Don’t Drop Out, Drop In

University can be a tough experience and it sometimes feels like leaving is the only option you have. Whilst this may be the right decision for you, there are plenty of support services at the university to help with your experience. Find out where you can access support and what withdrawing may mean for you below.

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What is a withdrawal?

Withdrawal, often referred to as “Dropping-out” is taking a temporary or permanent leave from your studies at the University.

  • Temporary Withdrawal – Taking a break from your studies for up to 12 months. If you need to interrupt your studies for longer than this then you should withdraw permanently.
  • Permanent Withdrawal – Full withdrawing from your studies with no intention to return. If you change your mind, the University does not have to let you re-join your course later.

If you’re seriously considering withdrawing, it’s important to get advice on the impact it might have on your finances, qualifications, and housing so you can make the right decision for you.

We want to make sure that you have as much information as possible to support you with making the right decision. There are a lot of services and support available at the University who can support you through this and answer any questions which you might have. Please find a list of support that we would recommend that you reach out to before deciding whether to withdraw from University.

The terms and conditions:

When you join a University, you enter into a legal contract in which there are many Terms and Conditions. If you withdraw, as you are breaking this contract, you may be eligible for some tuition fee refund or alternatively may be expected to pay tuition fees up to the date of withdrawal or longer if you withdraw mid-year.

Please read the Terms and Conditions of withdrawal and Tuition Fee Refunds to ensure you are fully informed on your decision to withdraw.

Where can I get support before making my decision?

Your Students’ Union Advice Service:

Your Students’ Union Advice Service can discuss with you the implications of a withdrawal (temporary or permanent) and the effect that it might have on your finance and housing. To do this, we would recommend booking an appointment with one of our Advice Caseworkers. You can book an appointment for a date and time that suits you here.

We will also be running a series of Don’t Drop Out Drop-In pop-ups in Coventry where you can come talk to us, the University’s Health and Wellbeing services, Student Success Coaches and more if you are considering withdrawing from the University. Here you can have a totally non-judgmental to have a conversation about whether this is the right decision for you. You can find these here.

Remember- you are not alone. Your Advice Service and the University have supported many students in similar situations, no matter how unusual your situation may feel.

Health and Wellbeing Services:

The Wellbeing Team can support you with personal issues, such as pregnancy, caring responsibilities, health problems or problems caused by a disability. Don’t feel that you have no support at University, or that you can’t speak to anyone about personal problems. You can find their contact details and book an appointment here for Coventry University campus, here for Coventry University London and here for CU group students.

If you want support from non-University services, you can use the Support Hub to search for services best suited to support your specific needs.

Academic Support

If you find that you are struggling with a particular aspect of your course, there are teams at the University dedicated to providing academic support.

Your Faculty:

Talk to your personal tutor, course team, trusted lecturer or anyone else in your Faculty if you are struggling to cope with your course.

Success Coaches:

All students enrolling on an undergraduate course will be assigned a Success Coach and Postgraduate students can get support by booking a meeting. They are there to help you make the most of your course and what University life offers. If you feel that you haven’t been able to integrate within the University community, they’re the best people to help!

Your Registry:

Your Registry team process your withdrawal form and Academic Registry can give you more information about the credits which you have gained from the University to date. You can find their contact details and a lot of other information here if you are at Coventry University, here if you study at Coventry University London and here if you study at any CU Group campus.

Employability Support - The Talent Team:

The Talent Team are the University’s employability service and can support you with your career throughout your time as a student and after graduation. They can work with you to build your CV, how to write cover letters and job applications, identify potential job opportunities for you and more.

The University Visa Team:

The Visa Team can tell you what implications withdrawing or changing your course might have on your visa.

Student Finance England:

If you are being funded by Student Finance England, you should speak to them before you decide to withdraw as it can affect your future entitlement to support. You may also wish to establish how much of your loan you will owe and if you will need to pay any money back sooner if you are withdrawing mid-year.

NHS:

If you’re receiving funding through NHS funding such as a bursary or the Learning Support Fund, it is your responsibility to let them know that you are leaving so that you do not receive overpayments and end up in debt. You may also wish to contact them to discuss if it will affect any future entitlement.

I’ve made the decision to withdraw. What happens next?

If you decide, after establishing all of your options and potential implications of withdrawal, that withdrawal is still the best decision for you then you need to begin the withdrawal process.

You must complete and submit a withdrawal form. You can find links to the form and where to send it to dependent on your campus of study below:

Once you receive signed confirmation from your Registrar, you are officially withdrawn from the University.

FAQs

Withdrawal is where you leave the university permanently, with no plans to return.

Temporary withdrawal is where you take time out of your studies, usually for a year, due to something which is significantly impacting your studies.

You can change a temporary withdrawal to a permanent withdrawal but the University doesn’t have to agree if you permanently withdraw and want to come back.

