1 Introduction

1.1 The University tuition fees for programmes of study are contained in the tuition fee schedule and can be viewed on the University at www.chi.ac.uk/studentfinance/TuitionFees.cfm

1.2 The Department for Business Innovation and Skills (DBIS) sets the maximum fee chargeable for full time home and EU students. Tuition fees for full time Channel Island and Isle of Man students are set by each of the three island authorities. All other tuition fees are set by the University.

1.3 Students retain the ultimate liability for payment of their fees, whether invoiced or not, including where a sponsor has agreed to pay the fee, in the event of the sponsor defaulting.

1.4 The University reserves the right to exclude any students who do not pay their fees, or make satisfactory arrangements to pay during the course of their studies. Students in debt to the University are not permitted to re-register for the following academic year until all debt has been paid in full.

1.5 The University reserves the right to claim any late payment charges, interest, legal or other debt collection costs from students who fail to pay in accordance with any agreements made with the University.

1.6 Home and EU students undertaking undergraduate courses or Post Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) programmes may be eligible for a tuition fee loan. For further information on tuition fee loans please visit the Student Finance England (SFE) website at www.direct.gov.uk and click on the link to student loans. Students who choose not to undergo assessment through SFE will be assumed to have International status and will need to go through additional validation to pay fees at the Home/EU student rate.

2 Deposits from International Students

2.1 All students on credit bearing courses, who are assessed as liable to pay the International fee rate, are required to pay a deposit of £1,000 to secure their place on a course.

2.2 Deposit refunds will only be made where a prospective student can provide documentary evidence that their visa application has been declined or where the course offer has been withdrawn.

3 Payments

3.1 Tuition fees are due for payment on or before the start of each academic year, or at the start of each registration period for non-standard start dates.

3.2 Self financing students have the option to pay fees by instalment as detailed below:
For courses commencing in September and running over a full academic year

• Instalment One: 1st October
  
• Instalment Two: 1st February

The University operates an on-line payments facility which enables these instalments to be paid automatically.

The University reserves the right to levy a late payment fee if these instalment dates are not met.

3.3 Instalment agreements can be downloaded from the university website or can be obtained by contacting the cash office at the Bishop Otter Campus.

3.4 Students who have applied to the Student Loan Company (SLC) for a tuition fee loan to meet the cost of their tuition will receive written confirmation of their entitlement from the SLC. Students will be required to provide evidence of this funding during the registration process.

3.5 Students in receipt of funding, either in full or part, from a third party sponsor, such as a commercial or charitable organisation, must complete an official University sponsorship form either prior to, or at registration in each academic year. The University will then invoice the sponsor directly. The sponsorship form can be downloaded from the university website.

3.6 Parents, family members or friends are not classed as sponsors.

3.7 Where a sponsor fails to pay, the student is liable for outstanding amounts (See 1.3 above)

4 Non- Payment of Tuition Fees

4.1 Students who fail to pay their tuition and other academic related fees by the agreed instalment dates will have access to University facilities suspended until full payment of the outstanding debt is received, or satisfactory arrangements to clear the debt have been agreed by the Head of Finance and Management Information.

4.2 Continued failure to pay University fees will normally result in exclusion from the University.

4.3 Where fees remain outstanding the University reserves the right to engage a third party, such as a debt collection agency, to collect these fees. All costs incurred by the University in the collection of outstanding amounts will be added to the student’s account.

4.4 Students who remain in debt to the University will not be permitted to attend a graduation ceremony, or receive their award certificate, until all debts to the University have been paid.

5 Refunds Relating to Withdrawal or Intermission from the University

5.1 Prior to any consideration for a refund, all necessary withdrawal or intermission procedures must have been completed by the student and the details recorded in the student records system (SITS).

5.2 Any full time undergraduate student who withdraws by the end of September will receive a full refund of any contribution to fees paid directly to the University. For those who withdraw between 1st October and 1st December a fee equating to one third of the annual fee is payable. Students who withdraw between 2nd December and 31st March are liable to fees at two thirds the annual rate. For those who withdraw after 31st March, the full annual fee is payable.

5.3 For students withdrawing or intermitting from a Postgraduate taught or research programme, fees are calculated pro rata based on 52 weeks.

5.4 SLC regulations state that only those full time students in attendance on 1st December are eligible to a tuition fee loan. Students should therefore be aware that should they withdraw / intermit on or before this date, they will be personally liable for the tuition fee.

