Val Cipriani and Holly McKechnie are back with a new episode of Women & Wealth, and unpack the UK’s student loan system and growing debt burden facing graduates.

The funds editor and personal finance editor for Investors’ Chronicle explore why women often end up paying more, how repayment rules really work, and what the system means for your finances.

Student loans have undergone several reinventions over recent years, but the current focus is largely on Plan 2 loans, taken out by undergraduates between 2012 and 2022. These have become particularly onerous following changes made by the Conservative government in 2022.

Val and Holly look at the three key repayment terms to be aware of, and the other factors that affect how much you pay back.

Maternity, salary gap and employment opportunities in fields studied more by women mean that the student loans issue disproportionately affects them. Val and Holly discuss this, as well as how to minimise your exposure and pay less over the long term.

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

00:58 The state of student loans

01:50 Plan 1, Plan 2, Plan 5 student loans

04:40 Why Plan 2 is so bad

08:20 Loan or tax

10:15 Why it impacts women more

13:45 Is Plan 5 better?

15:11 What you can do about it

17:22 When you should overpay

Read more on the student loan issue on Investors' Chronicle:

How to survive the student loan system

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