Student advice and support

If personal circumstances affect your ability to study, you may apply for an authorised temporary break from your programme, known as a leave of absence.

• A leave of absence can last 1 to 12 months, depending on your situation
• Reasons include medical, financial, or parental leave
• You must apply as soon as your circumstances affect your studies

Before you apply:

• Speak to the Wellbeing team for advice
• Prepare supporting evidence, e.g. a medical certificate (evidence must be in English or translated by a certified translator), as applications without evidence will not be considered
• Refer to Section 6 of the Code of Practice on Leave of Absence Procedures for your cohort year

Your request will be reviewed by your Programme Director and/or the Wellbeing team. You will receive confirmation once approved and processed.

Apply for leave of absence

It is your responsibility to agree on your return with your school and complete the application to return from a leave of absence.

If your leave was for medical reasons, please provide a medical note along with the form confirming you are fit to resume your studies.

Once your return from leave of absence has been processed, you will receive a confirmation email.

Please note, if you do not extend your leave of absence and you do not notify your School that you are unable to return on time, you will be deemed to have withdrawn from your programme of study in accordance with the Codes of Practice on Leave of Absence Procedures.

If your current degree programme isn’t the right fit, you may be able to transfer to another.

There are three types of programme transfer available:

• Programme mode change: full-time to part-time or vice versa
• Within school transfer e.g. MSc AI & Computer Science to MSc Computer Science
• Transfer to a new school e.g. BSc Psychology to BSc Business Management

Ensure you seek advice from the Programme Director of the programme you are leaving and the Programme Director of the programme you are joining.

Applications should be made as early as possible in the academic year. Registered Students may not normally change their module registrations after the first two weeks of the relevant term.

Apply for a programme transfer

Permanently withdrawing from your studies means that you have decided to stop studying at the University and that you have no intention of returning to continue your programme of study in the future.

Withdrawing from the University will have financial and visa implications.

If you are considering permanently withdrawing from the University, you are strongly advised to meet with your Programme Director and the Wellbeing team to get advice on other options before making a final decision.

Apply for voluntary withdrawal