Dental Student Support Grant (DSSG)

Dental students in Scotland can apply for a grant of £4,000 a year to help with the cost of their studies. This is called the Dental Student Support Grant (DSSG).

Who can apply?

You can apply for the DSSG if you:

• are enrolled for Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) at the University of Aberdeen, Dundee or Glasgow 
• have an annual household income of less than £34,000 per year
• are allowed to live and work in Scotland after graduation

When to apply

You must apply each academic year you want to claim a grant. Your university will tell you the deadline for submitting your application.

When you can first apply depends on which university you attend.

When you can apply for each university

University	Year you can first apply for a DSSG
Aberdeen	First
Dundee	Second
Glasgow	Second

How to apply for the DSSG

To apply for the DSSG:

1. Application form

Complete the DSSG application form.

2. Contract

Read and sign the DSSG contract. 

3. Get copies of your supporting documents

You need to supply supporting documents with your application. What documents you need to send depend on where you come from.

If you need to provide proof of household income

Whose income information you need to give depends on whether you are classed as a ‘young student’ or an ‘independent student’. 

Young students

You are a young student if all of the following apply on the first day of your course. You:

• are under 25 before at the start of the academic year
• do not have a dependent child at the beginning of the academic year
• have not supported yourself through work or benefits outside full-time education for any three years before the first day of the first academic year of your course
• are not married, in a civil partnership or living with a partner

Your household income is the combined income of you and:

• your parents
• your parent's partner (if they live with your parent)
• your parent's civil partner (if they live with your parent)
• your legal guardians

Independent students

You are an independent student if one of the following applies:

• you’re over 25 years of age before the start of the academic year
• you have a dependent child at the start of the academic year, who lives with you for most of the week
• you’ve supported yourself from earnings or benefits outside full-time education for any three years before the first day of the first academic year of your course
• you have no living parents
• you’re married, in a civil partnership or live with a partner before the first day of the first academic year of your course
• you’re estranged from your parents

Your household income is the combined income of you and your:

• husband
• wife
• civil partner
• partner

Find out about student finance if you're estranged from your parents or legal guardians in the SAAS funding guide.

4. Send information to your university

Each year you want to apply for a grant, send your university your:

• completed application form
• supporting documents
• signed contract

Where to send your forms

If you repeat a year

If you repeat a year of your studies, you can apply for an additional year of the DSSG. You should complete the DSSG application form and the extenuating circumstances form and send these to your university.   

Your university may ask you to provide supporting evidence. They might not give you the grant for the year you repeat.