Arrival Guide 2014

Birmingham City University Arrival Guide 2014/15

Guide for new Home and EU students

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Birmingham City University | Arrival Guide

CONTENTS Pages

Sections

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Welcome to Birmingham City University

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01 General information The city of Birmingham Birmingham City University

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02 Getting ready Financial arrangements Accommodation European students

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03 Travelling to Birmingham City University From outside the UK From within the UK

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04 Birmingham City University Network

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06 Enrolment How to enrol as a student Paying your fees Change in personal details or addresses Occupational Health checks Disclosure of criminal records Withdrawal from the course/formal interruption of study/transfer Data Protection Act 1998 – Statement to Students Disclosure of data to the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA)

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07 Financial information Categories of students Tuition fees Financial support Non-payment of fees

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08 Other useful contacts

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09 Additional information Council Tax liability: guidance for students Interruption of services for students

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10 Final checklist

05 Birmingham City Students’ Union

Birmingham City University | Arrival Guide

WELCOME FROM THE VICE-CHANCELLOR As Vice-Chancellor I wish to extend a warm welcome to you on behalf of all students and staff at Birmingham City University. We are delighted that you have chosen to study with us – one of the UK’s most innovative and exciting universities.

There has never been a better time to come and study here, as we realise our vision to create one of the very best learning experiences in the country. The University is undergoing a transformation as we make a major £260 million investment into our facilities to ensure you will be studying in the best environment possible.

This can be seen by the opening of the new £62 million Parkside Building at our City Centre Campus, which opened in September 2013, providing a new home for design courses from Birmingham Institute of Art and Design (BIAD) as well as state-of-the art media facilities.

We are also moving forward with the second phase of our City Centre Campus development, which will provide teaching space for Birmingham City Business School, the School of English, the School of Law and the School of Social Science, together with a new library, IT space and other student support facilities. If you are studying one of these courses, you will be based in this new building from your second year.

Birmingham City University is striving to be at the cutting edge in terms of education and training, meaning that the qualification you leave with will increase your employability in the UK - and throughout the world.

Our courses mix theory and practice to give you a rounded approach in your chosen area of study and ultimately enhance your career options.

I hope you find this Arrival Guide informative and helpful as you prepare for university life. It contains advice about what you need to do before you come, information about getting here, general advice for settling in and sections on how to enrol, paying your fees and sources of financial support.

Before setting off, please use the checklist on the penultimate page as a reminder of everything you will need. Please keep your Guide as you will need to refer to it over the next few weeks and during your studies.

I know you will be inspired by your time with us and I wish you every success in your studies at the University.

Professor Cliff Allan Vice-Chancellor – Birmingham City University

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Birmingham City University | Arrival Guide

01 GENERAL INFORMATION THE CITY OF BIRMINGHAM The University is located in Birmingham, the UK’s second city, situated in the heart of the country. You may have chosen to study at Birmingham City University because you come from the West Midlands and know the city already, or you may be less familiar with Birmingham because you are moving here from elsewhere in the UK or European Union (EU). This section of the Guide gives you a brief introduction to Birmingham and the University, and tells you how to find out more about your new home.

Birmingham is at the centre of road and rail networks and also has its own international airport. This central location means that it is easily accessible from other parts of the UK and abroad. Details about how to travel to our campuses and halls of residence are provided later in this Guide.

Birmingham is one of the largest cities in Europe with an area of 80 square miles and a population of a million people including more than 65,000 students. It is a vibrant, multicultural city where people enjoy living, studying, working and playing. Inspired investment has transformed the city with public squares, pedestrianised streets, first-class leisure facilities and world-renowned venues. A rich heritage and world-class cultural scene combine with modern shopping malls and a diverse, exciting nightlife. If you need an escape from the bustle of the city there is an abundance of parks and green spaces and all of our campuses are a short journey away from some of England’s most beautiful countryside.

For further information about Birmingham please visit the following websites: Birmingham City Council: www.birmingham.gov.uk Marketing Birmingham: www.birmingham.org.uk Bullring shopping centre: www.bullring.co.uk

National Exhibition Centre: www.necgroup.co.uk BBC Birmingham: www.bbc.co.uk/birmingham During your induction to your course, our Students’ Union will tell you much more about Birmingham and its facilities for students.

THE UNIVERSITY Birmingham City University offers over 300 courses, which are taught and supported by a staff of more than 2,400. Approximately 22,000 fulltime and part-time students study with us every year with many more attending short courses.

The University can trace its history back through a series of predecessor institutions for some 170 years. We are constantly investing in our campuses to provide students with the most up-to-date learning spaces possible, including a flagship extension to our City Centre Campus and a planned new home for Birmingham Conservatoire, bringing the total spending on facilities in the next few years to around £260 million.

Our realistic learning environments replicate the workplaces our students hope to enter - from mock operating theatres, courtrooms and classrooms to state-of-the-art video production suites and photographic studios. Our lecturers come from and maintain links with industry and we enjoy great relationships with leading employers, all of which have helped to ensure nine in 10 of our graduates are in work or further study within six months of leaving us (DLHE survey 2011/12).

As a student you will spend the majority of your time at the University at one of our teaching sites, each of which has a different character and environment as well as facilities geared specifically to the subjects taught there.

Birmingham City University | Arrival Guide

The Parkside Building, City Centre Campus

Seacole Building, City South Campus

OUR CAMPUSES

PARTNER COLLEGES

CITY CENTRE CAMPUS Birmingham School of Acting (BSA) and the Faculty of Computing, Engineering and the Built Environment (CEBE) are located at Millennium Point, a landmark building just to the east of Birmingham City Centre.

Our design and media courses are based in our state-of-the-art, purpose-built Parkside Building, which opened in September 2013.

Currently under construction, The Curzon Building will provide teaching space for Birmingham City Business School, the School of English, the School of Law and the School of Social Science, together with a new library, IT space and other student support facilities from 2015. Further teaching space will follow, with a third phase of development opening in 2017. Accommodation is available at a number of privately owned halls of residence nearby, in partnership with the University.

Our commitment to widening access to our courses to all sections of the community is supported through the delivery of Higher National and Foundation Degree courses at partner colleges:

CITY NORTH CAMPUS The campus is situated approximately three miles north of Birmingham City Centre. In 2014/15 it will house courses from the Faculty of Business, Law and Social Sciences, the Faculty of Health, Education and Life Sciences and the Faculty of the Arts, Design and Media. This campus also has student accommodation in halls of residence.

CITY SOUTH CAMPUS This site is in Edgbaston, to the south of the city centre, and is home to the Faculty of Health, Education and Life Sciences. Additional teaching space is due to open in 2017. This campus also has student accommodation in halls of residence.

BIRMINGHAM CONSERVATOIRE Located in Paradise Place in the city centre, Birmingham Conservatoire is the University’s school of music. It is due to move to a new, state-ofthe-art building at our City Centre Campus in 2017.

MARGARET STREET (SCHOOL OF ART) Situated in the city centre, Margaret Street is home to art courses from the Faculty of the Arts, Design and Media.

VITTORIA STREET (SCHOOL OF JEWELLERY) The School of Jewellery is located in Vittoria Street at the heart of Birmingham’s famous ‘Jewellery Quarter’.

BOURNVILLE (INTERNATIONAL COLLEGE) Located in the south of the city, our Bournville Campus is home to Birmingham City University International College, providing bespoke pathways for overseas students, leading to undergraduate and postgraduate courses at the University.

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BIRMINGHAM METROPOLITAN COLLEGE Sutton Coldfield Campus, Lichfield Road, Sutton Coldfield B74 2NW T: 0845 155 0101 www.bmetc.ac.uk BIRMINGHAM METROPOLITAN COLLEGE James Watt Campus, Aldridge Road, Great Barr, Birmingham B44 8NE SOUTH & CITY COLLEGE BIRMINGHAM Digbeth Campus, High Street, Deritend, Digbeth Birmingham B5 5SU T: 0121 694 5000 www.sccb.ac.uk SOUTH & CITY COLLEGE BIRMINGHAM Bordesley Green Campus, Bordesley Green, Birmingham B9 5LB Please contact the colleges for campus and travel details.

If you will be studying at one of these colleges, you will be given an induction there at the beginning of your course. You will also have the opportunity to visit the University to find out about the facilities and services available to you.

Please note: enrolment procedures at our partner colleges may differ from those outlined in this Guide.

RESEARCH AT BIRMINGHAM CITY UNIVERSITY Birmingham City University is a research-engaged university and the 2008 UK Research Assessment Exercise found world-leading research in all subjects submitted. We are continuing to broaden discipline coverage and improve the quality and quantity of research across the University. We submitted eleven subjects and more than 150 staff for assessment to the Research Excellence Framework 2014 and we are awaiting the results in December 2014.

For details of our research, and our research strategy please visit www.bcu.ac.uk/research.

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Birmingham City University | Arrival Guide

OUR FACILITIES AND SERVICES

THE CENTRE FOR ACADEMIC SUCCESS

STUDENT SERVICES

The Centre for Academic Success supports students across the University in achieving their fullest academic potential. Members of staff from the Centre lead workshops throughout the year on a range of subjects such as referencing, essay and dissertation writing, time management, study skills, presentation skills, Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) and mathematics. There is also an extensive list of online study guides and resources. One-to-one tutorials can be booked online. You can meet with professional tutors if you need additional study skills support, including mathematics. The Centre also runs English classes for international students.

Whatever aspect of student life you have a query about, just ASK! Student Services is here to provide Advice, Support and Knowledge, making us a useful first port of call for a broad variety of issues. We can help with topics relating to: • • • • • •

childcare health and wellbeing job prospects money matters visas and immigration complaints and appeals.

