University demanding payment unfairly - please help!

User2010

Hi, I am having a bit of trouble at the moment.

Rather than beginning my academic year September-June I am a spring entrant meaning that I begin my academic year in February go for the summer break and finish each January at the end of the autumn term - (February - January). This is the way my tuition fees are paid by student finance also. As of Jan 2010 I have completed two full years all paid for.

However, rather than enrolling at the start of my new academic year in February - there is no seperate enrollment period and I must enrol each September for the period (September-June) - which is up to half-way through a completely new academic year for me.

At the beginning of the autumn semester 2009 I enrolled online as usual to continue the second-half of my course. However upon the start of term I discovered I was pregnant. I decided I would suspend my studies once I'd completed the autumn semester in Jan 2010 - the end of my second year - and resume in one years time.

I was then advised to contact the enrolment department of my university to make sure I was not enrolled beyond the end of my academic year and did so.

The university then took more or less the entire semester to grant my intermission. However, I am now receiving demands to pay £1700 for the period of (February-June 2010) which would be half-way through my third year which I had not even started and was supposed to be unenrolled for!

The things is I don't have a choice but to enrol from September-June whether I pass or fail- if I don't enrol I can't complete the second half of my year! There is no other option. When I sought advise from the uni I was told to ask another department to unenrol me for the period after January and I did.

But apparently it wasn't done and I don't have a leg to stand on unless I can prove 'exceptional unforeseen circumstances' and I will have to pay not only the half a semester I will not be attending, but then also for my full final year when I return in 2011 - meaning they have sucked three and a half years of tuition fee out of me.

Can anyone advise me if I have a chance of appealing this successfully or whether I need to seek legal advice etc?

Oldernotwiser

Have you discussed your situation with the Student Services/Welfare office and also with the SU? These are the people who should be able to help you with this problem.

User2010

Thanks for your reply. So far I have only been told by the university to contact the student fees office who stated after a two week wait for a reply that the fee is 'correct and due'.

There is a appeals procedure to get the fee waived, but for this to be successful I need to prove 'exceptional unforeseen circumstances' - which I believe I can do. But they also request proof of any claims made to consider an appeal...until my intermission began in January I did have proof of all correspondence to the various departments of the university and proof that I followed instructions I was given at the time via my uni e-mail account - but I have now been shut out of my e-mail until my return, and I'm not sure whether the e-mails will still be intact if and when I am allowed access to my account. Other than this I have nothing to put forward other than I was not aware of my pregnancy at the time I enrolled online.

I guess in the meantime I will follow your advice and contact student services as well as the student union.

melancholly

ignore who the uni has asked you to speak to and speak to the people who are paid to help you!! as ONW says, they will be best placed to know the systems in place at your uni and should be able to give advice.

good luck!