5.5 Where a student has taken a tuition fee loan and their date of withdrawal / Intermission results in the University receiving an overpayment from SLC, we will return funds to the SLC who should then adjust the student’s liability accordingly.

5.6 Part time undergraduate and postgraduate taught students who withdraw from their course during the year will be liable to pay the full module fee for each module commenced in the academic year.

6 Writing Up Fees

Postgraduate Taught (PGT) Courses

6.1 A ‘writing up’ fee will be levied where a postgraduate taught student has carried out the required minimum period of registration and has met all requirements for taught elements of the programme, with the exception of submission of the dissertation. In these circumstances the student will be considered to be no longer using the Faculty specialist facilities e.g. laboratories although he/she can continue to make use of the University’s general facilities including IT and the Learning Resources Centre, and have access to their Supervisor. The writing up fee will be charged from the academic year following the initial dissertation phase invoice and will be charged annually thereafter in accordance with the University’s Academic Regulations

Postgraduate Research (PGR) Students

6.2 The University may allow transfer to nominal registration for both full and part-time candidates for a period not exceeding twelve months in the first instance. The supervisor(s) must confirm that the period of candidature for either the MPhil or PhD has been completed, upgrade has taken place (in the case of a PhD candidate), research is substantially complete as determined by the Research Degrees Group and External Research Degrees Committee (University of Southampton), and the thesis is being written up. Where a candidate is on nominal registration for longer than 6 months, a fee becomes payable. The University may in exceptional circumstances, permit a candidate to suspend when in nominal registration.

6.3 Candidates retain access to library and computing facilities until their thesis is examined and, where appropriate, any revisions requested by the examiners have been made. Access to other facilities (e.g. office space) may be extended at the discretion of the University. With support from their supervisor, a candidate may apply in writing to extend the period of nominal registration beyond 12 months, taking account where applicable of Regulations 23 and 24 of the University of Southampton Regulations for the degrees of Master of Philosophy and Doctor of Philosophy regarding extension of candidature.

6.4 Periods of nominal registration count towards the maximum period of candidature.

6.5 Students who register for a programme of part time or full time MPhil or PhD study who are not following the MPhil Probationer route must pay a fee of £140 upon registration. Once the student’s application has been approved by the External Research Degrees Committee of the University of Southampton, the student will be charged the appropriate fee rate, effective from their registration date at the University of Chichester, less the £140 already paid. Students in receipt of a fee bursary or written fee waiver will not be charged a fee.

6.6 The nominal fee entitles the student to an ID card, access to IT and library facilities. It does not provide for supervisory support from academic colleagues. Students requiring support from academic staff to complete their application for MPhil/PhD study (Form 1) should follow the MPhil Probationer route. The current fee for the Probationer programme is £400 and entitles the student to six tutorials with a member of academic staff over a twelve month period.

7 Resit Fees

7.1 If a student has to be reassessed because he/she failed to submit at the first attempt of final assessment (without prior agreed mitigating circumstances), they will be required to pay an admin charge of £91 per module.

7.2 If a student fails to submit at reassessment (without prior agreed mitigating circumstances) or otherwise irrevocably fails a module and in accordance with Academic Regulations, they are permitted to ‘trail’ a module into the next level, they will be required to pay an admin charge of £91 per module.

8 Discounts

Early Payment Discount

8.1 Students who pay their full annual fee prior to the start of the academic year will be entitled to a 3% discount. This is subject to periodic review.

Alumni Discount

8.2 Students undertaking a first postgraduate taught course (excluding PGCE) within 5 years of completing their undergraduate programme, at the University will be entitled to a 10% reduction in fees for each year of study. Similarly, any student taking a postgraduate research degree programme within 5 years of successfully completing an undergraduate or taught postgraduate programme at the University will be entitled to a 10% reduction in fees. NB this discount is instead of, not in addition to, the early payment discount.

9 Accreditation of Prior (Experiential) Learning (APL) and (APEL)

9.1 Students who are receiving accreditation of prior learning (APL) and prior experiential learning (APEL) will be required to pay a fee reflective of the resources applied to perform the accreditation process and the amount of credit being awarded.

9.2 Full time students (who are receiving full University module credit, a University of Chichester award and full access to University facilities) will be charged the annual full-time fee unless study is restricted to one semester, in which case 50% of the full-time annual fee will be charged.

Approved by the Board of Governors: 24 November 2009