Changing course: moving between courses or departments…

My son or daughter wants to change their course…what should they do?

Sometimes students change their minds about the course they are on when they have had a chance to study the subject for a while. If your son or daughter would like to change to a different programme, after careful consideration they should speak to their current academic department and the academic department they wish to transfer to (if changing course means moving to a different department or Faculty altogether), so they can see how changing their course will affect their career prospects, their funding, and whether their previous qualifications qualify them for the new course.

Changes to degree programmes are usually made within the first three weeks of the start of each semester, that’s in late September or early October; and in February.

TIP: Changes of course should be made within the first 3 weeks of each semester.

Outside these times it’s a bit more complicated if your son or daughter wants to change programme, because they might have missed quite a few lectures on the course they want to move to which could be a disadvantage when it comes to examinations. So after the third week of the semester, if your son or daughter does want to change course, their current department can advise if it is still possible or what alternatives there are.

If your son or daughter really does want to change course, and has been informally accepted onto the new course, they need to complete a Change of Status form for a change of programme.

Your son or daughter can obtain a Change of Status form online or from the Student Services Information Desk (SSiD) in the Union building.  Their department will help them fill the form in if they need some help with it.

The completed form should be signed by all the academic department/s involved in the change of course and then sent on to the Taught Programmes Office (TPO). Once approved by TPO the change is processed on the central computer record system. If your son or daughter is funded by the Student Finance England (SFE) (sometimes known as the Student Loans Company) we will inform SFE of the change of course. Finally, your son or daughter will receive an email sent to their University email account stating that their change of programme has been authorised and their student record updated. They should then find that all their new modules are on their record, and they can access the relevant study materials on MOLE (the online study space for their course).

TIP: Before changing course your son or daughter should check with the Student Finance England if they are funded by them - their money might be affected.