Tuition fee policy and guidance

1. Introduction

1.1 Cardiff University is committed to a fair and transparent policy in respect of the fees and charges it expects students to pay.

1.2 The University has an obligation to safeguard public funds and ensure that it delivers value for money to its customers. The Tuition Fee Policy forms part of the university’s Terms and Conditions and should be read in conjunction with them, together they provide a framework for the setting, payment, collection, and reconciliation of tuition fees.

1.3 Tuition fee rates apply for a full academic session. Fee levels are determined based on fee status and mode of attendance following receipt of a formal application for admission to the University. Fees are subject to annual revision and are due in full at the start of each academic year.

1.4 The payment of fees is the responsibility of the student and, in the event of a student’s sponsoring authority (if any) failing to make payment, the student will be held personally liable for payment.

1.5 Course fees include all compulsory elements needed for students to meet the minimum learning outcomes of the course. In some courses, optional additional costs may be incurred (e.g., field trips, materials, professional body membership).

2. Fee status classification

2.1 Cardiff University uses UKCISA (UK Council for International Student Affairs) guidelines to determine fee status.

3. Fee status assessment for applicants

3.1 The final decision as to a student’s status for fees will be determined by Cardiff University based on individual information in accordance with The Education (Fees and Awards) (Wales) Regulations 2007 and The Higher Education (Qualifying Courses, Qualifying Persons and Supplementary Provision) (Wales) Regulations 2015, and any subsequent amendments.

3.2 Fee status is confirmed following receipt of a formal application for admission to the University which is successful (i.e., where an offer of a place to study is to be made) by the University’s Admissions Team. Each applicant’s fee status is considered on an individual basis by a member of the Admissions Team with relevant expertise.

3.3 Fee status is normally determined from information supplied in the application for admission. However, the University reserves the right to request the provision of additional information and original documentation where necessary. Failure to submit supporting documentation or information, when requested, will result in either the allocation of the higher rate of fee classification or a rejection decision. A minimum of 14 days will be allowed for documentation/information to be submitted. All relevant information/documentation known/available at the time of application must be disclosed. Confirmation of fee status is detailed in the formal offer of admission. Applicants should allow a minimum of 10 working days for a decision on their assessment. Final assessment is normally made prior to enrolment, subject to the submission of appropriate documentation.

3.4 If an applicant achieves settled status or the relevant period of ordinary residence after the first day of the academic year (as outlined in the Education (Fees and Awards) (Wales) Regulations 2007) but before the start of the programme, the University will deem the first day of the programme to be the relevant date in the determination offer status.

4. Fee status assessments for students

4.1 Once an applicant starts the enrolment process to become a student, an adjustment to fee status will only be applied should it become evident that an error had been made in the initial classification, or if adjustment is required under the regulations.

5. Fee Status Appeals

5.1 All applicants have the right to appeal a fee status if they disagree with their fee status classification and have reasonable grounds for doing so. Reasonable grounds are:

• Additional information or evidence demonstrating the fee classification is incorrect is available that was not available at the time of the initial assessment.
• The applicant feels their assessment has not been treated in a fair or consistent manner, or in line with official regulations.

5.2 All appeals should be made in writing to the Head of Admissions within 28 days of receipt of a formal offer to admissions-advice@cardiff.ac.uk. Your full name and University Application number or UCAS Personal ID must be provided along with any documentation or evidence relevant to the appeal. You should also state under which category you are appealing (1. New information or 2. Incorrect assessment). If appealing under category 2 you should also state which UKCISA fee category you feel you meet and why.

The University will provide an initial response within 28 working days of a fee status assessment being received.

6. Appeal Panel

6.1 When a decision cannot be reached by Admissions or where a second appeal is submitted with reasonable grounds (as outlined above) a panel will review the case.

6.2 The appeal panel will consist of a minimum of three members of Cardiff University staff including a representative from Admissions, Finance and the Academic School or College. A minimum of two members of the panel will not have been involved in the original fee assessment.

6.3 Panel members will assess the fee status independently and will then meet to discuss their findings. All appeals will be held in a timely manner and a timeline for a decision will be communicated to the applicant or authorised party acting on the applicant’s behalf when full evidence/information has been received from the applicant.

6.4 All decisions by the panel are final and there is no further right to appeal. The final decision will be communicated to the applicant in writing by the Head of Admissions (or member of staff acting on their behalf).

7. Annual revision of fees

Home undergraduate

7.1 Fees stated on the University website are for 2024/2025 entry. The University reserves the right to increase tuition fees in the second and subsequent years of a course as permitted by law or Welsh Government policy.

Home postgraduate taught

7.2 Fees stated on the University website are for 2024/2025 entry and are fixed for the duration of your Programme. Fees for entry in subsequent years are subject to increase and will be confirmed by the end of September in the year proceeding your start date of your Programme.

