Parent and Carer FAQ

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When is the deadline for submitting undergraduate applications?

Applications should be submitted to UCAS by 6 pm on 26 January 2022.

This is the University’s 'equal consideration' deadline, which means we review all applications received by this deadline equally, regardless of when they were submitted.

If the applicant submits their application after the deadline, there may not be spaces left on their course of interest.

What happens if they miss the UCAS deadline?

While the University welcomes applications after the January deadline, we will only be able to make offers if places are still available.

UCAS Extra opens on Friday 25 February 2022 and is the next step of the application cycle for applicants who have no offers from their five choices or have declined any offers received.

Any new applications submitted after 6 pm on Thursday 30 June 2022 will automatically be considered through Clearing. Clearing is the process that helps students who haven’t secured a university place to find and apply for a course.

How long will it take for them to receive an offer?

Applications can take up to 10 working days to process, or longer during busy periods. Updates on applications can be found on UCAS Track. If we require further information to support the application, we’ll contact the applicant, which may delay an offer being made.

Why have they received an offer for a course they didn’t apply for?

At times, we will make students an offer to study an alternative course. This may be following an interview or portfolio submission, or it could be because the course they have applied for is full.

When will their place at NTU be confirmed?

Results day for most qualifications – including A-levels – is Thursday 18 August 2022, which is the same day we will aim to confirm our decisions on applications. If your son, daughter or young person would like to find out the specific date for their application, they should use our enquiry form to get in touch.

Can they defer their place?

If they are holding an unconditional offer, they can submit a deferral request using our enquiry form. If they’d like to discuss their decision further, they can call our Admissions and Enquiries team on +44 (0)115 848 4200.

My young person is planning to get a job to support their living costs. Can the University help them find part-time paid work?

Our on-site JobShop and Unitemps teams help students find part-time paid work to support themselves financially, develop skills and gain valuable work experience. In the last academic year, there were thousands of part-time and temporary roles available for students within the University and at local organisations.

Student Ambassadors are just one example of the type of role students can apply for on campus, which include opportunities to support the delivery of open days, phone campaigns and other events. Across the University there are also opportunities available for students to work as a valued member of a team in areas such as:

• marketing
• catering / hospitality
• research projects
• finance
• mentoring
• photography / videography
• reception
• administration and office roles

This service will be available once they have enrolled and includes access to our online jobs board, which is exclusive to NTU students.

If they can’t find paid work, what financial support is available apart from the maintenance loan?

We provide support for students from Widening Participation backgrounds, based on individual circumstances. Eligible students could be entitled to access funding and bursaries to support them in completing work experience, formal placements and during the recruitment processes for placements and graduate jobs.

In the current pandemic, it is very challenging to find a job for anyone. Do you offer any work placements for first and second year students?

We know that professional experience improves our students’ chances of getting a graduate-level job and better degree classification. Whether they are undertaking a year-long sandwich placement or a few weeks embedded into their course, our team are here to support them – visit our work experience page for more details.

It’s an unusual time, with obvious consequences for local and national businesses. We’re still encouraging students to apply for placements, however, they might need to be a little more flexible in terms of what they apply for – and while they may not secure their ideal placement, the industry experience they’ll get remains invaluable. We’re staying in close contact with our placement providers and assessing their needs for placement students this academic year. As opportunities are confirmed, we’ll add these to our placement database, which is accessible to all enrolled students.

What are the employability statistics for students who graduate from NTU?

The numbers speak for themselves: with 97% of our students in work or further study within six months of graduating (DLHE 2016/17) – plus a top ten ranking for the number of year-long placements we offer – NTU is one of the UK’s most employment-focused universities (HESA 2017/18).

We have strong relationships with hundreds of businesses and work closely with our employers to ensure that our students are supported through the process of applying for graduate roles. There will be plenty of opportunities throughout their time at NTU to connect with a wide variety of employers, including large recruitment fairs, employer presentations and projects during work experience.

Preparing to enter the world of work after university can be daunting, however, NTU’s Employability team are here to help our graduates. We’re one of the UK’s most employment-focused universities. Find out how we can support their future.

When should my young person apply for student finance?

Student Finance applications will open in Spring 2022 and we recommend that applications are submitted as soon as possible to ensure their application is processed in time for the start of term.

What documents are needed when applying for student finance?

The required evidence may change depending on the applicant – for example, for UK-based students, the Student Loans Company can usually obtain household income information directly from HMRC. Proof of identity may be required, more information can be found on the UK government website, including a step-by-step guide on the application process.

When will they receive their funds?

Funding will be released when they enrol at the University. The Maintenance Loan is paid in three instalments at the start of each academic term. If they haven’t already done so, we recommend that they apply for their student finance as soon as possible to ensure their application is processed in time for the start of term.

Even if everything goes to plan, most students do not receive their first payment until the end of their first week at university, so they should bring enough funds to cover their expenses for a week

If they choose to defer their year of entry, what happens to their student finance application?

Funding is only released to students who enrol at the University. If your young person decides not to enrol, the funding would not be paid out, and their student finance application would need to be cancelled. For undergraduate courses, you apply for funding on a year-by-year basis – meaning they would need to reapply for funding for the next academic year.

How much financial support do I need to provide?

This will vary for each student and depends on what works best for you as a family. As a starting point, use the Student Finance Calculator to see how much maintenance loan they are entitled to, based on your household income, and calculate the difference between the maximum amount (£9,706). Are you able to make up some of the difference? If not, they might want to think about working part-time to support themselves financially – our Employability team can help them to find paid work.

Is it best to supplement their living costs or pay for accommodation?