To ASK for further information, please contact us: T: 0121 331 5588 Online query: www.bcu.ac.uk/askus W: www.bcu.ac.uk/studentservices I: https://icity.bcu.ac.uk/Student-Services HEALTHCARE If you are arriving from outside the Birmingham area, it is very important to register with a local doctor as soon as possible; don’t wait until you feel unwell. We provide a comprehensive healthcare service from medical rooms at City North and City South campuses. You can register online before you arrive, or in person at registration sessions the weekend before Welcome Week, but you may register with the service at any time. At registration, it is helpful if you provide your NHS medical card, contact details for your current doctor and a list of any medications you are currently taking. Alternatively, you may register with any GP near to your term-time address; visit www.nhs.uk and type your Birmingham postcode into the ‘Find a GP’ search facility.

For more details about University and other local health services, please visit www.bcu.ac.uk/healthcare.

I: https://icity.bcu.ac.uk/student-services/Health-andWellbeing/Healthcare.

LIBRARY AND LEARNING RESOURCES We have a library near to you wherever you study. You can use any library during your studies, and all have a wide range of materials to support the subject areas taught there. Library services include: • • • •

making print and electronic resources available to you on and off campus accessibility to many electronic resources supportive staff available at our service desks or via online chat a variety of ways to borrow, renew and return library items.

To access the complete range of library services available to you, you will need your ID card and your Personal Identification Number (PIN), which is mailed to your University email address the day after your face-to-face enrolment.

From background reading to up-to-date journal or newspaper articles, you will find a huge range of resources available to you. In order to help you get the best from these resources, library staff offer sessions to develop your skills in finding, evaluating and using information. These may be part of your modules or separate sessions – you can also request help when you need it.

In some of our libraries and learning centres we offer individual and group study spaces. We also have some places where you can practise presentations. Please ask what is available and how to book it.

There are many self-service options to access services independently, and you will find library staff knowledgeable and willing to help.

Please visit the Library’s iCity pages at https://icity.bcu.ac.uk/Libraryand-Learning-Resources where you will find details of our services and links to other useful information sources.

For more information about what the Centre for Academic Success has to offer, you can visit their website at www.bcu.ac.uk/academic-skills.

Birmingham City University | Arrival Guide

COMPUTING AND LEARNING SUPPORT Each campus has computing resources and learning support centres giving students access to specialist computer software for its courses, as well as access to the internet, email and iCity, our central web portal.

The University’s wireless network (Eduroam) provides access to the internet in most locations on all campuses.

Please visit https://icity.bcu.ac.uk/cict/students for further information.

SPORTS AND LEISURE Everyone is provided with access to sport and leisure facilities at Birmingham City University. We have two outstanding sports centres, including the £8.5 million Doug Ellis Sports Centre at our City North Campus. This state-of-the-art facility offers an 80-station fitness suite with cutting-edge equipment, dance and aerobic studios, a sports hall large enough to accommodate eight badminton courts, and a full-sized all-weather pitch offering additional sporting facilities.

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The Pavilion at Moor Lane, provides the local community, businesses and sports teams with a unique environment for conferences, corporate and social events. The sports facilities at Moor Lane span 43 acres and provide 12 pitches for football and rugby and an allweather pitch for five- or six- a-side football and hockey. The centre also offers changing facilities and a great entertainment venue for a post-match drink!

The Students’ Union caters for a wide spectrum of sporting interests; a number of teams and individuals compete in BUCS (British Universities and Colleges Sports) tournaments and leagues. There are also inter-mural competitions and the opportunity to simply play for fun.

For more information about our sports centre, go to www.dougellissportscentre.com or telephone 0845 267 1192.

For more information about joining a Students’ Union club please see Section 5 of this Guide.

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Birmingham City University | Arrival Guide

02 GETTING READY This section provides brief advice about preparing your finances, information about student accommodation and detailed advice to help Home and EU students get ready to come to Birmingham City University.

The more detailed financial information in Section 7 of this Guide provides advice about the financial support that is available to eligible Home, EU and Channel Island students for tuition fees and living costs.

• advice and support on self-employment • employer mentoring - helping you find out more about the world of work.

SUPPORTING YOU TO SETTLE INTO LIFE AT UNIVERSITY ASK@Birmingham City University is a unique online mentoring programme that has been developed for new students to support your ‘settling-in period’ at Birmingham City University.

Keep up to date with the Careers and Job Prospects team at www.facebook.com/bcuemploymentzone.

You will be carefully matched to a trained penultimate or final year student mentor who will share their own social and academic experiences of joining our University.

For more information and to register your interest please contact us at www.bcu.ac.uk/askus or visit www.askbcu.org.

SUPPORT IN FINDING WORK OPPORTUNITIES A great way to meet new people, get settled in Birmingham and broaden your horizons (and have the potential to earn while you learn) is through work and voluntary opportunities.

THE CAREERS AND JOB PROSPECTS TEAM OFFERS: • a variety of full-time, part-time, project work, voluntary placements and internship opportunities nationwide - www.bcu.ac.uk/jobsboard • on and off campus events from recruiting organisations, including our suite of sector specific recruitment fairs • employer led career development training

To find out more about the Careers and Job Prospects Services visit https://icity.bcu.ac.uk/careers.

OPPORTUNITY Our student employment agency, OpportUNIty - Student Jobs on Campus, allows you to apply for temporary and casual staffing roles at the University, through a formal application process, including the submission of CVs and interviews. It offers key experience in crucial aspects of job applications, as well as employability skills to take into the workplace. You receive feedback and assistance at every stage and once in a role, you’re fully supported in developing your employability skills, helping you articulate your ability to future employers. For more information see www.bcu.ac.uk/opportunity.

SUPPORT FOR DISABLED STUDENTS Do you feel you may need some support or advice regarding: • • • • •

a specific learning difficulty (eg dyslexia, ADHD) a mental health difficulty a communication difficulty (eg Asperger’s/ASD) a physical or sensory disability or a long-term health condition?

Birmingham City University | Arrival Guide

If you have not informed us of your disability, we strongly encourage you to do so before you arrive. We view disclosure very positively and there may be support we can offer to help you make the most of your time at university and succeed in your studies. Support can take a few weeks to implement, so the sooner you let us know about what you may need, the better.

If you think you might have a specific learning difficulty (SpLD), such as dyslexia, you can talk this over confidentially with a member of our team, who can arrange for you to have a free initial screening. If this shows indications of dyslexia or another SpLD, you will be advised about having a further assessment and what support may be available.

ADDITIONAL FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR DISABLED STUDENTS For UK students with disabilities, there is additional financial support to assist you at university: Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA). It is a non-means-tested grant and you don’t have to repay it. If you haven’t already applied for DSA and you think you may be eligible, please either contact your funding body or call Student Services and ask to speak to one of our experienced advisers.

For further information about support at university, including funding advice, please contact Student Services and ask to speak to one of our experienced advisers, who offer a confidential service.

T: 0121 331 5588 E: student.services@bcu.ac.uk W: www.bcu.ac.uk/studentservices I: https://icity.bcu.ac.uk/student-services/Health-and-Wellbeing/ Disability-Support

FINANCIAL ARRANGEMENTS The first few weeks at university can be expensive, particularly if you are moving away from home. If you are living in halls of residence you will need to pay your first term’s accommodation fees when you arrive.

If you are paying your tuition fees yourself you will also need to make arrangements for this. There are other expenses such as food, books, stationery, travel and entertainment, and it is essential that you budget carefully so that you can live comfortably and without worry during your first few weeks. See our student calculator at bcu.studentcalculator.org for help with working out your budget. There are also lots of useful resources on the Brightside website at www.thebrightsidetrust.org.

Even if you will be working while studying as a part-time student, it is worth working out how you are going to budget to cover your tuition fees and the costs of books etc.

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General advice about tuition fees, loans for tuition fees and other forms of financial support for students is given in Section 7 of this Guide. If you think you will be eligible for support but have not yet applied, you should do so immediately.

For further information on budgeting and financial advice during your first few weeks at University or financial advice on the student support arrangements mentioned in this Guide please contact our Student Services team on 0121 331 5588 or email student.services@bcu.ac.uk.

COUNCIL TAX If you are studying full-time you are exempt from Council Tax provided that you are fully enrolled and have completed a Council Tax Student Certificate. These will be available from your Faculty Office. If you share a property with one or more non-students then the property will be taxed. Your local council or the Students’ Union Advice Centre will be able to help you with any queries. For more information, see Section 9 of this Guide.

ACCOMMODATION If you are intending to apply for accommodation and have not already done so, you are strongly advised to apply immediately. You can apply online at www.bcu.ac.uk/accommodation.

Please note any applications received after 31 July will not be guaranteed a place in University accommodation. After this date, we will still endeavour to provide you with a place and, if no space is available, we will assist you in finding alternative accommodation with a University-approved provider.

The main office for Accommodation Services is located in Howes Building on City North Campus. However, each hall of residence has its own Accommodation Team who will be able to help you when you arrive.

The University offers single occupancy accommodation in Universityowned and private halls of residence. Locations of accommodation in relation to your place of study can be found at www.bcu.ac.uk/ accommodation.

University halls accommodation fees are payable either termly or monthly by direct debit from a UK current account or by credit/debit card. Further information on how to pay will be sent out with your offer of accommodation.

All of the University accommodation is ‘self-catering’ which means that meals are not provided.

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Birmingham City University | Arrival Guide

University halls rents are inclusive of energy costs. All rooms are heated and a basic internet package is included. The standard package is provided free of charge. Upgrades are available for an additional cost.

Students offered Birmingham City University accommodation will be required to accept the terms and conditions of the accommodation contract. The information you receive will also tell you the following: • • • •

the address of your accommodation key collection points location of accommodation in relation to teaching campuses conditions of contract (these are legally binding).

Please make sure that you print and bring your Key Form from your online induction.

If you have chosen not to live in University accommodation, a list of private sector properties is available at www.bcu.ac.uk/accommodation.

It should be noted, however, that it is very difficult to arrange this type of accommodation by letter or by telephone and there is often a shortage of privately rented accommodation at the beginning of the academic year.

ACCOMMODATION THROUGH BIRMINGHAM SCHOOL OF ACTING’S STUDENT SOCIETY The BSA Students’ Society accommodation officers are available to help new BSA students find accommodation. The Officers will liaise directly with new students to help find an appropriate residence with other students from the School. This is a voluntary service provided by the students in their own time and independent of Accommodation Services.

