Examinations and Boards

Thursday 13 January 2011
No. 4939
Vol 141

Planning and Resource Allocation Committee: Changes in Regulations
Changes to Regulations: Continuing Education Board
Changes to Regulations: Mathematical, Physical and Life Sciences Divisional Board with the Continuing Education Board
Changes to Regulations: Social Sciences Divisional Board

Planning and Resource Allocation Committee

Continuation charge for postgraduate research students: change in regulations

Draft explanatory note

Council has decided to introduce a university continuation charge, to be paid by research students who start their programme of study in or after September 2011, and who exceed the standard period of university fee liability. Such a charge is currently levied by a significant proportion of colleges, and by many other universities. The charge will provide a contribution to the costs arising from continuing students. In parallel with the introduction of this charge, Education Committee is working with divisions to ensure that procedures to oversee the supervision and monitoring of students are effectively implemented across the University, with the aim of improving completion rates. Divisions will be required to set a minimum level of provision for bursaries to support students.

The continuation charge will be levied on a termly basis to students who are admitted in or after September 2011 to study for a DPhil or other research programme and who reach the end of the standard period of fee liability¹, until and including the term of submission. The charge will be made for the first time to certain students² in 2013–14, and to most DPhil students in 2014–15.

The details of this policy are currently being finalised, with the charge expected to be in the range of £250–£500 per term. The same rate will apply to all students (regardless of Home/EU or Overseas fee status). Bursary schemes are being developed to which students may apply for support towards these charges. The level of the charge for 2013–14 will be set in the course of 2011: further information will be published on the University website as soon as it is available, at http://www.ox.ac.uk/feesandfunding/fees/information/.

Draft regulation

(1) In Examination Regulations, 2010, p. 1116, after l. 44, insert:

'§7 Continuation charge

A candidate admitted to graduate research study (that is, a student for the DPhil, EngD, MLitt, MSc(Res), or any other programme of study designated as a research programme) who commenced their current programme of study in or after September 2011 and who has reached the end of the period of fee liability, as defined at §6, cl. 4, and who thereafter remains registered as a graduate research student, shall pay a continuation charge for each subsequent term up to and including the term in which the thesis is submitted. Candidates whose thesis has been referred back shall pay no further composition fee or continuation charge, but shall pay the fee prescribed in §2 above when they apply for re-examination.

A student who is paying composition fees in respect of any given term shall not be liable for a continuation charge in the same term.

The continuation charge will first become payable in 2013–14, and the level of the charge for that year will be set by the Planning and Resource Allocation Committee in due course.'

(2) Ibid., ll. 1 and 24, renumber §7 and §8 as §8 and §9.

¹For details of periods of fee liability, see http://www.ox.ac.uk/feesandfunding/fees/information/maxlib/#d.en.12070

²Mainly MScRes, MLitt, and DPhil students who have a reduced fee liability having previously completed an MPhil, BPhil or MSt in Legal Research.

Changes to Regulations

For the complete text of each regulation listed below, please refer to the website indicated. For a listing of all changes to regulations for this year to date, please see www.ox.ac.uk/gazette/examinationregulations/.