Tuition Fee Guidance 2012/13

When do I have to pay my tuition fees?
When do I have to pay my accommodation fees?
Methods of paying your tuition and accommodation fees
What happens if my tuition fee payment is late?
What can I do if I am having difficulty paying my fees?
Payment of interest or administration charges
Debts to the University
Reinstatement on your programme after paying fee debt
How do I claim a refund for tuition fees?
How are fees calculated for postgraduate students?
Refunds by LEAs/Student Loans Company/Research Councils
How do I claim a refund for accommodation fees?
How do I appeal or make a complaint about my fees?
Staff tuition fees
Is there a charge for taking a resit examination?
Applying for Scholarships and Bursaries
Am I an Overseas or Home fee paying student?
Eligibility to participate in the ERASMUS Programme
ERASMUS Programme Fees
Year in Industry Fees/Study on Year Abroad Fees (Non-EU exchange)
What tuition fees will I pay as a part-time undergraduate student?
What tuition fees will I pay if I already have a qualification at the same or higher level than the one I am applying for?
Miscellaneous Undergraduate Fees
Miscellaneous Postgraduate Research Fees

When do I have to pay my tuition fees?

If you are paying your tuition fees direct to the University, you may pay the full amount in a single payment or you may make two instalments as set out below. Payments can be made by direct debit (preferred method) or credit card/debit card by visiting www.bristol.ac.uk/online-payments.

Payments by cheque can be made by visiting the Cash Office on the ground floor of Senate House on, or before, the instalment due dates. Payment by bank transfer can be made in a single instalment only.

Students who are undertaking a modular based postgraduate programme are required to pay in advance for each module.


For returning students and those starting in October 2012 the payment dates are as follows:

Paying by two instalments:

Students starting at other times of the year will be advised of any different payment arrangement.

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When do I have to pay my accommodation fees?

Accommodation fees become due when you take up your place in University accommodation.

You may choose to pay accommodation fees by three instalments, rather than by a single payment. 

Paying by three instalments:

Methods of paying your tuition and accommodation fees

You can pay by direct debit (preferred method) credit/debit card or cheque by instalments or a single payment, or by bank transfer in one single payment only.

To pay or schedule fees by direct debit or credit/debit card visit www.bristol.ac.uk/online-payments. To pay by cheque, visit the Cash Office on the ground floor of Senate House. To pay by bank transfer, contact student-fees@bristol.ac.uk for our full account details.

What happens if my tuition fee payment is late?

If you become aware of a reason why your payment will be late, you must contact the Income Office to explain the position. If you are in genuine difficulty with payment, an authorised member of the Finance Office will try to agree a plan of payment with you that you can afford. 

If you fail to submit a payment plan or if your payment plan method fails, you will be contacted within two weeks of the expected payment date and asked to make immediate payment by another method.  If this payment method also fails, you may be charged an administration fee.

If you fail to provide the University with a satisfactory response in the circumstances described above you will be sent a formal letter requesting that you contact the University Credit Control Manager.  Your Faculty Office and academic department(s) will also be notified.

If you fail to respond, or if after contacting the Credit Control Manager you are unable to provide an acceptable payment plan, the University reserves the right to terminate your studies and/or to require you to leave your accommodation.  The University will then put any debt outstanding in the hands of a debt collector.  Any additional costs incurred will be added to your account.

Students who continue to be in debt to the University at the end of the academic year will not be permitted to register for the following year of their programme or to graduate.

Members of the Student Funding Office can provide advice on additional funding that may be available to assist you.

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What can I do if I am having difficulty paying my fees?

If you are experiencing difficulties in paying tuition or accommodation fees you should seek help at the earliest possible opportunity.  Initially you should approach staff in the Student Funding Office.  They will be able to provide general advice as well as information about any additional funding that may be available.  You may also wish to speak to a personal tutor, hall warden or the Students' Union for support and advice.  It is important to keep the Income Office informed of developments (see above).  The University will be sympathetic and assist where it can.  However, in order to maintain the quality of teaching for everyone else, the University must act to recover debts

Payment of interest or administration charges

You will become liable to pay interest at 2.5% above UK clearing bank base rate per annum on the amount outstanding where payments are outstanding against your payment plan.  Interest will run from the due date to the date when the fees are paid.

The Finance Office will review the student-related debt ledger throughout the year and apply interest on a consistent basis annually. 

An administration charge of £25 may be raised where your chosen method of payment is declined more than once.  This will apply to each payment date.

Debts to the University

Reinstatement on your programme after paying fee debt

If you have been required to leave the University, registration on your programme of study may be reinstated on payment in full of outstanding tuition fees before the end of the academic year in question. However, if you are consequently behind with your studies, you may have to repeat parts of the programme, thereby incurring further fees.

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How do I claim a refund for tuition fees?