THINGS YOU NEED TO BRING OR BUY Whether you are living in halls of residence or private rented accommodation you will need to provide towels, bed linen and some basic kitchen equipment, eg cutlery, crockery, pans and cooking utensils. These items can be bought relatively cheaply when you arrive in Birmingham if you do not wish to carry them in your luggage, but a bowl, mug and some cutlery will be very useful for your first day. Bedding packs are available for purchase on arrival at the halls of residence. Bedding packs consist of a duvet cover, base sheet and pillow case (cost approximately £25).

INFORMATION FOR EU STUDENTS The UK is in the European Union (EU). Other members of the EU are: EU member countries Austria

Italy

Belgium

Latvia

Bulgaria

Lithuania

Croatia

Luxembourg

Cyprus (Greek Cypriots only)

Malta

Czech Republic

Netherlands

Denmark

Poland

Estonia

Portugal

Finland

Romania

France

Slovakia

Germany

Slovenia

Greece

Spain

Hungary

Sweden

Ireland

This section of the Guide is designed to provide advice for EU students about travelling to the UK and the documents you will need to bring with you. It should be read in conjunction with the other information in this Guide. Further information about the financial support that may be available for EU students is given in Section 7.

TRAVEL PREPARATION EU students and their dependants are normally admitted to the UK with the minimum of formality at Immigration Control.

As an EU student you can be accompanied only by your spouse and any dependent children. If your spouse or children are not EU nationals they must comply with the usual entry requirements which apply to their home country.

When you arrive in the UK you have to go through Passport Control.

Make sure you are in the UK and EU queue. You will need to have the following documents ready for inspection: • a current passport or identity card • letter of acceptance from the University • evidence of financial support.

BANKING The main banks with branches throughout the UK are Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds and NatWest. Banks are usually open between 9am and 5pm on weekdays and main branches are open between 9.30am and 12noon on Saturdays. British currency consists of pounds (£) and pence (p). There are coins (1p, 2p, 5p, 10p, 20p, 50p, £1 and £2) and notes (£5, £10, £20 and £50). Please make sure that you get plenty of coins on arrival as you will need these for buses etc. Also ensure that you have mainly lower value notes (£5, £10 and £20) as £50 notes are not accepted in certain places.

WORKING WHILE STUDYING As a home or EU student you are allowed to gain employment while studying. However, you must ensure that you give priority to your studies and that any employment you undertake does not prevent you from progressing satisfactorily. The University’s Careers and Job Prospects Service works with local and national recruiters to source vacancies for our students and graduates. For further details please go to www.bcu.ac.uk/jobsboard.

If you are a national of Croatia, you may need to apply to UKVI for permission before you start work. All other EEA and Swiss nationals are free to take work in the UK without needing to apply for permission.

For further details please go to www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ uk-visas-and-immigration.

INSURANCE You are strongly advised to insure valuable belongings against theft, loss or damage during travel and while you are in the UK. If you intend to drive in the UK, car insurance is compulsory and it is a criminal offence to drive without a valid licence and proper insurance.

You will be able to obtain advice about insurance from the Students’ Union on arrival but you should arrange travel insurance before departure.

ORIENTATION PROGRAMME If you are an EU student you may wish to take part in the International Orientation Week (www.bcu.ac.uk/orientation) which is being held in the week commencing Monday 15 September 2014. For further information about the week please email orientation@bcu.ac.uk. Not all elements of the programme will be relevant to you but there will be some activities that may be appropriate for you to attend.

Birmingham City University | Arrival Guide

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03 TRAVELLING TO BIRMINGHAM CITY UNIVERSITY TRAVELLING FROM OUTSIDE THE UK Please make sure you have the address of your accommodation easily available in your hand luggage. You will find further details about travelling to each campus from Birmingham city centre on page 11.

BY AIR Where possible, students travelling from outside the UK should book a through ticket to Birmingham Airport NOT to London. This is because Birmingham is 120 miles/200 km north west of London and there are no flight connections, although you can travel from London to Birmingham either by train or coach. If you do fly into London it may be possible to book some of your onward travel from your country of departure. Otherwise, you should enquire about your best options when you arrive at the Airport Information Desk.

BY COACH FROM LONDON AIRPORTS A coach company called National Express runs regular services from Heathrow, Gatwick and Luton airports to Digbeth Coach Station in Birmingham City Centre (see the map on page 12). Tickets can be obtained from the National Express Desk in your arrival terminal, or from the National Express office in the Central Coach Station at Heathrow. The National Express website is www.nationalexpress.com.

On arrival in Birmingham you should get off the coach at Birmingham Central Coach Station in Digbeth. You will either need to take a taxi to your accommodation or you can take a local train or bus to Perry Barr, (City North Campus) or go by bus to the other campuses.

BY TRAIN FROM LONDON AIRPORTS Whether you arrive at Heathrow, Gatwick or Luton you will have to travel through London to get to Birmingham. Therefore, you should buy a through ticket (which includes the necessary London Underground fares) to Birmingham New Street station NOT Birmingham International station.

From Heathrow Airport: the Heathrow Express takes you to Paddington station. From there you can go by Underground to Euston station.

Alternatively you can get the Piccadilly Line from Heathrow and change to the Northern Line to get to Euston station. Trains run approximately every 20 minutes to Birmingham New Street from Euston.

If you travel by train from Gatwick Airport to London you will arrive at either Victoria or King’s Cross stations. From there you need to travel on the Underground to Euston station to connect with a train to Birmingham New Street station.

From Luton Airport take the shuttle bus to Luton Parkway station from where there are trains into various stations in London. You should then take the Underground to Euston station to connect with a train to Birmingham New Street station.

When you arrive at Birmingham New Street you should either take a taxi to your accommodation or take a local train or bus to Perry Barr, or go by bus to the other campuses. Birmingham New Street station is in the centre of Birmingham. It will cost about £10 to take a taxi to City North Campus which is the furthest accommodation from the city centre.

FROM BIRMINGHAM AIRPORT If you land at Birmingham Airport you can take the free Skyrail to Birmingham International railway station. The Skyrail runs approximately every five minutes from the passenger terminals during the opening hours of the railway station. From Birmingham International station you can either take the train to Birmingham New Street station (cost approximately £3, travel time 15 minutes) or you can travel by bus/coach to the city centre. Please bear in mind that buses in Birmingham require the exact money and drivers do not give change. A maximum single fare is currently £2.10 and a daysaver ticket which you can use for any National Express West Midlands bus all day is £4. Taxis are available at the airport and the fare from the airport to the city centre or our halls of residence will be approximately £30.

VIA THE CHANNEL TUNNEL If you travel via the Channel Tunnel, you will arrive in London at St. Pancras International. From St. Pancras you need to take the London Underground Victoria Line heading southbound to Euston station. At Euston station catch a train to Birmingham New Street station NOT Birmingham International. When you arrive at Birmingham New Street Station you will need to take a taxi to your accommodation or you can take a local train or bus to City North Campus (Perry Barr station), or go by bus to the other campuses.

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Birmingham City University | Arrival Guide

BY SEA There are good train connections between most seaports and Birmingham.

There should be a travel enquiry desk at your port of arrival and staff will advise on travel by coach or rail to Birmingham. When you arrive in Birmingham you will need to take a taxi to your accommodation or you can take a local train or bus to Perry Barr (City North Campus), or go by bus to the other campuses.

You can get to City North Campus from the city centre by bus or train.

TRAVELLING FROM WITHIN THE UK

By bus: number 8 from Five Ways.

By train: from Moor Street or Snow Hill Station to Jewellery Quarter Station.

By metro: from Snow Hill to Jewellery Quarter Station.

BY COACH Long distance coaches arrive at Birmingham Central Coach Station. The map on page 12 shows your point of arrival. From Digbeth you can either take a taxi or go by local train or bus to City North Campus, or go by bus to the other campuses.

BY TRAIN The main train station in Birmingham is Birmingham New Street. The map on page 12 shows your point of arrival. From Birmingham New Street you can either take a taxi or a local train or bus to City North Campus, or go by bus to the other campuses.

BY CAR You are likely to approach Birmingham by motorway.

From the South East: M1/M6 or M40/M42/M6.

From the South West: M5/M6.

From the North East: M1/M69/M6.

From the North West: M6.

Once you arrive in the Birmingham area you need to take the appropriate exit for your accommodation/teaching campus.

To City North Campus: Leave the M6 at junction 7 and take the A34 towards Birmingham.

To City South Campus: Birmingham Conservatoire and Millennium Point: Leave the M6 at junction 6 and take the A38 (M) to the city centre.

OR Leave the M5 at junction 3 and take the A456 towards the city centre.

To City Centre Campus: Leave the A38(M) at Dartmouth Circus (first left onto Dartmouth Middleway). At the next island, turn right on to Jennens Road. Travel along Jennens Road to the car park entrance on the right.

Please be aware that pay-on-foot car parking is limited at many of our sites, and some of our campuses have no parking availability.

By bus: numbers 33, 51, 907, 934, 934A, 935, 952, 997.

By train: from Birmingham New Street station to Perry Barr Station.

2. VITTORIA STREET (SCHOOL OF JEWELLERY) B1 3PA The School of Jewellery is located in the Jewellery Quarter, about a mile north-west of the city centre.

3. MARGARET STREET (SCHOOL OF ART) B3 3BX This Faculty of the Arts, Design and Media site is in the city centre and houses the School of Art. 4. BIRMINGHAM CONSERVATOIRE B3 3HG Birmingham Conservatoire is a purpose-built centre for the study and performance of music, located in the centre of the city close to Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery.

5. BOURNVILLE (INTERNATIONAL COLLEGE) B30 1JX This is the location for our new International College, offering bespoke courses for overseas students.

By bus: numbers 61, 63 or X64.

By train: from Birmingham New Street Station to Bournville Station.

6. CITY SOUTH CAMPUS B15 3TN The Faculty of Health, Education and Life Sciences is situated about 1.5 miles south-west of the city centre in Edgbaston.

