Registry

If you hold a Student visa or Tier 4 visa, it is a legal requirement for you to engage with and participate in all areas of your programme of study. As a condition of the University's Student sponsor licence, we are required by law to monitor your attendance and engagement.

We are also required to notify the Home Office if you withdraw from your programme of study or fail to attend/engage to a satisfactory level.

"Engaging" with your studies means:

• Attending lessons, lectures, tutorials, labs and seminars
• Sitting tests, exams and assessments
• Meeting your supervisor(s) and/or academic adviser
• Submitting coursework (whether assessed or unassessed), reports or a dissertation

For postgraduate research students engaging also means:

• Meeting with your supervisor(s)
• Attending research-method or research-panel meetings, writing-up seminars or doctoral workshops
• Sitting an oral examination/viva
• Submitting chapters, research plans or a full thesis

Studying in the 2022/23 academic year

UK government rules allowing Student Visa holders to study online in the academic year 2021/22 are no longer in force. This means that all students on full-time degree programmes at UofG must be physically on campus in academc year 2022/23.

If you experience difficulties in travelling to the UK during summer/autumn 2022 because of visa delays and/or Coronavirus travel restrictions, you must check your CAS or contact your school to find out the latest date you can arrive on Campus.

Undergraduate Students

If you are unable to attend a timetabled activity for any reason (e.g. illness), please see the Student Absence Policy. If you have an issue that may prevent you from engaging with your studies for a longer period, it is very important that you discuss this with your school.

Undergraduate students are not usually required to attend or engage with their studies over the summer vacation period. Please see the University's Senate Office webpages for more information on semester dates.

Postgraduate Taught Students

If you are unable to attend a timetabled activity for any reason (e.g. illness), please see the Student Absence Policy. If you have an issue that may prevent you from engaging with your studies for a longer period, it is very important that you discuss this with your school.

During your dissertation/project period, you are still classed as a full-time student and must continue to engage with your studies as such. If you need to leave the UK for academic or personal reasons, read the section below entitled 'Postgraduate taught students writing up in summer' and discuss this with your school.

Postgraduate Research Students

You are required to engage with your studies full-time throughout the academic year, with the exception of any periods of annual leave. If you need to leave the UK for personal reasons or for research, please see the University's webpages or contact your Graduate School.

Suspension of Study/Long Periods of Absence

Some students may need to suspend their studies due to personal, medical, financial or other reasons. There are some restrictions on the length of absence/suspension a Student visa/Tier 4 visa holder can take for their visa to remain valid.

Suspensions of 60 days or less: If your school or college gives you approval to be absent for a period of 60 days or less, your visa sponsorship will continue, and your Student or Tier 4 visa will be valid to stay in or re-enter the UK to resume your studies later.

Suspensions of more than 60 days: If your school or college gives you approval to be absent for more than 60 days, the University is required to withdraw sponsorship of your visa. If you are in the UK, you will need to leave the UK and apply for a new visa when you are ready to return and resume your studies. Please note that this also applies to suspensions of study requested for maternity leave.

If you are considering suspending or deferring your studies, contact International Student Support who can offer you further advice.

Postgraduate taught students writing up in summer

If you are studying a one-year master's programme on a student visa, your visa will usually be sponsored for study in the UK for the full 12-months of the programme, including the summer period where you work on your dissertation/project.

Your visa requires you to remain in Glasgow and study on-campus during this time. If you wish to have a short holiday of up to three weeks away from Glasgow, you can do this without seeking permission from your school (provided your school does not require you to attend any meetings/preparatory sessions during this time). If you require a longer period of absence from Glasgow, you must seek permission from your school.

• You may wish to write and submit your dissertation/project from outside the UK. If this is the case, please speak with your school. If they give you permission to do this, the University will inform UKVI that it is no longer sponoring your student visa, and your visa will be curtailed. This will not prevent you from completing your programme remotely.
• You may wish to have time away from Glasgow that exceeds three weeks while also keeping your visa. You must seek permission for your school for this, and please remember that such requests may or may not be approved.

If you are interested in applying for the Graduate Visa, remember that it is a requirement for you to study the entire 12 months of your programme inside the UK (except for short approved trips away as described above).

Your visa is issued for study on a specific course (programme), and there are only limited circumstances under which you can change to a different one midway through your studies.

The immigration rules only allow Student Visa holders at UofG to change to a different programme if all of the following circumstances are met:

• The new programme must at bachelor's degree level or above
• The new programme must not be at a lower academic level than the previous one
• The student must be able to complete the new programme within their current visa duration (i.e. the new programme must not go beyond the student's visa expiry date)
• If ATAS clearance is required for the new programme, this must be applied for and obtained before the change is made.

Remember that the above conditions are just conditions of the visa you currently hold. If your programme change doesn't meet these conditions, then you may need to obtain a new visa to study the programme you want to change to. You should also be aware that you may or may not be able to apply for this new visa inside the UK.

Contact the International Student Support team for advice.

Since 2022, Police Registration is no longer required.

Students studying on a Student visa or Tier 4 visa at the University of Glasgow are normally allowed to work:

• Up to 20 hours per week during term-time if on a course at or above bachelor's degree level, or
• Up to 10 hours per week during term-time if on a course below bachelor's degree level (eg. pre-sessional courses)
• Full-time during designated university vacation periods and in the visa "wrap-up" period following completion of their course
• On work placements which form an assessed and integral part of their course

For most undergraduate and postgraduate taught students, 'term-time' is defined as the official semester dates on the University's website. However some programmes may follow a different calendar. You should check with your school if this is the case.

Postgraduate Taught students working on their dissertation/project during the summer semester are still in term-time and therefore still subject to the weekly limit. Full-time work is permitted for students who have completed all parts of their programme (including submission of final dissertation/project) and where the course end date on their CAS has passed. This is known as the visa wrap-up period (usually four months if your programme duration was a year or longer) and during this time, the weekly limit on working hours no longer applies.

Postrgraduate research students do not have designated vacation periods definied in the university semester dates. The weekly limit for these students applies year-round except for periods of annual leave (which are arranged between you and your school) and the period of university closure over Christmas/New Year.

The restricted hours apply as the weekly maximum you can work in term-time. If you work for more than one employer and/or more than one university department concurrently, the cumulative number of hours you work must not exceed your total limit. A week is defined as a period of 7 days starting on a Monday and ending on a Sunday.

In addition to the restricted hours, the following types of work are completely prohibited for Student visa holders:

• Self-employment/business activity
• Doctor or dentist in training (except for recognised foundation programmes)
• Sportsperson or sports coach
• Entertainer
• Any full-time, permanent vacancy (with the exception of Student Union Sabbatical Officer or doctor/dentist in training on a recognised foundation programme.

Working permission (including the number of hours you can work) should always be shown on your Entry Clearance vignette and/or your BRP. A breach of working conditions is a very serious offence. It can result in detention, removal from the UK and automatic refusals of future UK visa applications.

More information on working during studies is available from the Student Policy Guidance and from International Student Support.

The above information is for Student visa and Tier 4 visa holders only. Students with Short-term Study leave are not permitted to work in the UK (including on work placements).