Many parents choose to put money towards accommodation, so they know that essential cost is taken care of. However, it can be good for students to understand the cost of accommodation, so that they are aware of rent and living costs that they may incur after university. Whatever you decide, we recommend that you discuss it with your young person so that they understand what you are willing to contribute and what costs they need to manage themselves.

Creating a budget plan together is a good way for them to manage their spending and understand their living costs.

How much money do students need to live on per week / month?

This will vary for each student. According to Save the Student’s National Student Money Survey 2019, the average living cost for an NTU student is approximately £350 per month, not including rent. The average cost for groceries is £98 per month, with £27 on takeaways and eating out, £73 on socialising and £40 on travel. Other monthly costs include bills, mobile phone payments, clothing, and health and wellbeing.

There are a few easy ways for students to cut costs, such as cooking rather than ordering takeaways, taking lunch to uni rather than buying food on campus and taking cash on a night out rather than spending on a card.

What can I do if my income decreases while my young person is at university?

If your income drops by 15% or more, you can request a current year income assessment through Student Finance England, which may result in an increase of their maintenance loan. Our Student Financial Support team are also here to help if they need any support or advice.

How can I contact the Student Financial Support Service?

Call +44 (0)115 848 2494 or email financial.support@ntu.ac.uk to speak to an adviser.

Useful links

• Download our guide to fees and student finance (for full-time UK home undergraduate students starting at NTU in 2020/21)
• Student Finance England
• Student Finance Northern Ireland
• Student Awards Agency Scotland
• Student Finance Wales
• Visit our Undergraduate Fees and Funding page for more information on university costs.
• For international or EU student fees, please see the International students’ page for more information.

What evidence do disabled applicants need to provide in order to access support?

This depends on the nature of their disability or condition(s). It might be a GP letter, Educational Psychologist report or a letter from a health professional. For students with Specific Learning Difficulties, they normally require a post-16 Educational Psychologist report to access the Disabled Students' Allowance (DSA). The University does accept assessment from School or College (sometimes known as a Form8) to register with the service and to complete an institutional Access Statement, to make specific support arrangements such as additional time in exams. To check their personal circumstances, contact the relevant team via email:

• disability.support@ntu.ac.uk
• mental.health@ntu.ac.uk
• dyslexia.support@ntu.ac.uk
• autism.support@ntu.ac.uk

How does an applicant apply for Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA) funding and how much does it cost?

Visit the Government’s DSA advice page to check if an applicant is eligible to apply, and then proceed with an application. The Assessment of Needs costs around £650, but this is covered by the DSA fund. The application process can take a minimum of four weeks, so apply as soon as possible. For advice and guidance about the process and evidence needed, contact the relevant team via email:

• disability.support@ntu.ac.uk
• mental.health@ntu.ac.uk
• dyslexia.support@ntu.ac.uk
• autism.support@ntu.ac.uk

What type of support is available for disabled students?

This will depend on their disability or condition(s) and how they may impact their studies. We’ve already started to contact applicants who have accepted a place at NTU, so if they have not heard from us already please ask them to get in touch via email. We’ll make contact, review the evidence, and set up an Access Statement which documents the range of support available. This will be personalised, but it might include such reasonable adjustments as 25% extra time in exams.

I can’t get updated medical evidence or an Educational Psychologist Report, what should I do?

The University understands that at present it is challenging to get up-to-date medical evidence. We would recommend students send in what they have when making an appointment with the service. We would also recommend sending in what they have when they are also applying for the Disabled Students Allowance (DSA). Student Finance England (SFE) will advise if they need more information to determine eligibility for the allowance.

Attending face-to-face lectures during an increased risk of coronavirus may be difficult for my young person due to an underlying health condition. What impact will this have on access to studies?  

We want to reassure all our students that where they are unable to attend face-to-face lectures / seminars in the first term, we will liaise with the School to ensure that they have access to all of their classes remotely and any resources which are also required for ongoing study.

How does the University support students that struggle with their mental health?

If the applicant has a diagnosed mental health condition and they have not already alerted the University to this on their UCAS form, we recommend that they email mental.health@ntu.ac.uk to discuss their personal circumstances with a member of our Mental Health Support team.

We have a variety of specialist teams that can offer different levels of support. Our Mental Health team support students with a diagnosed mental health condition and offer specialist mentoring support to remove barriers to study for students with mental health difficulties. This support is funded through Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA).

Students can also contact the Wellbeing team for support with personal, emotional or mental health difficulties or issues that are impacting their studies and university experience using our wellbeing form.

We also have a Counselling team that offers a safe place to talk about personal, emotional, and psychological problems with a supportive and trained professional.

Finally, we can also set up an access statement for students with a diagnosed condition. This is a document that will recommend reasonable adjustments that can be made to support their studies.

What do Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA) funds cover?

DSA can fund one-to-one specialist mentoring and, in some cases, IT equipment and books.

What evidence will the applicants need to provide in order to access support for their mental health?

For the University to set up an access statement (this is a document that will recommend reasonable adjustments that can be made to support their studies) we will need medical evidence clearly stating their diagnosis and duration of the diagnosis from a GP or medical professional.

If they are applying for DSA, they should ask their GP to complete the medical proforma provided by DSA. You may also be able to provide GP letters, letters from Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) or other medical professionals that have been supporting them.

If you have any questions about your young person's personal circumstances, please email mental.health@ntu.ac.uk.

How does an applicant apply for Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA) funding and how much does it cost?

Visit the Government’s DSA advice page to check if an applicant is eligible to apply, and then proceed with an application. The Assessment of Needs costs around £650, but this is covered by the DSA fund. The application process can take a minimum of four weeks, so apply as soon as possible. Email our Mental Health Support team at mental.health@ntu.ac.uk for advice and guidance about evidence needed and the process.