Getting disabled students prepared for university or college
Source: gov.uk (2025-08-05)

Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA) could support you while you’re studying – don’t miss out.

Applying for student finance and Disabled Students’ Allowance

The quickest and easiest way to apply for Disabled Students’ Allowance (https://www.gov.uk/disabled-students-allowance-dsa) is online. But you can also do it on a paper form (https://www.gov.uk/disabled-students-allowance-dsa/how-to-claim), if you prefer.

When you apply for your student finance, make sure you tick the box to say you want to apply for DSA. You should then complete the rest of your student finance application and submit.

Once you’ve submitted your student finance application, you’ll need to complete a separate application for DSA. You’ll find this in your ‘to do’ list in your online account.

Don’t wait until we approve your student finance application before you apply for DSA as we’ll assess these at the same time. It’s important to apply early to make sure you get your support in place before the start of your course.

Check out Bethany's DSA experience (https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/64ca672221df0f0014ab4c05/Bethany_s_Experience_with_DSA.odt) (ODT, 6.98 KB)

Information about your disability or condition

As part of your application for DSA, you’ll need to give us some supporting documents about your disability or condition. You should try and give us these documents as soon as you can. This means we’ll have everything we need to work out what help you can get before your course starts.

For more information on what documents you can send us, check out our eligibility page (https://www.gov.uk/disabled-students-allowance-dsa/eligibility).

Getting your application in early

The earlier you apply, the earlier you’ll be able to arrange your needs assessment and get any support or equipment in place for the start of your course.

The application for DSA is reviewed separately from your main student finance application and can take up to 14 weeks to approve. Apply today to make sure you have everything in place for the start of your course.

If your application is late, you may not have the support you need in place for the start of your course.

You don’t need a confirmed place at university or college to apply for DSA, so don’t wait for offers. You should apply using your preferred choice and you can simply update your details if anything changes.

If you get a diagnosis after your course has started, you can still apply for DSA. You should apply as soon as you’re able to. If you give us consent when you’re applying, we can share your medical documents with your DSA supplier to save you from having to send them.

After you’ve applied and your application has been approved, we’ll send you a letter with details of your supplier to arrange your needs assessment. If you give permission, we’ll pass your details directly to the supplier who’ll be in touch to arrange this.

You may still have to attend a needs assessment even if you’ve recently had a medical assessment to get your diagnostic report, as these are different.

What to expect from your ‘needs assessment’

Find out what you can expect from your needs assessment by checking our dedicated page (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/what-to-expect-from-your-disabled-students-allowance-dsa-needs-assessment). You can read about the process or watch a video that explains it.