By bus: numbers 22, 23, 24, 29, 29A. . CITY CENTRE CAMPUS B4 7XG 7 Millennium Point and The Parkside Building can be reached on foot or by bus from the city centre.

By bus: numbers 33, 51, 907, 934, 934A, 935, 952, 997.

HALLS OF RESIDENCE A. CITY NORTH CAMPUS The Coppice and Oscott Gardens halls of residence are adjacent to City North Campus.

B. CITY SOUTH CAMPUS This includes some of the University’s halls of residence which are used mainly by students on Faculty of Health, Education and Life Sciences courses. If you are studying at one of our partner colleges, the staff will be able to give you travel instructions for getting to our campuses.

C. JENNENS COURT Located five minutes’ walk from the City Centre Campus, and a short walk from the Bullring shopping centre. Buses to City North Campus are only a 10-minute walk away.

By bus: numbers 33, 51, 907, 934, 934A, 935, 952, 997.

D. CLV BIRMINGHAM Located on Bristol Road close to the city centre, clv birmingham is a private sector development for the University’s students.

By bus: numbers 61, 63, X64.

E. CURZON GATEWAY Curzon Gateway is located three minutes from the City Centre Campus and is a short walk from the Bullring shopping centre. Buses to City North Campus are a 10-minute walk away.

CAMPUS AND HALL OF RESIDENCE SITES The following advice has been included to help you travel from the city centre to the University’s campuses.

F. ASTON STUDENT VILLAGE Located seven minutes’ walk from the City Centre Campus, and a short walk from the Bullring shopping centre. Buses to City North Campus are only a 10-minute walk away.

1. CITY NORTH CAMPUS B42 2SU City North Campus is located about three miles north of the city centre in the district of Perry Barr.

View the Network West Midlands city centre bus map at www.networkwestmidlands.com/web/FILES/BirminghamWEB.pdf

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LOCATE US A 1

F

Campuses 1 City North Campus F

2 3 4

C

7

2 Vittoria Street (School of Jewellery)

E

3 Margaret Street (School of Art)

Digbeth coach station

4 Birmingham Conservatoire 5 Bournville (International College)

B

6 City South Campus 6

7 City Centre Campus

D

Halls of residence A The Coppice and Oscott Gardens B City South Campus C Jennens Court D clv birmingham Full travel details can also be found at: www.bcu.ac.uk/accommodation.

E Curzon Gateway F Aston Student Village

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TRANSPORT FOR LONDON 18+ STUDENT OYSTER PHOTOCARD SCHEME

OR

ELIGIBILITY The Transport for London 18+ Oyster Photocard scheme is only available to students who reside in London during term time and travel to Birmingham City University from there. If, for example, you live in Birmingham during term time and return to London for the summer break, you will not qualify to apply for a card.

OR

You can, however, register with Transport for London for an Oyster Card if you: • are 18 years of age or over • live in London during term time and travel regularly to and from the University.

You must be either: • enrolled on a full-time course, of Level 4 or above OR • enrolled on a part-time course lasting for a period of at least 14 weeks

• in receipt of NHS bursary money as a full-time or part-time student

• a postgraduate student (either full time or part time) OR • a sabbatical officer.

How to apply As long as you have fully enrolled on your course, you can apply up to four weeks before your course start date or 18th birthday, whichever is later - the earliest date you can apply for the academic year 2014/15 is 1 September 2014.

Further details, including how to apply for your card, can be found on the Transport for London website at www.tfl.gov.uk/ fares-and-payments/students-and-children

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04 BIRMINGHAM CITY UNIVERSITY NETWORK Corporate Information and Communication Technology (CICT) provides the ICT services you’ll need at University, including shared storage, email services and connections to the internet.

As a student of the University, you will have access to a wide range of IT facilities, systems and benefits. Once you’ve firmly accepted an unconditional offer of a place, we will send you a username and password to access these services in advance of your enrolment with us.

One service you’ll be using a lot is our central web portal iCity (https://icity.bcu.ac.uk). iCity puts all your personalised information in one place, including your email account and course enrolment details, and acts as a gateway to other web-based resources and systems.

Your email account will be the main point of contact used by the University to send important information to you. You can access your email account anywhere you can access the internet, so please make sure you check it regularly to avoid missing any important news or information.

Each campus has computing resources and learning support centres giving students access to specialist computer software for its courses, as well as access to the internet, email and iCity, our central web portal.

The University’s wireless network (Eduroam) provides access to the internet in most locations on all campuses.

A centralised IT Help Desk offers helpful technical support via email, phone (0121 331 6543), Twitter (@BCU_IT_HELP) and in person.

Please visit https://icity.bcu.ac.uk/cict/ students for further information.

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05 BIRMINGHAM CITY STUDENTS’ UNION You may be unsure about what students’ unions provide, or think that it is just the place to come to when you want cheap drinks. The real truth about your Students’ Union here at Birmingham City University is that we’re about much, much more!

The first time you’ll properly get to know your Students’ Union is just before you come to the University, when we launch our Welcome Week web pages (formerly known as Freshers’ Week) and tempt you with the fantastic entertainment programme that we host, designed to ease you into university life the fun way. We’ll also send you a brand new information guide, packed full of hints and tips about being a new student and what your Students’ Union can do for you. Our Welcome Fair (formerly Freshers’ Fair) gets bigger and better every year, attended by hundreds of representatives from the University, local and national companies, your Students’ Union and our sports teams and societies, to help you get accustomed to university life.

Although at first you may just think of your Students’ Union as being all about fun and entertainment, it should be a major part of your life throughout your time here! We not only continue our varied and exciting entertainments programme (that you came to love during Welcome Week) throughout the academic year; we’re also here to help you with the following: • become more employable through our many workshops, seminars and practical sessions.

• advise you on any issues you may have with your work, personal life, housing or anything where you may need extra help and support.

• campaign on your behalf if you wish to see change within the Union or University.

• provide you with the opportunity to participate in a wide range (almost 200) of sports and societies, ranging from rugby and hockey to fashion and yoga, and allow you to compete competitively against other universities.

• feed you delicious and purse-and-wallet-friendly food, from our cafes and lounges and, as a not-for-profit organisation, everything you spend gets ploughed straight back into providing extra services for you • find your perfect student home through our very own lettings agency

• provide you with the opportunity to volunteer in many local and national projects that will look great on your CV • show you how to enjoy Birmingham as the great student city that it is!

We’ll show you the best places to enjoy nights out, to eat and to shop, and the many great cultural sights • and, more than anything, we’ll be that one extra friend that you can always count on to help you whenever you need us.

WELCOME WEEK 2014 Welcome Week is a chance for all new home, EU and international students starting their course this year to have a fun filled week to really help you settle in. Your Students’ Union has put together an amazing programme packed full of daytime and night-time events, so that you can really get involved with university life.

Our Welcome Week will run from Saturday 20 September 2014 until Monday 29 September 2014, at various venues and campuses across the city.

HOW DO I GET TICKETS? To attend some Welcome Week events, you will need to buy tickets or get yourself a wristband to save money and beat the queues. These will be sold via your Students’ Union website at www.bcusu.com from August 2014.

WELCOME FAIR Make sure you don’t miss out on the biggest event of the year! Taking place on Wednesday 24 September 2014 at Millennium Point and The Parkside Building, our Welcome Fair will give you the opportunity to join sports teams, societies, volunteering and media groups, enjoy funfair stalls and pick up lots of freebies. At the fair you can also find out what your Students’ Union, the University, selected partners and local campuses have to offer.

There will be free coaches from City North and City South campuses, with timetables available at www.bcusu.com from August 2014.

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06 ENROLMENT

HOW TO ENROL AS A STUDENT To study at Birmingham City University you must enrol as a student of the University. Once you have received and accepted an unconditional offer you will be required to complete an online enrolment process on our ‘mySRS’ web portal prior to attending the University. Your login details and guidance about this process will be sent to you by email six to eight weeks prior to your course start date. This will be followed by an on-campus enrolment which normally takes place within a few days of the start of your course.

Please ensure that you have the following documentation with you when you attend your on-campus enrolment. We will NOT be able to enrol you if you do not have the necessary documents: 1. PROOF OF IDENTITY You will need to provide one of the following documents: • passport • national identity card • original birth certificate issued within 12 months of birth (and original marriage certificate if your birth name has changed through marriage).

2. EVIDENCE OF PRIOR QUALIFICATIONS You must bring with you original certificates or official results notification for all the qualifications required to meet the conditions of our offer and any other qualifications you have obtained at GCE ‘A’ Level (or equivalent) or above unless the University has already seen these. Please check with the University Admissions Division if you are unclear as to which certificates you need to bring to enrolment.

3. EVIDENCE OF FINANCIAL SUPPORT OR SPONSORSHIP The amount of fees due will be recorded during your enrolment. You will be expected to make/arrange fee payment at enrolment. It is a condition of enrolment that you accept full responsibility for the payment of all course fees and any other fees you incur while registered as a student, including accommodation fees if you are living in University accommodation (the payment terms for your accommodation fees will be issued to you separately).

If you have applied for and been approved for a tuition fee loan to cover your fees you should bring with you the Financial Support Letter you have received from your awarding body. If you have not yet applied for a tuition fee or maintenance loan please do so immediately at www.slc.co.uk/students to ensure your funding is in place. The sooner you apply, the more likely you are to have your maintenance and tuition fee support in place for the start of term.

If you’ve already completed your student finance application, you don’t need to do anything further at this stage. Don’t forget, your maintenance loans and grants will be paid in three instalments, one at the beginning of each term, but only once you register on your course. Your Tuition Fee Loan is paid directly to us on your behalf.

If you have applied for funding indicating attendance at a different university please contact your awarding body immediately and submit a change of circumstances notification to inform them of this change.

If a sponsor, such as an employer, is paying your fees you should bring a sponsor letter confirming their intention to pay your fees. This letter must detail: • • • • •

your name the course on which you are enrolling your sponsor’s invoice address how much of the fees your sponsor will be paying your sponsor’s official order number, if available.

