When to apply for student grant?

rainbow66666

I was always told to apply asap when applying for the student grant for college next year, but when talking with a counciler in my school she said i can't apply till may-June for college this year cause the applications now are only for college this starting last year and ending this year????

I always thought you had to apply as soon as possible when you start 6th year so you get into the system ( i applied in december), now im finding out you got to apply just before exams? I have everything already filled out and sent off for the grant and now its all a waste cause im supposed to wait another 4-6 months before it reopens for 2012-2013 acedemic year?

Can someone please explain is she right or am i right in appying now?

Oscars Well.

Not sure about how early you can apply but you have to send the Grant office a copy of your acceptance letter from your given college, which you wont receive until you get accepted through the CAO to obtain the grant.

prettygurrly

log on to your local county council grants page. they'll tell you when they'll release the forms for 2012/2013. louth (my county) doesn't release them until mid july. however it doesn't mean you cant set about getting your documents together. have a look at the list of things needed as some things take ages to get off the revenue/social. you're probably applying with your parents so you'll need their P60s, P22s, your birth cert, accounts for any farms or rental properties, proof of income from interest on bank accounts/bonds etc. the list is quite long. There's no need to panic yet though, it's only January!

also www.studentfinance.ie has great info on how to apply for the grant etc.

prettygurrly

Oscars Well. wrote: »

Not sure about how early you can apply but you have to send the Grant office a copy of your acceptance letter from your given college, which you wont receive until you get accepted through the CAO to obtain the grant.

you apply for the grant before you get that letter. that letter is what you send so that the council will release your grant.

Oscars Well.

prettygurrly wrote: »

you apply for the grant before you get that letter. that letter is what you send so that the council will release your grant.

I know, I said I didn't know how early you could apply. I was just pointing out you have to send a copy of your acceptance letter before you obtain the grant

prettygurrly

ah grand. I took you to mean that you wouldn't be able to apply until you got that letter so just wanted to make sure OP didn't think that too

oh applying for the grant...what a nightmare!

Darius.Tr

Keep an eye on www.studentfinance.ie, they always announce when there are new forms for grant application. Last year it was around April as far as I remember, maybe a wee bit later.

lainey108

how do you apply ? is it through the county council ??

prettygurrly

For the higher education grant it is yes. You can also apply to your VEC for a scholarship but I dont know what the criteria are for that. If you get the grant it means your fees are paid for as well so it is worth applying if you think you might be eligible.

also read previous posts...

hiyakeano

I was actually curious about this myself so I rang up my local County Council. They told me that there is a new system beginning this year where all grants will be managed by one company up in Dublin and not by individual County Councils. They don't have anymore info on it yet but she said the Minister for Education will be releasing a statement about it on the 23rd of February (i think?) about it so you'll know more then

prettygurrly

ah yes the centralised system for grant application like the CAO...I thought they were just muttering about that, thanks for the update!

Butter123

Does anyone know what date Kildare grant money is given each month??