Online postgraduate courses refund policy

If you are on a flexible course (four years/32 months/16 months), you will pay for each module as you study.

You must pay the first module fee before the payment deadline – the Friday of week one of the Pathways to Success induction course. 

You are entitled to a full refund if you cancel your contract within 14 days of the first module start date.

No refunds will be offered after the 14-day cooling-off period. This cooling-off period is applied to each academic session, when you are required to re-register. 

If you pay for the first module and then defer your start date to the next teaching period, your fee will be retained by the University’s Digital Education Service and transferred to your new first module. The University’s cancellation policy will apply for the 14 days following your new start date.

For all subsequent modules within the same academic session, you are required to pay before the deadline (one week before teaching begins) and will be given the statutory seven-day refund period.

If you pause your study or leave the course within this seven-day period you will receive a full refund of the module fee.

After the seven-day period, no refunds will be offered unless significant mitigating circumstances can be proven. If you have sufficient mitigating circumstances and will be returning for the next teaching period, your fee will be retained by the University’s Digital Education Service and transferred to the next module.

If this occurs after the census date (teaching day one plus 16 days), refunds will be decided on a case-by-case basis and the decision of the Digital Education Service Management Accountant will be final. 

Exceptions may be granted where the Digital Education Service will retain fees paid for future modules instead of issuing a refund.

These exceptions should be discussed with the the Digital Education Service Student Education and Experience Manager and Management Accountant and will be decided on a case-by-case basis.  

The decision will normally be made based on a combination of factors including, but not limited to, your location, fees you are likely to incur, delays with refund processing, and progress so far. 

If you are on a flexible course (over four years, 32 months or 16 months) you are only required to pay for one module at a time, and will not be liable for any payments for future modules if you leave the course.

If you are on the a two-year Masters course, you will pay in accordance with the University’s taught postgraduate payment rules.

You will pay using a postgraduate student loan or sponsorship. You must confirm your fee payment arrangements during online registration. The registration deadline is four days after the start of your first module.

If you have been awarded a postgraduate loan you will be given the option to pay your tuition fees in three equal instalments by Direct Debit. 

You do not make any payment during online registration and therefore will not be eligible for any refund during the 14-day cooling off period.

The first instalment will be collected by Direct Debit on the first of the month, two months after your start date. For example, if you start your course in September, you will pay your first instalment on 1 November. 

If you leave after the first module, before you have paid your first instalment, you will be charged in line with the University’s taught postgraduate payment rules. If you leave after your instalment date, the standard University of Leeds refund policy will apply.

The University will inform the Student Loans Company when a student leaves, and any subsequent loan instalments will not be paid out.

If you are being sponsored, you must send a letter from your sponsor confirming the amount of the sponsorship to the Fees Office before completing online registration.  

The sponsor will be invoiced and must pay in full within 30 days. If you cancel or leave, the refund will be issued in accordance with the standard University of Leeds policy, and will be refunded directly to the sponsor. 

Sponsored students on fixed eight-month postgraduate certificate courses or 16-month postgraduate diploma courses

If you are a sponsored student on a postgraduate certificate or diploma course, you must send a letter from your sponsor confirming the amount of the sponsorship to the Digital Education Service before completing online registration.

The sponsor will be invoiced and must pay in full within 30 days. If you cancel or leave, the refund will be issued in accordance with standard University of Leeds policy, and will be refunded directly to the sponsor.