Failure to provide evidence of your student funding, application for funding or evidence of sponsorship will not stop you being enrolled, however in the absence of any evidence you will be responsible for payment of fees and will be required to make payment in accordance with the University’s Fee Payment Policy.

If you fulfil the conditions of enrolment when you attend your on-campus enrolment you will be enrolled as a student of the University and will be issued with a University identity card which gives you access to all the University’s facilities. If for any reason you cannot meet the conditions of enrolment you will not be enrolled as a student and must provide the missing information as soon as possible in order to enrol and begin your studies.

Birmingham City University | Arrival Guide

PAYING YOUR FEES If you will be paying all or part of your tuition fees yourself you must make or arrange payment of your personal fee contribution at enrolment.

We can accept the following methods of payment: • Debit card - Most major debit cards are accepted.

• Credit card - Most major credit cards are accepted. We do not accept American Express.

• BACS - direct transfer of funds from your bank to the University’s bank. (Please email cash.management@bcu.ac.uk when you have made the payment, quoting your student number).

• Cheques - preferably banker’s draft, however personal cheques will be accepted at enrolment but must be drawn on a UK bank account.

(Restrictions may apply in the acceptance of personal cheques at times other than enrolment. For details please contact Accounts Receivable, Finance Department.)

• Cash - £ Sterling only (we prefer you to use the other methods of payment listed as it is not advisable to carry large amounts of cash.)

• Sponsorship letter - authorised sponsorship letter confirming the amount to be paid (in accordance with University requirements) • Student Finance England support letter confirming the amount of tuition fee loan or tuition fee grant.

Our bank details are as follows: Account Name - Birmingham City University Bank - NatWest Birmingham City Centre Branch 1 St Philips Place Birmingham B3 2PP Sort Code - 60-02-35 Account Number - 78069467 IBAN (International Bank Account Number) - GB36 NWBK 6002 3578 0694 67 BIC (Bank Identifier Codes) - NWBK GB 2L Please email cash.management@bcu.ac.uk with details of your payment and quote your student number on any correspondence about your fees, or when making payment by any of the acceptable methods shown above.

If your tuition and course-related fees are less than £500 the tuition fee must be paid in full at the time of enrolment by one of the methods stated below. No instalments are permitted if tuition fees are less than £500.

All registration, residential, books, materials and other costs are payable in full at enrolment. Payment options only relate to the tuition fee portion of a student’s fees.

If your tuition and course-related fees are over £500, the tuition fees may be paid in full at the time of enrolment by one of the payment methods stated below, or as part of a direct debit agreement: • Debit/credit card - full payment • Banker’s draft or personal cheque - full payment • Cash - full payment (but we would prefer you to use a debit or credit card) • Direct debit mandate (not available to sponsors) – a minimum of 25 per cent of total fees due paid at enrolment and completion of a direct debit mandate to enable the balance to be collected by either of the following instalment plans: – 25 per cent at enrolment followed by three further direct debit payments in November 2014, January 2015 and April 2015, or – 25 per cent at enrolment followed by six further direct debit payments in December 2014, January 2015, February 2015, March 2015, April 2015, and May 2015.

You will be required to indicate which instalment plan you are opting for when completing the direct debit application. In the absence of any preference you will be assigned to the three direct debit payment plan.

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• Sponsorship letter - confirming payment of fees • Student Finance England support letter - confirming the amount of tuition fee loan If payment by one of the above methods is not made/arranged at enrolment you will be issued with a financial statement to your University email address; this will advise you that the full tuition fee due will be payable within 30 days. Applications for direct debit will not be accepted unless the required minimum payment of 25 per cent of fees has been made.

If you did not pay the required amount prior to or at enrolment, you will be able to pay online using a debit or credit card by accessing the following link on your statement: https://ipay.bcu.ac.uk/invoice/default.asp.

Please note you will not qualify for any instalment options until the minimum required amount has been paid.

IF A SPONSOR IS PAYING ALL OR PART OF YOUR FEES Your sponsor will be invoiced directly for the amount of your fees they have agreed to pay. If your sponsor is only paying part of your fees, you will need to make arrangements for your contribution at enrolment.

Your sponsor will be expected to pay their contribution within 30 days of the invoice date. Please note that there is no facility for sponsors to pay by instalments. If your sponsor fails to pay your fees you will be required to pay them yourself. You can only enrol if you accept this responsibility.

A copy of Birmingham City University’s sponsor agreement letter is available from your Faculty Office, Admissions or from Accounts Receivable, Finance. You can refer this to your sponsor for completion to ensure the relevant information is recorded for invoicing purposes.

WHAT HAPPENS IF I AM UNABLE TO PAY MY FEES AT ENROLMENT? FULL-TIME UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS (HOME/EU) If you cannot provide evidence of your tuition fee loan, you will be enrolled provided that you comply with the enrolment criteria detailed on page 15. As soon as you receive notification from Student Finance England confirming your tuition fee loan, you must send this to the University’s Finance Department so your fee liability can be reassessed.

If you have not provided either of this evidence and have not made the required payment of 25 per cent of your fees and elected to pay the balance by direct debit, you will be required to settle all fees due within 30 days of the fee creation date. You should be aware that students who fail to settle their fees within 30 days risk incurring the penalties and restrictions detailed on page 21.

Please note, if at the end of an academic year you are trailing failed modules you will be required to re-study those modules and may be required to pay an additional fee. Further information about this will be provided before you re-enrol next year.

CHANGE IN PERSONAL DETAILS The name you have provided for enrolment will be used for all formal purposes within the University and will be the name recorded on any award certificate issued to you. It is very important that you enrol under your full legal name which should match the name on the document you supply at enrolment as proof of your identity (ie your passport, national ID card, photo driving licence or original birth certificate).

If you change your name during your studies it is essential that you contact your Faculty Office so that your University records can be updated. We will not be able to do this without appropriate evidence to confirm your change of name. Your Faculty Office will be able to advise you about the procedure and the evidence we will require.

You are also responsible for notifying the University of any change of term-time or permanent home address after you have enrolled. It is very important that we have your correct address, as you may miss important communications if you fail to tell us you have moved.

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OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH CHECKS AND DISCLOSURE OF CRIMINAL RECORDS For some of the University’s courses in the healthcare and teaching professions it is a requirement for you to have obtained satisfactory Occupational Health and Disclosure of Criminal Records (DBS) checks.

If satisfactory Occupational Health and/or DBS checks are not obtained prior to enrolment, this will not prevent you from enrolling, but they must be obtained before you can attend any placement. You must provide the University with evidence that you have submitted your Occupational Health questionnaire, DBS application and made any necessary declarations of criminal convictions / cautions in order to enrol onto your course.

Please note that if you subsequently do not obtain satisfactory Occupational Health and DBS checks you may be withdrawn from your course.

If you have any queries about Occupational Health or DBS checks, including whether a check is necessary for your course, please contact Admissions.

DATA PROTECTION DATA PROTECTION ACT 1998 – STATEMENT TO STUDENTS Birmingham City University is a registered Data Controller under the Data Protection Act 1998. The University’s Information Manager is responsible for issues relating to Data Protection. However, specific enquiries about student-related data should be made to the Head of Student Administration in the Academic Registry, in the first instance.

The University processes personal data relating to students for a variety of purposes. These include: • registering and maintaining a record of academic achievement • the administration of fees and charges, grants, loans, scholarships, bursaries and sponsorships • library, email and network rights • library use and non-use surveys • student experience surveys, which may be facilitated by external agencies acting in strict accordance with the Data Protection Act • planning and control of curricula and examinations • calculation, publication and certification of examination results • the organisation of award ceremonies • provision of references • student welfare, including accommodation and counselling • research, statistical analysis, management information, statutory returns • provision of information to the Students’ Union for those students who agree to be members • information relating to careers and employment opportunities • marketing and promotional activity The University allows access to student data to employees and agents of the University (on a need-to-know basis only). Student information is also disclosed to a variety of third parties or their agents, notably: • students’ sponsors (including Local Authorities) • Student Finance England • relevant government departments to whom we have a statutory obligation to release information (including the Higher Education Statistics Agency and Council Tax officers) • current or potential employers of our students • current or potential providers of education to our students • the University’s insurers (in the event of a claim) • organisations responsible for auditing the University • Electoral Registration officers.

The University reserves the right to retain student data in line with recommendations laid down by the Joint Information Systems Committee.

For most data this will be held up to three years after your association with the University had ceased. This data may be used for any of the registered Data Protection Purposes.

N.B. Disclosures to organisations not listed above will be made in specific legitimate circumstances.

The University holds ‘sensitive personal data’ on race and disability where students have given the information voluntarily. This information will be used to compile statistical reports including equal opportunities monitoring. This data may also be used by the University to support its aim of ensuring that all members of the community are given equal access to its programmes and services. The University may initiate programmes in order to progress this aim, and students may be contacted on the basis of this data.

The University’s health service may hold confidential data on a student’s health where it is necessary to do so. Some details of a student’s criminal record may be held where it is necessary for admissions, or for the purpose of determining eligibility to train for a particular profession.

The University undertakes to maintain student data in secure conditions and to process and disclose data only within the terms of its Data Protection notification.

ENQUIRY WEB SITES Any information supplied by you will be processed by the University for a purpose related to your enquiry and in order to deliver the services that you have requested through its website. The information will not be made available to third parties except web service providers acting on the University’s behalf and strictly controlled by the terms of data sharing agreements.

Under the Data Protection Act 1998 you have a right to a copy of the current personal information held on you by the University and a right to object to data processing that causes damage and distress. For details of these procedures please contact our Information Manager Stephen Homer on 0121 331 5288.

DISCLOSURE OF DATA TO THE HIGHER EDUCATION STATISTICS AGENCY (HESA) STUDENT AND LEAVERS SURVEYS Your contact details may be passed to survey contractors to carry out the National Student Survey (NSS) and surveys of student finances, on behalf of the organisations listed below under Purpose 1. These organisations and their contractors will use your details only for that purpose, and will then delete them.