Home postgraduate research

7.3 Fees stated on the University website are for 2024/2025 entry. Fees for future years are subject to increase in line with United Kingdom Research and Innovation (UKRI) recommendations.

Overseas/EU undergraduate

7.4 Fees stated on the University website are for 2024/2025 and are fixed for the duration of your Programme, excluding Medicine and Dentistry programmes. For Medicine and Dentistry, the fee is fixed for pre-clinical years, after which the clinical fee rate will be applied.

If you are an EU/EEA/Swiss national please be aware that, unless you qualify for Home fee status, tuition fee increases from September 2021 entry will be in line with the fees charged for students outside of the EU. From September 2022 all Channel Island status students will be charged in line with the Home fee.

Overseas/EU postgraduate taught

7.5 Fees stated on the University website are for 2024/2025 entry and are fixed for the duration of your Programme.

If you are an EU/EEA/Swiss national please be aware that, unless you qualify for Home fee status, tuition fee increases from September 2021 entry will be in line with the fees charged for students outside of the EU.

Overseas/EU postgraduate research

7.6 Fees stated on the University website are for 2024/2025 entry and are fixed for the duration of your Programme.

If you are an EU/EEA/Swiss national please be aware that, unless you qualify for Home fee status, tuition fee increases from September 2021 entry will be in line with the fees charged for students outside of the EU.

8. Student Tuition fees

8.1 At enrolment each student signs a declaration agreeing to the terms and conditions of Cardiff University and accepting the offer of a place as set out in the offer letter. This includes confirmation of your tuition fee classification and liability for payment of the fees for the duration of the programme of study.

8.2 As set out above, all applicants have the right to appeal a fee status prior to accepting the offer of a place, if they disagree with their fee status classification ie. If you sign up at enrolment to accept your fee status as set out in the offer letter, the University will not undertake a further review of your fee status, unless you can exceptionally show that there has been an error in the classification that could not be presented to the University as part of the applicant fee status appeal process as set out above.

9. Review request

This stage is available for enrolled students only.

9.1 If following completion of enrolment, a student can exceptionally show that there has been an error in the classification of the fee status, a formal request for review of the fees may be submitted under the University Review Procedure. For the purposes of this policy, the permitted grounds to request a review under section 1.5 University Review Procedure are only the ground of procedural irregularity and/or the ground of new information or evidence, in the University Review Procedure.

9.2 The student will be required to submit the request for a review of the fee status to studentcases@Cardiff.ac.uk within 14 days of the error in classification being identified along with independent evidence to support the claim and reasons why they could not have presented this information to the University at the application stage. If the review request is accepted as eligible for consideration, the provisions set out in the University Review Procedure will be followed for consideration of the case.

10.  Payment of Tuition Fees

How to pay Tuition Fees

10.1 The preferred method of tuition fee payment is through the student University SIMS online account. Alternatively, payment can be made by direct debit or, in certain circumstances, direct bank transfer into the correct University Tuition Fee account, details can be found on the student intranet.

Please note, cash payments are never accepted by the University. Any cash payments will be returned to the payee and will not be allocated to the student record.

10.2 Any tuition fees of £500 or less must be paid in one instalment and are therefore not eligible to be paid by direct debit.

10.3  All tuition fees must be paid within the academic year that they relate to.

Students are permitted to pay their fees as follows:

Home undergraduate (including Student Finance funding)

• Payment in full before or on enrolment.
• Payment by direct debit from a UK bank account, in three instalments on the appropriate due dates notified in SIMS as follows:
  • 1st 25%
  • 2nd 25%
  • 3rd 50%
• By payment of 25% of the total fee at the start of the academic session followed by one subsequent payment of 25% and a final payment of 50% on the due dates notified in SIMS.

Note: Students whose application for Student Finance funding is rejected for any reason will be changed to self-payer status and become directly responsible for the payment of their tuition fees. In the event a Student Finance application is subsequently approved a refund will be made where applicable.

All overseas/EU undergraduates

• Payment in full before or on enrolment
• Payment by direct debit from a UK bank account, in three instalments on the appropriate due dates notified in SIMS as follows:
  • 1st 33%
  • 2nd 33%
  • 3rd 34%
• By payment of one-third of the fee before or on enrolment, followed by payment of one-third of the fee on appropriate due dates as notified in SIMS.

All postgraduate students

• Payment in full before or on enrolment.
• Payment by direct debit from a UK bank account, in three instalments on the appropriate due dates notified in SIMS as follows.
  • 1st 33%
  • 2nd 33%
  • 3rd 34%
• By payment of one-third of the fee before or on enrolment, followed by payment of one-third of the fee on appropriate due dates as notified in SIMS.

Sponsored students (not Student Finance funded)

10.4 Students must provide proof of sponsorship to the Income Section (Finance Department). It is the responsibility of the student to inform their sponsor that tuition fees are to be paid 30 days from the date of invoice. All invoices can be viewed on the student University SIMS online account. In the event of sponsors not paying fees when due, the student becomes personally responsible for paying the full fee.

