Unsure whether changing course is the best option for you?
- Talk to your tutor - This will help you work out if your current course really isn’t right for you.
- Talk to the Careers Service - Careers Advisers can help you identify suitable alternative courses.
- Talk to admissions tutors of courses you are interested in – Ask questions to establish which is the most appropriate course for you. Find out about course contents, assessments types, teaching methods to ensure that you are happy to change into this course. Details of admissions tutors can be found in the staff section of the department’s homepage on the University website.
- Consider the financial, housing and any immigration implications of changing your course. Further information is given in the relevant sections below.
- Once you have made a decision to change course and you know which course you want to change to, you should contact the admissions tutor of that department and find out how to make an application. Usually this is through UCAS, but the department may have another procedure for internal candidates. Please note: there isn’t an automatic right to change course. Entry requirements, availability of places and your reasons for wanting to change will all be taken into account.
- Usually when you change course, you will be expected to start the new course at level one. There may be some exceptions (depending on departmental approval) where credits you have gained in your previous course can be carried forward, usually where the courses and modules are very similar, or you are changing from a dual honours of a course to single honours and vice versa.
- If you have doubts about your course you should change course before the start of year two. Often students are advised to ‘stick it out’ and they may feel better in second year, but if you are funded by Student Finance this will affect your funding entitlement (which will be discussed later). Therefore, it is important that if you are having doubts about your course, you consider the alternative options as soon as possible, and if you intend to change to do it by the start of second year so that your funding isn’t affected.
- Please note: This doesn’t mean that if you are in second year or beyond you don’t have the option to change course, you do, but you will have to consider the financial implications. Please see below in the ‘Money Matters’ section for more information.
- Also you would have to restart the new course at Level One, unless modules from your previous course can be carried over.
- If you are an international student on a Tier 4 visa, there are visa implications that need to be considered. Please see the Immigration section below.
Find out more about changing course.