About six months after you graduate, we will contact you to ask you to fill in the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) ‘Destinations of Leavers from HE’ questionnaire. We will not give your contact details to HESA. You may also be included in longitudinal surveys of leavers in the years after you graduate. If so, we will pass your contact details to the organisation that has been contracted to carry out that survey. That organisation will use your details only for that purpose, and will then delete them.

If you do not want to take part in any of these surveys, please let us know.

THE HESA STUDENT RECORD We will send some of the information we hold about you to HESA. HESA collects, and is responsible for, the database in which your HESA student record is stored. HESA uses this information in its own right, for example to publish statistics about students in higher education. HESA may link information from the HESA student record to other related datasets such as UCAS, NSS and Student Loans Company data. All uses of the HESA Student Record must comply with the Data Protection Act 1998.

HESA is a registered charity and operates on a not-for-profit basis. It may charge other organisations to whom it provides services and data.

SENSITIVE INFORMATION If you give us information about your disability status, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender reassignment or religion these may be included in the HESA Student Record to assist with monitoring equality of opportunity and eliminating unlawful discrimination in accordance with the Equality Act.

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If you are enrolled at a higher education institution in England regulated by the Higher Education Funding Council for England the HESA student record will include details of any financial support you may receive from us to enable research into the provision of fair access to higher education.

Your sensitive information will not be used to make decisions about you.

PURPOSE 4 - EQUAL OPPORTUNITY, RESEARCH, JOURNALISM AND OTHER PROCESSING IN WHICH THERE IS A LEGITIMATE INTEREST HESA and the other data controllers listed under Purpose 1 may also supply data to third parties where there is a legitimate interest in doing so. Examples of use for this purpose include:

The HESA Student Record is used for four broad purposes:

• equal opportunities monitoring • research - this may be academic research, commercial research or other statistical research where this is in the public interest • journalism - Where the relevant publication would be in the public interest, eg league tables • provision of information to students and prospective students.

PURPOSE 1 - PUBLIC FUNCTIONS Education statistics and data The HESA Student Record is used by some organisations to help carry out public functions connected with education in the UK. These organisations are data controllers in common of the HESA Student Record under the terms of the Data Protection Act. Such organisations include: • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills Welsh Government Scottish Government Department for Employment and Learning, Northern Ireland Higher Education Funding Council for England Higher Education Funding Council for Wales Scottish Further and Higher Education Funding Council Department for Education Research Councils The Data Service (on behalf of the Skills Funding Agency) The National College for Teaching and Leadership The National Health Service Office for Fair Access

and any successor bodies. These organisations may link information from the HESA Student Record with other information they hold. For example the Department for Education and the Department for Business Innovation and Skills link the HESA Student Record to the National Pupil Database and the Individual Learner Record. The Funding Councils link the HESA Student Record to data from the Student Loans Company.

Linked data is used for research into education.

OTHER USES The HESA Student Record may also be used by some organisations to help carry out public functions that are not connected with education.

Such uses may include the following: • Measurement of population levels and migration by the Office for • National Statistics, National Records of Scotland and the Northern • Ireland Statistics and Research Agency • Monitoring of public expenditure by the National Audit Office • Monitoring of the accuracy of electoral registers by Electoral • Registration Officials.

PURPOSE 2 - ADMINISTRATIVE USES Previous qualifications - If you are enrolled at an institution in England: We and the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) may compare your data to educational records from previous years to help determine the levels of your current qualifications. This may in turn affect the fees you are required to pay or the availability of a place for you to study with us.

Non-EU domiciled students - If you are a non-EU domiciled student HESA may be requested to provide data about you to the United Kingdom’s immigration authorities. These authorities may process your personal data in order to carry out their public functions connected with immigration.

Your HESA record will not be used to make decisions about you other than for those uses outlined under Purpose 2.

PURPOSE 3 - HESA PUBLICATIONS HESA uses the HESA Student Record to produce statistical publications.

These include some National Statistics publications and online management information services. HESA will take precautions to ensure that individuals are not identified from the data which are processed for Purpose 3.

Users to whom data may be supplied for Purpose 4 include: • • • • • • • •

higher education sector bodies higher education providers academic researchers and students commercial organisations (eg recruitment firms, housing providers, graduate employers) unions non-governmental organisations and charities local, regional and national government bodies journalists.

Data supplied by HESA to third parties is supplied under contracts which require that individuals shall not be identified from the supplied data.

A copy of HESA’s current agreement for the supply of data is available at www.hesa.ac.uk/bds-details#e.

THE HESA INITIAL TEACHER TRAINING (ITT) RECORD If you are on an ITT course at a higher education provider in England, HESA will collect data about you and provide this to The National College for Teaching and Leadership.

The National College for Teaching and Leadership is a data controller under the terms of the Data Protection Act 1998 and will process your personal data in order to carry out their public functions connected with teacher training in the UK. ABOUT THE HESA STUDENT COLLECTION NOTICE The HESA Student Collection Notice is regularly reviewed. The most up-to-date version can be found at www.hesa.ac.uk/fpn. Minor updates to the Student Collection Notice (including organisation name changes and clarification of previously specified purposes) may be made at any time. Major updates (such as a new purpose or administrative use) will be made no more than once per year.

YOUR RIGHTS Under the Data Protection Act 1998 you have rights of access to the data HESA holds about you. You will have to pay a small fee for this.

For further information about the HESA Student Record please see www.hesa.ac.uk/dataprot or email data.protection@hesa.ac.uk.

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07 FINANCIAL INFORMATION

This section of the Guide provides information about your tuition fees and the financial support you may be eligible to receive. It is not possible to give comprehensive advice in this Guide about the arrangements for student support, so if you have any queries about your entitlement to financial support, please contact the appropriate government body (see below) or Student Services. If you are unsure of the fee you will have to pay in 2014/15 please contact the Admissions Division.

CATEGORIES OF STUDENTS The tuition fees you will have to pay and the support arrangements available to you will differ according to what type of student you are, the level and type of course you are taking and whether you are a full-time or part-time student.

For funding and support purposes students are classified by the UK government as ‘Home’, ‘EU’, ‘Channel Islands’ (students from the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man) or ‘International’. We issue a separate guide for international students. If you are an international student who has been sent this Guide in error please contact the International Office on T: +44 (0) 121 331 5389; F: +44 (0)121 331 6314 or E: international.admissions@bcu.ac.uk who will be able to give you the information you need.

TUITION FEES TUITION FEES FOR HOME AND EU STUDENTS TAKING FULL-TIME UNDERGRADUATE, PRE-DEGREE AND PGCE COURSES. As you may know, all universities have had to increase the tuition fees they charge, due to a reduction in government funding for higher education. Here at Birmingham City University, we have worked hard to devise a fee structure which reflects the actual cost of delivery for each course and helps keep graduate debts to a minimum.

Rather than charging the maximum fee allowed across the board, we opted for three price bands of £7,500, £8,200 and £9,000, with the highest fees reserved for the courses that are most expensive for us to run – such as our internationally renowned courses in Jewellery and Acting which require extensive performance opportunities and one-toone tuition time.

Our fees for full-time courses in 2014/15 will be: • £6,000 All HND, HNC and Foundation degrees.

• £7,500 Full-time first degrees in Business and Management; Sociology; Childhood and Young People; Computing, Information and Communication Technology; Architectural Technology; Property, Construction and Planning; English; and Health and Social Care (other than those courses delivered under the NHS contract).

PGCE courses in Post Compulsory Education.

• £8,200 Full-time first degrees in Art and Design; Architecture; Law; Engineering; Digital Media Technology; Engineering Design and Manufacturing Systems; Psychology; Criminology; Media and Communication; and Community Theatre.

• £9,000 Full-time first degrees in Jewellery; Music; Acting; Stage Management; and Initial Teacher Training. PGCE courses in Initial Teacher Training.

ADDITIONAL FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR DISABLED STUDENTS For UK students with disabilities, there is additional financial support to assist you at university. Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA) is a nonmeans tested grant and you don’t have to repay it. If you haven’t already applied for DSA and you think you may be eligible, please either contact your funding body or call Student Services and ask to speak to one of our experienced advisers.

T: 0121 331 5588 Online enquiry: www.bcu.ac.uk/askus W: www.bcu.ac.uk/studentservices I: https://icity.bcu.ac.uk/Student-Services EQUIVALENT LEVEL QUALIFICATION (ELQ) An ELQ is a qualification already held by you that is equivalent to, or at a higher level than, the qualification you wish to study.

If you are a UK or EU student starting one of the following full-time undergraduate courses in 2014/5 - BMus (Hons) Music, BMus (Hons) Jazz, BA (Hons) Acting, BA (Hons) Stage Management or BA (Hons) Applied Performance (Community and Education) - and already hold

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a qualification at the same or at a higher level (an ELQ), you may be charged a higher fee for your course.

Students receiving the Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA) will not have to pay the ELQ fee if they can provide evidence that they are in receipt of the allowance.

Please refer to the University’s website for further details or contact the Admissions Division at the University who will be happy to advise you.

TUITION FEES FOR PART-TIME UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS If you are taking a part-time course, Admissions will advise you of the fee for your course. It will depend upon the level of the course and the number of modules you study.

TUITION FEES FOR POSTGRADUATE COURSES If you are coming to the University to study a postgraduate course, the Admissions Division will have advised you of the fee. The fee for parttime postgraduate study will vary according to the number of modules you are studying and the fee for your course. Please contact the Admissions Division if you are unsure of the fee for your particular course (contact details are given on page 22).

If you will be studying for the award of an MPhil or Doctorate by fulltime study the Home/EU fee for new and continuing students will be £3,996 for 2014/15. If you are a part-time research student the Home/ EU fee for new and continuing students (those who started from 2010 onwards) will be £1,998 for 2014/15.

