Fee Rules (Undergraduate Study) 2019/20
Warning: the content within this page reflects the information available to students in the 2019/20 academic year. As such, this information may no longer be factually accurate.
November 2019
In November 2019, The Open University made a minor amendment to the Fee Rules (Undergraduate Study) 2019/20
The changes made
- Update to the Scope section to clarify that Microcredential students are not in scope.
March 2019
In March 2019, The Open University published the new Policy – Fee Rules (Undergraduate) 2019/20. This supersedes the previous document - Fee Rules (Undergraduate) 2018/19. The policy has had some significant policy changes.
This document sets out the rules that affect the fees, fee liabilities, fee refunds and fee credits for students studying undergraduate modules or qualifications. They explain the circumstances in which students may receive fee refunds or fee credits, the Open University’s discretionary fee refunds and credits policy, when they will become liable to pay fees, as well as what The Open University might do if they do not pay their fees.
These Fee Rules cover matters concerning fees and funding for undergraduate students, those studying an integrated masters qualification, and students who are registered for a module (either standalone or part of a declared qualification) during the 2019/20 Academic Year. For any subsequent modules that students study, the Fee Rules in force at that time will apply.
The changes made
- Addition of reference to starting a new qualification for fee eligibility under B1.5. and C1. (previously D1.1).
- Addition of paragraph B4 regarding funding for students in England eligible for the Standard Fee.
- Removal of previous paragraph B4 referring to transitional arrangements for Wales as it is no longer applicable.
- Amended headings B4, B5 and B6 to clarify that the sections are relevant only to students eligible for a fee in that location, rather than anyone residing in that location.
- Removal of Section C “Your fee liability when studying under a partnership agreement with another provider”, as Scope section clarifies that these students are not covered by this policy.
- Addition of Northern Ireland to list in C2.2 as previously missed, and removal of Wales as it is no longer applicable.
- Addition of paragraph E5 to explain how we will monitor engagement and why.
- Section F provisions (as per previous version) now fall under Section E on account of restructuring of section headings.
- Removal of paragraph F10 (as per the previous version) as it was repetition of information within the section.
- Addition of paragraph E11 to explain consequences of us withdrawing a module qualification or programme of study.
- Combined paragraphs G2 and G3 (previously paragraphs H2 and H3) to ensure consistency.
- Restructured paragraph I7 (previously paragraph J7) under Section I (previously Section J) to ensure fullness of information within the section.
- Added reference in paragraph K4 (previously paragraph L4) to students studying Science modules with a residential school where additional fee is paid directly to partner when requested, not to The Open University at the point of registration.
- Addition of Caring responsibilities as Discretionary Fee Credits and Refunds criteria in Appendix 2.
Please talk to your Student Support Team if you need any further information. You can find out how to contact them on Contact the OU.
