Tuition fee loans from the Student Loans Company
Most UK undergraduate and PGCE students fall into this category.
Undergraduate and PGCE students - If you are due to start a course which is eligible to receive funding from the Student Loans Company, and you are applying to your award authority (e.g. Student Finance England) for a loan to cover your tuition fees, your application should be submitted in time for it to be fully approved prior to enrolment. You need to do this every academic year. We will then receive a notification of fees due to be paid by the Student Loans Company and will offset this against any fees due to be paid by you. In most cases, this means that you will not be invoiced for any fees.
If we do not receive confirmation that your tuition fee loan application has been approved before we issue invoices, or the Student Loans Company subsequently notify us that your entitlement has been reduced or removed, we will invoice you personally for your tuition fees as a self-financing student.
Late applications can still be made during the academic year. See gov.uk/student-finance for the deadlines. If we receive late notification of payment from the Student Loans Company, we will refund to you any tuition fee money that you have paid for the relevant academic year.
If your fees are being paid by a sponsor or employer
If you have arranged for your tuition fee to be paid fully or partly by your sponsor directly to the University, it is important that you provide us with proof of your sponsorship for each academic year. This can be either a purchase order or a letter confirming your sponsorship on your sponsor's official letterhead and must include your name, course and year, the amount of contribution towards your fees and identify the name and address to which the fees invoice should be sent. If this information is not received by the Finance Directorate within two weeks of your enrolment, we will invoice you personally for your fees.
This information should be sent via email to sponsorletters@shu.ac.uk
We will then invoice your sponsor directly. The invoice will be due for payment 30 days after the date on the invoice. Please be aware that, should your sponsor fail to make payment for any reason, you will remain personally liable for the full amount of your tuition fees and will be invoiced accordingly.
The majority of apprenticeship courses that the University offers are funded wholly or partly by the government (through the Education and Skills Funding Agency) and partly by your employer. If you are studying with us as an apprentice your fee sponsorship arrangements will be set out in the employer sponsor letter, which will be provided to you before your enrolment with us.
Self-financing students
We will issue you with an invoice stating the amounts that are due and the dates when payment is required. These dates differ depending on when you started: Tuition fee instalment dates for returning students
The instalment plan that will be offered to you depends on:
- whether you are studying full-time or part-time
- whether you are classified as a UK or international student for fees assessment purposes
- whether your study is undergraduate, postgraduate taught or postgraduate research
- the amount of fee to be charged
If your invoice is late, for whatever reason, your instalment due dates will not be extended. You may therefore find that more than one instalment is due on a particular date.
Postgraduate students
This year postgraduate students on eligible courses domiciled in Northern Ireland may have access to student loans of up to £5500 per course. These loans will be paid directly to the University in line with the Student Loans Company's instalments dates. Any remaining fees will be due in line with the "self-financing student" policy below.
Postgraduate students on eligible courses commencing 1st August onwards and domiciled in England and Wales may have access to student loans of up to £10,609. These loans are paid directly to you and can be used at your discretion to pay for fees, living or other costs so the University will class you as a self-financing student. This means that your tuition fees will have to be paid on the due dates stated in your invoice.