What happens to my bursary and tuition fees if I withdraw from my course?

If you withdraw, suspend, defer, step off or have a period of absence for 15 calendar days or more, you'll be classed as withdrawn from your course unless you are on maternity leave. 

This is regardless of whether you intend to return to your study.

Please contact us if you've not already informed us of your absence.

We'll then contact your university / college to confirm your first and last day of attendance and then work out if you've been paid the correct amount of bursary.

Your revised entitlement will based on the number of days spent on your course prior to your withdrawal and we will request that you repay any money you weren't entitled to.

If you were entitled to any Childcare Allowance (CCA), we will calculate your entitlement using the costs you have incurred up to your last date of attendance.


Tuition fees (postgraduate students only)

If you were eligible for a tuition fee contribution as part of your bursary award, we will still pay this contribution and you'll not need to repay any of this amount as long as your last date of attendance was on or after 1 December (academic years starting in September) or 1 March (academic years starting in January).

If your last date of attendance was earlier than the above relevant date, we are unable to pay any contribution towards your tuition fees for the academic year and you would be responsible for paying any fees.


Withdrawing due to illness or injury

If you have withdrawn from your course due to illness or injury this may be taken into account when calculating your revised entitlement.

You'll need to upload original medical certificates or sick notes to your MyFunding account when we ask you to in order for this to be considered, which must cover the day after your last date of attendance at university.

Depending on the circumstances, we may be able to add up to a maximum of 60 days to your revised entitlement when calculating if you have been overpaid.


Maternity leave

If you've been nominated for an allocated / capped bursary place you may continue to receive bursary payments for up to a maximum of 12 months from the start date of the agreed maternity leave period or from the day after the birth date of your child (whichever comes sooner).

You must provide your university / college with medical evidence of your pregnancy prior to starting maternity leave, such as a MATB1 form, and the start date of your maternity leave must be agreed with them in advance.

Your university / college will then send a withdrawal form to us, confirming the expected date of confinement, the last date of your attendance, the expected date you'll return to complete the course and confirmation you've provided relevant evidence.

When you resume your course after a period of maternity leave, you'll keep your allocated / capped bursary place.

Your university / college can't reallocate or transfer your allocation to another student.

If you weren't nominated for an allocated / capped bursary place and only entitled to the Placement Travel Allowance (PTA), or are an EU Fees only postgraduate student, you're not eligible to receive any funding from us during a period of maternity leave.