Calculator · Postgraduate Loan
Postgraduate Loan Repayment Calculator: Masters and Doctoral Loans
Written by Zubair Arshed FIA, Chartered Actuary
Fellow of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries
Actuarial Post Life and Health Actuary of the Year 2024
This postgraduate loan repayment calculator projects Masters and Doctoral loan repayments across the UK: 6% of income above £21,000, interest at RPI + 3% throughout, and a 30-year write-off.
Postgraduate loans are small but expensive. The balance is typically £12,000 to £29,000, yet the interest rate is the highest of any UK student loan and applies from day one regardless of income. Most postgraduate borrowers also hold an undergraduate loan, and the two interact.
Repayment threshold
£21,000
Interest rate
RPI + 3%, always
Written off after
30 years
Who is on it
Masters and Doctoral loans, all UK nations, from 2016
2025-26 tax year values. Thresholds change each April; verify at gov.uk.
How is a postgraduate loan repayment calculated?
Annual repayment = 6% × (salary − £21,000)
At £35,000 salary:
6% × £14,000 = £840/year (£70/month)
With a Plan 2 loan as well: add 9% × (£35,000 − £29,385) = £505/year
Combined deduction: £1,345/year (£112/month)
The two loans are repaid simultaneously, not sequentially. Your payslip shows both deductions, and each loan keeps its own balance, interest rate and write-off clock.
How do repayments work with two student loans?
Independently, and that matters for strategy. Your postgraduate loan accrues RPI + 3% while a Plan 5 loan accrues RPI only, so if you are ever going to overpay anything, the postgraduate loan is almost always the mathematically better target, provided you would clear it before its write-off. The premium multi-loan tool models both balances together with combined totals.
The 6% rate above a low £21,000 threshold also means postgraduate deductions start almost immediately in most graduate careers, and they stack on top of undergraduate deductions. Budgeting on the combined figure, not the headline 9%, avoids an unpleasant first payslip. Our interest guide covers the RPI + 3% mechanics in detail.
Why use this postgraduate loan repayment calculator?
RPI + 3% compounding for up to 30 years is highly sensitive to the inflation path, so a fixed assumption can misstate your total by thousands. This calculator prices each future year’s RPI from the gilt market and can model your undergraduate loan alongside. The methodology is fully documented.
Run your Postgraduate Loan projection
The calculator infers your plan from where and when you studied, then projects every year to payoff or write-off. Free, no account needed.
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