10.5 Where a student is in receipt of part-sponsorship for tuition fees, (unless the sponsor decrees otherwise), the sponsored part of the fee will be deducted from the total fee, and the student made liable for the balance. Payment of the balance is to be made in line with the information noted above in ‘How to pay tuition fees.’

Late or non-payment of tuition fees and other monies

10.6 At enrolment, students will receive confirmation of tuition fee payment dates, in accordance with the method of payment they chose. Students will also be advised of the importance of notifying the Income Section (Finance Department) if they have any individual circumstances that may be causing difficulty in making tuition fee payment by the required deadline. Students who wish to make an adjustment to their existing tuition fee payment dates should complete the online form.

The Income Section (Finance Department) will contact students via their university email address after the deadline for payment of either a tuition fee or any other monies owed has passed.

Students will be advised:

• the due date for payment has passed
• when payment is required to avoid any further email contact or, in the case of tuition fee arrears, that they may be at risk of de-registration
• prior to de-registration students will receive an email giving 7 days advance notice, which is sent to both their university and home email addresses

10.7 Students must urgently contact the Income Section through the Student Connect portal if they are experiencing any difficulty in making tuition fee or rental accommodation payments, or Income@cardiff.ac.uk for any other debt. The Income Section can review any individual circumstances provided and adjust payments where relevant. If a student breaches any special payment arrangements that have been approved by the Income Section, they may be at risk of de-registration.

In the event a student is de-registered due to non-payment of tuition fees this information will be passed to Registry who will inform the relevant parties i.e., academic schools, libraries, and other administrative departments.

Interruption of study (IOS)

10.8 All students who are granted permission to take an interruption of study by their school will be charged tuition fees confirming their financial liability in the event they do not return to continue their studies as follows:

Undergraduate and postgraduate self-paying students

From the date the IoS starts charged pro-rata fees based on the number of weeks registered to study, as recorded by Registry on the student SIMS record.

Undergraduate Student Finance funded students

From the date the IoS starts charged fees based on the date of the interruption of study as recorded by Registry on the student SIMS record, and the Student Finance liability pay points for that academic year. Details of liability pay point dates can be found on our Withdrawal and tuition fees page.

Returning from Interruption of Study (IoS)

10.9 All undergraduate and postgraduate students returning to study after an IoS must pay the balance of tuition fees owed for the academic course they were studying when their IoS began. For example, if the full course fee was £9,000 and payment had been made of £4,500 before the IoS starting, then a balance of £4,500 must be paid upon returning to study. Note, that this only applies to students who return to study within two years of starting their IoS. For those students who wish to return to study later than two years after starting their IoS, payment of the full tuition fees due for the new academic year must be made.

Graduation

If an undergraduate student still owes tuition fees or other monies at the point of graduation, they will be allowed to attend the ceremony but will not receive their full certification until all due payments are received. Postgraduate students will not be invited to their graduation ceremony until their award is confirmed by the Awards and Progress Committee, and this requires all fees to have been paid.

11. Refund of tuition fees

Note, refunds will only be made to the original payee and bank account.

Withdrawal

11.1 Each student is granted a two-week grace period at the start of a course when no tuition fees are charged. After this period if a student withdraws, they will be charged fees on the following basis.

Home undergraduate - Student Finance funded

11.2 All undergraduate home students who are funded by Student Finance will be charged the following minimum amounts:

• Term 1: No fees are payable if withdrawn on or before 13 October 2024. If withdrawn between 14 October 2024 to 19 January 2025, 25% of the full fee is payable.
• Term 2: If withdrawn on or before 19 January 2025, 25% of the full fee is payable. If withdrawn between 20 January 2025 to 4 May 2025, 50% of the full fee is payable.
• Term 3: If withdrawn on or before 5 May 2025, 50% of the full fee is payable. If withdrawn between 5 May 2025 to 13 June 2025 then 100% of the full fee is payable.

Note: the above cut-off dates apply to when the student record is updated on SIMS not when a withdrawal request is made.

For more details, see the Finance web page.

Home/overseas/EU - not funded by Student Finance

11.3 All other students not funded by Student Finance will be charged (less any non-refundable deposit), on a pro-rata basis on the number of weeks in attendance from the start of the course 32 weeks academic year, or 52 weeks for postgraduate students. An appropriate refund will be made if necessary.

Academic failure

11.4 In the event you are unsuccessful in completing all elements of your academic studies and exit with a lesser award, you will not be eligible for a refund of tuition fees for the element of your course that you did not complete.

Bursaries, scholarships, and other awards

11.5 Where a student is eligible for an award towards their tuition fees it is their responsibility to ensure that the Income Team (Finance Department) are made aware of this award in the event it is not automatically applied to their student record. Notification of an award being applied is visible as part of the student online enrolment task. Where the award is not showing as applied the student should, in the first instance, contact the awarding body.