Refund claims can be made by students (or their sponsors) who subsequently suspend from their studies or withdraw from their programme of study before completion. A claim for a refund can only be made once the University has received a written notification of withdrawal or suspension.  You must complete a Withdrawal Form or Suspension Form (available on each Faculty website or Faculty Office) and the date of receipt of the form will normally be the date of your withdrawal or suspension. Backdating of suspension or withdrawal is not normally considered but if you feel that there are exceptional circumstances, this should be outlined on the form. You must complete and return the form to your Faculty Office.

All fee refunds will be paid to the person making the original payment. if the original payer is not you (for example your parent or guardian), but wishes the refund to be paid to you, they must provide the Income Office with written permission for the refund to be paid to you rather than to them.

Undergraduate Students:

Students are entitled to a full refund if a claim is made within the first 4 weeks of the start of the programme (not including week 0).  Thereafter, any claim for a refund will be based on the number of weeks in attendance (this includes all categories of students and sponsors including all undergraduate students who have applied for an SLC fee loan).  If you have any queries relating to the refund policy, please contact the Income Office Manager, Senate House, in the first instance.

Postgraduate Students:

Refunds for postgraduate taught and postgraduate research students are calculated on a monthly basis based on the fee paying year (1 October* – 30 September). Students are entitled to a full refund if a claim is made within the first 4 weeks of the start of the programme, except those with outstanding debts. Where a student withdraws midway through a month, the student will be charged for the whole month's fees

* Where the start of term falls in September, students will not be charged for an additional month's fees. In 2011/12, the start of the fee paying year is 3 October 2011.

How are fees calculated for postgraduate students?

Where students start at a non-standard point in the year, i.e. before or after 1 October, fees are calculated on a pro rata monthly basis in line with the fee paying year (1 October* - 30 September). Where a student commences studies midway through a month, fees will be charged for the whole month in the first year of study.

Please note, where programmes are modularised, fees are charged pro-rata to the number of credit points taken and so are not affected by this policy.

* Where the start of term falls in September, students will not be charged for an additional month's fees. In 2012/13, the start of the fee paying year is 3 October 2012*.

Refunds by LEAs/Student Loans Company/Research Councils

Where students are sponsored by Research Councils, refunds are to be based on Research Council rules.

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How do I claim a refund for accommodation fees?

If you leave your accommodation early, the sum for which you are liable is set out in the Student Residence Conditions.

All fee refunds will be paid to the person making the original payment. if the original payer is not you (for example your parent or guardian), but wishes the refund to be paid to you, they must provide the Income Office with written permission for the refund to be paid to you rather than to them. 

How do I appeal or make a complaint about my fees?

If you are unhappy about any matter relating to fee levels or payments you should in the first instance contact the Income Office Manager, who is based in Senate House. If the matter remains unresolved, you may bring a complaint under the University's Student Grievance Procedure.

Staff tuition fees

Tuition fees for programmes and courses taken by members of staff are the same as for all other students.

Is there a charge for taking a re-sit examination?

No.  However, if you require extra tuition to prepare for resit examinations you will be charged at normal rates on a pro rata basis.

Applying for Scholarships and Bursaries

Information about obtaining a scholarship or bursary can be found on the University's Student Funding Office website or please contact your department for more details.

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Am I an Overseas or Home fee paying student?

Eligibility to participate in the ERASMUS Programme

Any student (Home/EU or Overseas) who has completed one year of his/her undergraduate or postgraduate programme and who wishes to spend between 3 months (13 weeks) and a maximum of 12 months studying or working in Continental Europe can participate in the ERASMUS programme. Overseas students are not entitled to a grant from the European Office under the ERASMUS regulations and are therefore required to pay the full tuition fee rate. Channel Islands and Isle of Man students are entitled to a grant from the European Office under the ERASMUS regulations but are not entitled to a tuition fee waiver. For further details of the ERASMUS programme, please click here for the European Office. (http://www.bris.ac.uk/internationalcentre/europe)

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What Tuition Fees will I pay as a Part-Time Undergraduate Student?

The standard part-time undergraduate fee for students commencing their studies from 2012/13 will be £4,500 per annum. Please note that if you commenced study prior to the 2012/13 academic year the old fee regime will apply. These fees will be available early in 2012.

What Tuition Fees will I pay if I already have a qualification at the same or a higher level than the one that I am applying for?

From the 2008/09 academic year, universities will no longer receive government funding for students who are studying for a qualification which is at the same or a lower level than one they already hold (e.g. student studying for a second undergraduate degree). As a result the fees for some such students will increase. These students will be known as ELQ students (i.e. those studying for an Equivalent or Lower Qualification).

From 2009/10, students studying for an equivalent of lower qualification than one they have already achieved may be charged a higher fee - for more information on ELQ's, please see here.

*Please note that these dates are to be confirmed.

 

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