Deferral usually happens before you come to university, where the university offers you a place to start in one academic year but you ask to start a year later. This is different from deferring an assessment or a module, which is when you request to take the assessment at the next available opportunity, without teaching, once you’ve enrolled.

A maximum of one calendar year (12 months).

If you fail your course the University will let you know via your SOLAR and University email address, so check these regularly. If you are withdrawn you can appeal the decision but you must do this within 10 working days. You can find information on Academic Appeals here.

If you apply to withdraw you cannot appeal as it’s not a decision which the University made.

Yes! Before making the decision to withdraw, speak to the University to establish what support they are able to provide to you. We would recommend that you talk to as many teams at the university as possible to get all the help you can. You can find what support is available here. Some key teams we would recommend talking to are:

Depending on what the problem is you could speak to your Course Team, Students’ Union Advice Service, Success Coach, friend or family member, an online counselling service like Togetherall, the Samaritans, Student Minds, Mind.

It depends on your circumstances- ultimately the decision is up to you. Your Students’ Union Advice Service can help you make an informed choice and answer any questions that you may have, just complete an enquiry form and we’ll get back to you!

You will be charged tuition fees for teaching offered but not attended, and eventually you will probably be withdrawn for academic failure due to non-attendance or submission of assessments.

Contact the admissions team for your chosen course for more information about the entry requirements, or the Talent Team if you are thinking about options after your studies. If you would like to move to another course that is very similar without a break you may be able to transfer without withdrawing. If you have a visa, changing your course may affect your visa so it’s really important to speak to the Visa Team before leaving.

If you are a Coventry University student you must send your withdrawal form to your Registry team. You can find out who that is here.

If you are a CU Group student your form will need to be signed by your academic lead and sent to the Engagement team.

If you are a Coventry University London student you can submit an online withdrawal request here.

Your withdrawal starts from the date your Registrar signs the form.

Blocking is when you lose access to services or are prevented from re-enrolling as you owe money to the University. Exclusion is when you are told that you can no longer attend University, whether temporarily (suspension) or permanently (expulsion).

If you live in student accommodation, you won't be able to live there anymore, and losing your student status may cause issues in private rented accommodation (for example you may have to pay Council Tax).

Check your contract or licence agreement for details about what happens if you want to move out before the end date or what happens if you are no longer a student (University owned accommodation). You are probably still liable for rent until the end of your contract if you have a fixed end date, even if you’re not living in the accommodation. If you want to leave before then, and there are no details in your contract, you will likely have to negotiate with your landlord.

If you are unsure about what your contract means or what the implications of withdrawal may be on your housing contract, complete an Enquiry Form and attach a copy of your contract informing us that you are wanting to establish your options for withdrawal.

FAQs about Withdrawal and SFE

The University has set cut-off dates for tuition fee liability. You can find more about this in the Tuition Fees, Withdrawal and Refund Terms and Conditions here. You can find the refund form here too, if you withdraw and have overpaid. If you withdraw and are funded by Student Finance England when they will cancel any future payments and recalculate your funding entitlement.

If you are transferring it may be possible for your details to be updated though Student Finance England. If you take a break and then decide to study a new course, you’ll probably have to reapply.

You can apply to continue receiving a maintenance loan for up to 60 days if you are temporarily withdrawing due to health problems. Your University needs to confirm this and you must supply evidence, such as a doctors’ note. Find out more here.

Student Finance England will loan you funding assuming that you are completing your academic year. Because of this, if you withdraw part way through the year, it may decide that it has paid you too much funding. This is an overpayment.

Student Finance England will contact you and may ask you to pay back the money, deduct it from your next year’s entitlement or add it to your debt after you leave your degree. If you are asked to repay money but cannot afford to, ask SFE for an affordable repayment plan, or to make a different decision about your debt. If you are struggling to work out a payment plan, Stepchange may be able to help.

Your entitlement may be reduced for a new course as SFE usually calculates entitlement as duration of course + 1 extra year – any previous study.

If you need to leave University or retake part of your course for personal reasons, such as illness, mental health difficulties, bereavement, caring or pregnancy, you could get an extra year of student finance by applying for CPR (Compelling Personal Reasons. However, you must be able to demonstrate an extenuating circumstance to access this.

If you withdraw from your course, your university should send SFE a change of circumstances to notify them of your withdrawal date. You can update other information on your online portal, such as contact details or address.

Most students can’t receive benefits. Once your withdrawal is processed you are no longer a student and may be entitled to benefits like Universal Credit. Check what you are entitled to here.

We would recommend contacting Your Advice Service who will be able to work with you and hopefully answer any queries that you have. You can contact us by sending an Enquiry Form or by booking an appointment.

You may also wish to contact the Student Finance Loans Team at the University if you are having issues with your Student Finance as they may be able to offer some alternative support. You can email them or give them a call on: 024 7765 9786.

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