TUITION FEES AND SUPPORT FOR CHANNEL ISLAND STUDENTS TAKING UNDERGRADUATE COURSES As noted above, students from the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man are not classified as home or EU students. This means that different rules are applied by the UK government to calculating their fees, which are set by the island authorities and Universities UK. As an undergraduate student you may be eligible for funding for tuition fees and your living costs from your own government. If you have not already done so you should contact the following departments to find out whether you are eligible and the amount of any support to which you are entitled: Department of Education – Isle of Man website: www.gov.im/education Department of Education, Sport and Culture – Jersey website: www.gov.je/esc Education Department – Guernsey website: www.education.gg/unifunding

FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS (NEW STUDENTS) TUITION FEE LOANS FOR HOME AND EU STUDENTS CONTINUING ON FULL-TIME UNDERGRADUATE, PRE-DEGREE AND PGCE COURSES For 2014/15 new students can apply for a tuition fee loan of up to £9,000 to cover all or part of their tuition fees, provided this is their first degree.

There is no upper age limit for student fee loans. If you apply for a full or partial loan you will not have to pay your loan back until you are working and earning more than a certain figure per year - currently £21,000.

If you elect to take out the full tuition fee loan, this will be paid directly to the University and will cover your tuition fees in full for the academic year 2014/15. If you decide to take out a partial loan and pay the balance of the fees yourself, or to pay the full amount yourself, you will be required to pay your contribution in full at enrolment, or in accordance with the instalment options and fee payment policy requirements (see pages 15 and 16).

If you wish to apply for a tuition fee loan and have not already submitted an application please ensure that you do so immediately. If you do not apply for a tuition fee loan you will be required to pay your fees in full at enrolment or by direct debit.

If you are a Home student and you live in England you should submit an application to Student Finance England. Applications can be submitted online at www.gov.uk/studentfinance or you can download an application form and send your completed paper forms and evidence to: Student Finance England PO Box 210 Darlington DL1 9HJ

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If you live in Wales, you should submit an application to Student Finance Wales. Further details can be found at www.studentfinancewales.co.uk.

If you live in Scotland, you should submit an application to the Student Awards Agency for Scotland. Further details can be found at www.saas.gov.uk/student_support.

If you live in Northern Ireland, you should submit an application to Student Finance Northern Ireland. Further details can be found at www.studentfinanceni.co.uk.

Students who have already received support for a first degree will not be eligible for a tuition fee loan or other form of financial support. You will, however, be permitted to pay your fees in instalments.

Tuition fee loans for EU students As an EU student you may get support for your tuition fees on the same basis as a Home student. You should have already been sent an Eligibility Application form EU12N. If you have not received this form you should contact the EU team, using the contact details below. The amount you will be able to earn before you have to start repaying your loan will vary according to the country to which you return after completing your course with us. The EU team will be able to give you advice about your circumstances.

Customer Services PO Box 89 Darlington DL1 9AZ T: + 44 (0) 141 243 3570 E: EU_Team@slc.co.uk Hours: Monday to Friday 10am - 4pm.

Maintenance grants and student loans for maintenance are not available to EU students so you will need to make sure that you have taken account of the costs of living in the UK. However, if you meet the three year residency requirements, you may be eligible for support.

SUPPORT FOR LIVING COSTS Eligibility for a grant and student loan for maintenance is determined by your household income. The arrangements described below give a general picture of the support available for students who live in England, but to find out your personal entitlement you must contact Student Finance England. If you live elsewhere in the UK, or in the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man, you should consult your funding body to find out what support is available to you.

MAINTENANCE GRANTS Full-time students from lower income households entering higher education in 2014/15 will be eligible for a non-repayable, means-tested Maintenance Grant. How much each eligible student gets will depend on their income and that of their household. The full Maintenance Grant for a student with a household income of £25,000 or less will be £3,387.

A partial grant will be payable on a sliding scale where the household income is between £25,000 and £42,600. Students who are eligible for means-tested state benefits receive a Special Support Grant.

NATIONAL SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAMME For the academic year 2014/15, the University will be offering National Scholarships to 332 scholarships to the value of £2,000 per scholarship offered as a fee waiver to first year students. Eligible part time students will receive a pro rata fee waiver. In subsequent years, the same students will be offered a further fee waiver of £2,500 in year 2 and a cash award of £2,000 in year 3 (or a further fee waiver of £2,000 for any eligible EU students).

The University consistently attracts more students per year from a family income background of £25,000 or less than will be able to receive a scholarship. Therefore, the following additional criteria will be used to select scholarship beneficiaries: firm acceptance of a conditional or unconditional offer by 13 June 2014; and demonstration of excellence in academic achievement, performance or potential, giving priority to those students from partner schools or colleges.

If you have not yet applied for student finance, you must submit an application to the authority in your region: England: www.gov.uk/student-finance Scotland: www.saas.gov.uk/student_support

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Wales: www.studentfinancewales.co.uk Northern Ireland: www.studentfinanceni.co.uk

Much like full-time students, you start paying your tuition fee loan back after you have graduated, and you are earning more than £21,000 a year.

When submitting your application, make sure that you do not opt out of sharing financial information with the University.

POSTGRADUATE STUDENTS As a postgraduate student you will not be eligible for the financial support available to undergraduate students and you will have to seek funding from other sources. For further information please visit our postgraduate funding webpage at www.bcu.ac.uk/pgfunding. A similar support package to that provided for undergraduate students is available for full-time PGCE students. This means that, in addition to tuition fee loans, full-time PGCE students may be eligible to receive a maintenance grant and a student loan.

STUDENT LOANS FOR MAINTENANCE You are entitled to a student loan to help with living costs such as food, accommodation and travel. 65 per cent of the amount of the loan is nonmeans tested, so all eligible students can get this amount. A further 35 per cent is means-tested depending on household income. Like tuition fee loans, these loans will be repayable once you are earning £21,000 or above.

If you receive a Maintenance Grant, the amount of the maintenance loan you can take out will be reduced. If you receive a Special Support Grant, the amount of the loan is not reduced.

You will be informed by Student Finance England of the amount of loan that has been approved. Your loan will be paid in three instalments, usually in September, January and May, directly into your bank account

by Student Finance England.

If you hold a post-graduate award for a taught programme or a research degree from a UK Research Council (AHRC, EPSTC, ESRC, etc) or the Department for Business, Innovation & Skills, this should cover both your tuition fees and some living expenses.

To obtain your student loan you must be enrolled. If you have not provided proof of identity or qualifications, you will not receive your student loan because we will not be able to enrol you.

From time to time the University is able to offer funded PhD studentships in disciplines aligned to our research priorities. These will normally be advertised on the university website at www.bcu.ac.uk/research and in other locations. Depending on the source of the funding, there may be restrictions on the full award of stipend and fees to non-UK nationals.

Funded PhD studentships are highly sought after and our aim is to attract the best post-graduate research students to the University to contribute to our developing culture of high-quality research.

There are certain conditions you have to meet, before your tuition fee loan, maintenance grant or student loan can be processed for payment

by Student Finance England. These are:

OTHER FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR CAREER DEVELOPMENT For information on financial assistance to support your learning, please visit www.nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk or call 0800 100 900.

• an application has to be made to Student Finance England online (or on form PN1) • your bank account details have to be given to Student Finance England • your National Insurance number must be given to Student Finance England.

NON-PAYMENT OF FEES

At enrolment we need the following details from you so that we can confirm your attendance at University and instruct Student Finance England to release your payment: • you need to bring a copy of your support notification letter from Student Finance England • you need to give us your Student Finance England support number which is 13 characters long and appears on your notification letter from Student Finance England. Without this number we cannot confirm your attendance at the University to Student Finance England which will release the loan payments.

If you transfer course and/or university: • the student/tuition fee loan payments are course specific and transferring from one course to another could delay payment • should you transfer from another university to Birmingham City University, the loan payments will only be made once the information has been sent to Student Finance England.

FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR PART-TIME STUDENTS New students in 2014/15 will be able to apply for a tuition fee loan; the amount available is linked to the amount charged by Birmingham City University for your chosen course. For example if your tuition fees are £6,750, the maximum tuition loan available will be £6,750.

The loans are not means tested so if you are an eligible student you will be able to apply for the maximum amount, regardless of your household income.

If you take out a tuition fee loan, the money will be paid direct to the University on your behalf. If you do not take out a tuition fee loan you will need to make arrangements to pay the University yourself. You may be able to pay your fees in instalments by direct debit but you will need to arrange this when you enrol on your course.

The University will make every effort to assist students who face financial difficulties and who have unpaid overdue fees.

If, after all attempts to collect fees they still remain unpaid (through non-payment of invoices, unpaid cheques, default on direct debit or failure by a sponsor to pay), the University reserves the right to take action to recover the outstanding debts.

Failure to pay outstanding debts will incur some or all of the following actions and will apply until the debt has been cleared in full: SUSPENSION OF STUDIES Suspension from the module, course, project, research and all aspects of the chosen method and subject of study. No entitlement to attend or participate in lectures, classes, teaching, tutorials or learning instruction of any kind while full penalties are in operation.

WITHDRAWAL OF SERVICES Your access to library and computing services will be withdrawn.

EXAMINATIONS/RESULTS Written confirmation of examination results, transcripts of marks, award certificates and invitations to, or attendance at, any award ceremonies will be withheld. Any work, dissertation, thesis or research may not be marked. Your course progression may be adversely affected.

OTHER SANCTIONS Written confirmation of your attendance at Birmingham City University (eg for Council Tax purposes); responses to reference requests and your invitation to any graduation ceremony will be withheld and supervision of any work- or study-related placements will be withdrawn.

ENROLMENT You will not be allowed to re-enrol for subsequent study.

Full details are available from https://icity.bcu.ac.uk/Finance/ Accounts-Receivable. Refer to Credit Management Policy.

