Ask a student about a university's fees this week, and a second number usually follows close behind. That second number is the scholarship. Across this week's tranche of counselling interactions, 42.5% included a scholarship discussion the student raised on their own, often with a specific amount already in mind, figures like £12,500 or £9,500 from named universities, worked out on the call itself.

Students subtract that amount from the headline fee and land on a net cost, and for many families, that net number is what makes a university feel within reach rather than out of range.

Parents are part of this too. In 37.5% of this week's interactions, parents were named as active participants in the planning, weighing fees and loan amounts alongside their child. The figure that goes home usually isn't the tuition fee. It's the fee after the scholarship, and that's what families plan around.

For LeapScholar, this points to a clear role: sharing specific, current scholarship details, tied to named universities and real deadlines, gives families these numbers early, while the shortlist is still being built.