fund, but once all funds are dispersed the fund will close.

Eligibility Criteria:

Eligible to apply:

• All full-time registered students (subject to EU status), undergraduate and postgraduate, for the 2022/23 academic year are eligible to apply.  
• For the 2022/23 academic year the course must be no less the 1 year in duration. 
• The course must lead to an NFQ Level 6 –10. 
• Repeat Students can be supported for one year only. 
• PhD students from years one to four. 
• UCC Students away on Erasmus year can apply for funding subject to meeting fund criteria 

Ineligible to apply:

• Students participating in foundation or part-time courses are not eligible for this fund.  
• Students pursuing a second Degree/second Masters/second PhD are ineligible.  
• International/non-EU fee-paying students are not eligible for funding. 
• Visiting Erasmus Students must apply to their home university 

What the award can be used for

The following items are allowable types of expenditure for the Student Assistance Fund:

What the award cannot be used for: 

Your EU status

The Student Assistance Fund is an EU funded programme and is open to citizens of the European Union. 

To be eligible for the Student Assistance Fund applicants should: 

• Hold EU nationality or official refugee status. 
• Student must have been ordinarily resident in an EU Member State for at least three of the five years preceding their entry to an approved third level course. 
• If you were not born in the EU but you are an EU citizen, you will be required to provide evidence of your citizenship to the European Union. This will involve providing documents confirming your EU naturalization/citizenship or your status as a refugee or asylum seeker. 

For further information on eligibility for this fund, international students should refer to the criteria set out on www.icosirl.ie  and www.ucc.ie/en/international. 

Application Process Explained

Applications are assessed on the basis of household income for the year 2021, supporting financial documentation will be required.

How Household Income is Assessed

ALL STUDENTS must complete the Student Assistance Fund Assessment Tool prior to submitting their online application (please note you must be logged into your UCC umail account in order to complete the SAF Self Assessment Tool). The Assessment tool will guide you as to what financial documentation you will need to provide.  While not an exhaustive list, the following are some factors that we consider: 

A sample of household circumstances are outlined below: 

• Applicant U23 years of age/Over 23 years of age 
• An applicant living independently over 23 years of age 
• Other Circumstances – appointment necessary prior to commencing the application process. 

Your household situation will be determined once you have completed the SAF Self-Assessment Tool and it will guide you to what financial documentation you need to provide to support your application. 

Example of Financial Supporting documents

The documents generally required to complete your application include:  

• SUSI Award Letter  

• PAYE Employment - Statement of Liability for the year 2021 
• Self Employed - Notice of Assessment/Self-Assessment letter 2021 and Form 11A 
• Department of Social Protection payments - Statements for 2021 (1st January-31st December)  

Different circumstances will have a bearing on the documentation you will be required to furnish in support of your application. You can explore the different documents needed in the Case Studies and Sample Documents section of this website. 

Appeals, feedback, complaints...

There is an appeals process and the full details are outlined in our  Student Assistance Fund Appeals Process document 

If you wish to provide feedback or make a complaint you can do so at this webpage.

How to make an appointment

Please click either the following link or the Student Assistance Fund box below to make an appointment. Select a date that suits you and then click on that date so you can choose a time to meet with an advisor online by completing the instructions. 

Ensure you put in your full name, ucc student umail address, phone number, and the main purpose of visit. 

New appointment times will be added each week for the forthcoming weeks.