Studying part-time on a full-time course

This is an option for undergraduate home students when they are not able to engage with full-time study for health or other personal issues.  A school may allow a student to study one year of their course over two years. If agreed this would allow a student to progress through their course and finish their degree at a pace they can more easily manage. This option is only offered to an extremely small number of students where the usual procedures such as interrupting, re-sitting out of attendance, or retaking in attendance are deemed unsuitable. 

This option is not normally available to full-time international students who are in the UK (United Kingdom) with Student Immigration Permission as this permission requires them to study their course on a full-time basis. 

Undergraduate students receiving Student Finance England Funding 

If you have permission from your School to study one year part-time on a full-time course, you remain registered on the full-time course; it is only your mode of study which changes to part-time.  Therefore, you continue to apply for your Student Finance England funding for a full-time course as usual. 

However, there is a limit to the standard number of academic years that a Tuition Fee Loan is available and, as you would be extending your course by a year, you would need to ensure a tuition fee loan would be available for the additional year of study or that you are able to pay the tuition fee yourself. See the section below for more information about this. The Maintenance Loan and any additional grants such as the Disabled Students Allowance should remain available for each year of study providing course attendance is required throughout the academic year.

Can I continue to get a Tuition Fee Loan for every year of my course? 

For undergraduate study, Student Finance England provide a Tuition Fee Loan for the standard length of a course plus one additional year, often referred to as a gift year or plus one year.  This extra year should be sufficient if you will be able to complete your course by adding just one extra year to the normal length of your course. However this additional year of Tuition Fee Loan may have already been used up if you have previously studied on an earlier degree level course or have already repeated a year or part year of your current course: 

Previous Study: If you have previous study on an earlier degree level course or, you have already re-taken a year of your course before, you would not automatically be entitled to a tuition fee loan for the additional year of study. However, if you have compelling personal circumstances you can ask Student Finance England to consider awarding you an extra year of discretionary Tuition Fee Loan. If this is not approved, you would be required to pay the tuition fee yourself for any the additional year of study. 

We explain about applying for this discretionary extra year of funding in our Undergraduate Funding Implications page My studies have been affected by compelling personal reasons.

As this can be complex, you may want to Contact a Welfare Adviser before you decide to switch to study part-time to discuss your Student Finance entitlement, how this may be affected, the options available to you and how to apply for the discretionary year year of funding if this is required.   

If you are receiving Student Finance from Student Finance Wales, the Scottish Awards Agency or from Student Finance Northern Ireland  also contact them directly to check how your funding will be affected as the rules differ. If you remain unsure contact a Welfare Adviser. for advice. 

If you are finding it difficult to engage with your studies, consider discussing this option with your Personal Tutor, Academic Adviser, or the Student Support Officer for your school as soon as you can.  If your difficulties are due to a disability or health, you may be able to access other support from the Disability and Dyslexia Service.  Advice and Counselling also offer Wellbeing support too.