University Transcript charge

Ferris

just out of interest, and at a slight tangent, is it normal to get at least one 'free' copy of your transcript when you graduate? is that standard practice? i've been to two unis, and neither have provided me with a transcript in this way, and i can't help but feel i've been ripped off.

having said that, the first uni forget to include one of my modules (74%!) when they were calculating my final classification, so maybe they had something to hide...

Amberjhons

I think that's reasonable.

Regshoe

Not wanting to wind you up but mine were free. They weren't on any fancy card - just standard paper but with the university stamp on them. They even sent me a second copy when I lost the first like a plonker (actually I'm blaming my mum for "tidying" them somewhere).

This was from Imperial College as well - who are pretty much the univeristy pushing the hardest to be able to charge unlimited fees, so I'm quite surprised they wouldn't charge when others do. Admin there was generally pretty slow - but I don't think I was ever charged for anything.

The_One_Who

My university provide them for free whilst a current student. After that it is £10 for the first and £1 for each subsequent copy.

tehone

Transcripts cost way more than £15 to produce - you seem to have very little concept of what cost means - the physical cost of the actual object and posting is just a part of the overall cost.

Why don't you focus your attention on the reason why you need the transcripts - there's not that many jobs that need an actual transcript - and of those that do - most will send it back to you after verification anyway - its those people requesting an actual transcript that are costing you money

belisha-beacon

£15 is quite normal for transcripts, although it is galling to have to pay it! Bear in mind that to get a signed sealed transcript, they will have had to pay a highly competent member of staff with good eye for detail to produce and check it - possibly including a trip to the archives depending on when your degree was - and then pay an expensive manager to check, sign and verify the transcript as employers and other unis don't accept the signature of anyone below the level of Assessments Manager, or similar. The university's reputation is at stake, they can't afford to make mistakes so there is a lot of work that goes into a transcript at a good university. Those that do not charge anything at all are taking money from somewhere else to subsidise it, generally as a policy decision to keep alumni happy. Therefore you tend to get free transcripts only in unis where they have strong fundraising sections who hope that alumni will give them lots of money.

There is the other issue, also alluded to in some of the posts above, that you often do not actually need a transcript and so some universities charge slightly over the odds to discourage unnecessary applications which would mean diverting staff away from helping current students or doing other duties. Some students ask for tens of transcripts and never actually need them. Many places that ask for verification of qualifications in fact are happy when presented with a verified copy of a certificate along with a copy of a standard notification of results letter. Certain industries do demand transcripts almost as routine, but there is no reason why universities should subsidise those costs and take that money away from the education of current students - the government sadly does not fund them for looking after past students, only for teaching current ones.

Truly good employers who need a transcript will not demand them until a job offer is made, and when they do then they will reimburse the employee for them. Sadly, they are too few and far between.

koppite79

Right - apologies if my previous post seemed over the top, but I'm fed up of replies in almost every category helpfully advising that the person asking for advise should stop being a cheapskate and pay up whatever the cost or situation. Regardless of what you may think, I do not believe that Martin Lewis or this website would support charging extortionate prices for the service in question.

In a further development, it transpires that the uni charges £15 for each year of transcript. So for a 3 year degree the total cost would be £45. I do not care what you say, there is no way on gods green earth this represents any actual cost to the university.

melancholly

koppite79 wrote: »

In a further development, it transpires that the uni charges £15 for each year of transcript. So for a 3 year degree the total cost would be £45. I do not care what you say, there is no way on gods green earth this represents any actual cost to the university.

but sadly, you just have to suck it up and pay! there isn't a way around this fee....

although if your final year transcript shows your final mark, that may suffice for a job application

tehone

koppite79 wrote: »

In a further development, it transpires that the uni charges £15 for each year of transcript. So for a 3 year degree the total cost would be £45. I do not care what you say, there is no way on gods green earth this represents any actual cost to the university.

That's true - its way too low a cost - did you not read and understand any of the other posts telling you why the charge may be set at this level?

Are you sure you need 2 sets of transcripts? You should still have the original one that you would have been given - is that not of any use to you?