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08 OTHER USEFUL CONTACTS ACADEMIC REGISTRY ADMISSIONS DIVISION T: 0121 331 6295 F: 0121 331 6209 E: admissions@bcu.ac.uk STUDENT REGISTRATION AND AWARDS UNIT T: 0121 331 7795 F: 0121 331 6358 RESEARCH DEGREES OFFICER T: 0121 331 7686 F: 0121 331 6753 E: beccy.boydell@bcu.ac.uk COLLABORATIVE PROVISION (PARTNER COLLEGES) T: 0121 331 6896 F: 0121 331 6753 GENERAL ENQUIRIES T: 0121 331 5679

FACULTY CONTACTS FACULTY OF THE ARTS, DESIGN AND MEDIA BIRMINGHAM CONSERVATOIRE Faculty/Admissions T: 0121 331 7291 E: Conservatoire@bcu.ac.uk BIRMINGHAM SCHOOL OF ACTING Faculty/Admissions T: 0121 331 7563 E: BSAAdmissions@bcu.ac.uk SCHOOL OF ENGLISH Faculty T: 0121 331 5880 Admissions T: Tel: 0121 331 6296 E: English.Admissions@bcu.ac.uk BIRMINGHAM SCHOOL OF MEDIA Faculty T: 0121 331 5880 Admissions T: 0121 331 6296 E: Media.Admissions@bcu.ac.uk

SCHOOLS OF ARCHITECTURE; FASHION TEXTILES AND THREE-DIMENSIONAL DESIGN; JEWELLERY; VISUAL COMMUNICATION Faculty T: 0121 331 5809 Admissions T: 0121 331 5150 E: Biad.Admissions@bcu.ac.uk

ACCOMMODATION SERVICES

FACULTY OF BUSINESS, LAW AND SOCIAL SCIENCES School of Business T: 0121 331 6277/5622 Admissions T: 0121 331 6296 E: BusinessSchool.Admissions@bcu.ac.uk Schools of Law and Social Sciences T: 0121 331 6991 Admissions T: 0121 331 6371 E: ELSS.Admissions@bcu.ac.uk

OTHER USEFUL NUMBERS

FACULTY OF HEALTH, EDUCATION AND LIFE SCIENCES School of Health T: 0121 331 7123 Admissions T: 0121 331 5500 E: Health.Admissions@bcu.ac.uk School of Education T: 0121 331 6991 Admissions T: 0121 331 6371 E: ELSS.Admissions@bcu.ac.uk Faculty of Computing, Engineering and the Built Environment Faculty T: 0121 331 7424/7404/7585 Admissions T: 0121 331 6790 E: TEE.Admissions@bcu.ac.uk

FINANCE DEPARTMENT

T: 0121 331 5191/5192 F: 0121 331 5377 E: accommodation@bcu.ac.uk www.bcu.ac.uk/accommodation

CENTRO HOTLINE (LOCAL TRAVEL) T: 0871 200 22 33 www.networkwestmidlands.com TRAVEL WEST MIDLANDS T: 0121 254 7272 www.nxbus.co.uk/west-midlands NATIONAL RAIL ENQUIRIES T: 08457 484950 www.nationalrail.co.uk NATIONAL EXPRESS, BIRMINGHAM COACH STATION T: 08717 818178 www.nationalexpress.com BIRMINGHAM VISITOR SERVICES T: 0121 202 5115 www.visitbirmingham.com BIRMINGHAM AIRPORT T: 0844 5766000 www.birminghamairport.co.uk

ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE - FOR DEBTRELATED ADVICE AND PROBLEMS T: 0121 331 5592/5593 F: 0121 331 6349 E: CreditM@bcu.ac.uk

USEFUL WEBSITES

CASH MANAGEMENT - FOR PAYMENTS AND RELATED ADVICE T: 0121 331 5397/5398 F: 0121 331 6349 E: Cash.Management@bcu.ac.uk

GOV.UK EDUCATION AND LEARNING www.gov.uk/browse/education

STUDENT SERVICES T: 0121 331 5588 www.bcu.ac.uk/studentservices

GOV.UK (UK GOVERNMENT PORTAL) www.gov.uk

STUDENT LOANS COMPANY EUROPEAN TEAM CUSTOMER SERVICES PO Box 89, Darlington, DL1 9AZ T: + 44 (0) 141 243 3570 E: EUTeam@slc.co.uk www.slc.co.uk/students.aspx

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09 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

COUNCIL TAX LIABILITY: GUIDANCE FOR STUDENTS Council Tax is a very complex area so if you have any doubts about your personal situation, contact either the Students’ Union Advice Centre on 0121 331 6801, by email to union.advice-centre@bcu.ac.uk or in person during the opening times on our website www.bcusu.com or go to your Faculty Office.

Don’t forget, it’s your responsibility to ensure that the local authority is informed of your status as a student in relation to your Council Tax liability.

FULL-TIME STUDENTS If you are a full-time student undertaking a full-time course of study you are exempt from Council Tax. This includes during the vacations.

You should go to your Faculty Office and ask for a letter confirming your student status which you can send to your Local Authority.

EXCEPTION If you are either the home owner or your name is on the tenancy agreement for the home and you live with one or more non-students, such as a partner or a child who is not in full-time education, you are liable for Council Tax, but may be eligible for Council Tax Benefit.

FULL-TIME STUDENTS WHO HAVE INTERRUPTED THEIR STUDY If you have interrupted your study because: • you are ill • you are caring for someone who is ill • or if you are still registered on your full-time course but have an interruption of studies for no longer than one year then you do not have to pay Council Tax. You should go to your Faculty Office and ask for a letter confirming your student status which you can send to your Local Authority.

Please note interruptions of study are subject to approval by your Faculty.

If these situations last for more than a year, you become liable for Council Tax. PART-TIME STUDENTS If you are a part-time student you are liable for Council Tax but may also be eligible for Council Tax Benefit.

NEED ADVICE? Council Tax law can be very complex and you may have questions about your status, especially if you live with non-students. If you need further help or advice you can contact the Students’ Union Advice Centre by telephone on 0121 331 6801, by email at union.advice-centre@bcu.ac.uk or in person during the opening times on our website, www.bcusu.com.

You can also contact your Faculty Office.

REGISTERING TO VOTE The system of registering to vote is changing with the introduction of Individual Electoral Registration (IER). Under IER, every student takes individual responsibility for their registration to vote. Register online at www.gov.uk/register-to-vote. For more information about voting eligibility visit www.aboutmyvote.co.uk.

INTERRUPTION OF SERVICES The University undertakes all reasonable steps to provide the teaching, examination, assessment and other educational services set out in the prospectus and in any relevant course leaflet or student handbook.

Should industrial action or other circumstances beyond the control of the University interfere with its ability to provide educational services, the University undertakes to use all reasonable steps to minimise any resultant disruption to educational services.

The University does not undertake any absolute obligation whatsoever to provide educational services in the manner specified in its prospectus and in the further documents listed above, nor does it undertake any other obligation in respect of the provision of educational services in that manner, which is more onerous than the obligations set out in this paragraph.

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10 FINAL CHECKLIST We have included this checklist as a helpful reminder of the items that you need to bring with you to University.

FINAL CHECK

OR Student Finance England (Support Notification)

3 tick here

HAVE YOU FORGOTTEN ANYTHING? Please find below a checklist of items that you must bring with you so that you can be enrolled as a student of the University.

Other reminders

YOU MUST BRING WITH YOU THE FOLLOWING DOCUMENTS AND MEANS OF PAYMENT SO THAT YOU CAN BE ENROLLED AS A STUDENT OF THE UNIVERSITY:

DISCLAIMER This Guide was prepared by the Academic Registry.

The information contained in this Guide is correct at the time of going to press and is given in good faith. Please note University policies for 2014/15 in respect of fee payments, credit management and credits and refunds were subject to approval when this Guide was produced. Please be aware the information provided in these areas is for guidance only and may be subject to amendment. It is important you check actual payment options and ensure you familiarise yourself with these requirements at enrolment. This booklet has been checked carefully, however, Birmingham City University accepts no legal responsibility for accuracy.

Proof of your ID 3 tick here Passport OR original birth certificate issued within 12 months of birth (and marriage certificate if your birth name has changed through marriage)

Accommodation Fees (see page 8 for details)

OR

JULY 2014

National Identity Card

Birmingham City University Admissions Division Academic Registry City North Campus Perry Barr, Birmingham B42 2SU T: +44 (0)121 331 6295

Original certificates or official

3 tick here

results notification for all the qualifications required to meet the conditions of our offer, provided that you have not already supplied these to your Faculty Tuition fee payment 3 tick here OR Sponsor letter

E: Admissions@bcu.ac.uk W: www.bcu.ac.uk

3 tick here

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LEGAL INFORMATION LEGAL This information is intended as a general guide to the University’s courses and facilities and forms no part of any contract between you and the University. Although reasonable steps are taken to provide the courses as described, the University cannot guarantee the provision of any course of facility. Any course may be altered or withdrawn owing to circumstances beyond the University’s control. It is strongly recommended that prospective students contact the relevant faculty or visit the University website to obtain the most up-to-date course information.

For full terms and conditions please log on to www.bcu.ac.uk/policies EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES Birmingham City University promotes equality of opportunity in respect of every aspect of its provision.

HERITAGE Our contribution to the education of the citizens of Birmingham and beyond stretches back through a succession of predecessor institutions for over 170 years. We achieved university status in1992 as the University of Central England, changing our name to Birmingham City University in 2007, reflecting our commitment to, and pride in, our home city.

EMPLOYABILITY Birmingham City University is committed to preparing students for successful employability and professional careers. We have an innovative approach to employability that will help you obtain an interesting and well-paid graduate job. Read our Employability Statement to find out more at www.bcu.ac.uk/courses/employability-statement.

DISABILITY Birmingham City University’s Disability Service aims to enable students with disabilities or learning support needs to make the most of their time at university. To discuss any aspect of disability, contact the Disability Service on 0121 331 5588, or email disability@bcu.ac.uk.

The information in this leaflet is intended as a general guide to the University and forms no part of any contract between you and the University. For full terms and conditions please visit www.bcu.ac.uk/ policies.

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WWW.BCU.AC.UK

Birmingham City University Admissions Division, Academic Registry, City North Campus, Perry Barr, Birmingham B42 2SU T: +44 (0)121 331 6295 E: Admissions@bcu.ac.uk W: www.bcu.ac.uk Published July 2014