
Frequently Asked Questions
If you are uncertain about anything or you have a query, then our comprehensive frequently asked questions (FAQs) page may have the answer.
Note: The term 'Student visa' refers to both the Tier 4 (general) visa and also the new Student visa, which has replaced the Tier 4 (general) visa on 5th October 2020.
The information on this webpage is about attendance requirements for students who have a Student visa, including:
If you have a Student visa for a full-time programme of study, you must attend your studies full-time during term dates.
Term dates are the time during which you are expected to be in the UK studying and attending your course activities. Term dates include exam periods and the time during which you are expected to be writing your dissertation or thesis.
Vacation dates are different for each level of study. Please read the information for the relevant level of your course in the sections, below.
The vacation dates for undergraduate students are the Christmas and Easter vacation dates and University closure dates, as stated on the University key dates webpage plus the summer vacation from the end of the summer term until the beginning of spring term for the next academic year.
The vacation dates for postgraduate taught students are the Christmas and Easter vacation dates and University closure dates, as stated on the University key dates webpage. At all other times postgraduate taught students must show attendance full time in the UK up to the end of their programme end date as specified on their CAS, including during the summer.
The vacation dates for postgraduate research students are University closure days, as stated on the University key dates webpage. When you are writing up your thesis or when your status is nominal you must continue to show attendance full-time in the UK.
In addition to University closure days and Bank Holidays, postgraduate research students are permitted to take 26 working days of annual leave each academic year (01 August – 31 July). Any annual leave you do not take within the current academic year cannot be used in the next academic year. If you start part-way through an academic year, after 01 August, you will only get a pro-rata (reduced) annual leave entitlement for the first year. For example:
To apply for annual leave, you must complete an absence request form which must be authorised by your Faculty Graduate School in advance of the dates you wish to be absent. You can find Student visa annual leave request forms on PGR Tracker or on the University's absence request form webpage.
You must show attendance by:
The University of Southampton uses an electronic attendance monitoring system, which enables you to show attendance easily when you study online or on-campus. The electronic systems used to monitor attendance are:
Please note: no data can be seen apart from a record that you have accessed the system.
If you do not use any of the electronic systems listed here, during term dates, you will receive electronic attendance reminder emails from the Visa and Immigration Student Advice Service (VISAS). If you are not actively studying and your absence from studies is not authorised, the University cannot continue to sponsor your Student visa.
If there is a reason why you cannot attend your studies during term dates, you can find more information about what to do in the next section: What to do if you cannot attend your studies.
If you need to leave the UK or will not be actively studying during term dates you have a few options:
If you are considering leaving the UK to complete your thesis or dissertation, you can find more information in the next section: Leaving the UK before you complete your studies.
You can apply for an authorised absence to take a short time away from your studies or leave the UK for a short time for any of the following reasons:
Your absence should be authorised before you take time away from your studies. This will make it easier for you to show you have the approval of your Student Sponsor when you travel through the UK border and will enable the University to continue to sponsor your Student visa during your absence
Further information and absence request forms can be found on the University’s Student visa authorised absence request form webpage:
Student visa absence request forms
This type of authorised absence is available for postgraduate students only. Remote study may include: data collection, field work, attending a conference or other research which is necessary to your current programme of study. Leaving the UK to write up your dissertation/thesis is not considered remote study. You can find more information about leaving the UK before you complete your studies in the next section.
To be able to approve your absence, your supervisor must confirm:
If your supervisor cannot confirm all of the above, they will not be able to approve your absence and you will need to discuss alternative options with them, which may include completing your study activity in the UK or suspending your studies.
This type of authorised absence could be for reasons which include a family emergency, a wedding of a close family member or a serious health condition which requires a short absence from studies. Requests for compassionate leave are assessed on a case-by-case basis.
If you are not sure if the reason for your absence will qualify for compassionate leave, you can speak to a visa advisor at our drop-in service or book a visa advice appointment.
In all requests for compassionate leave, your tutor or supervisor must confirm that they:
This means that you must still be able to successfully complete your current programme of study before your current Student visa expires and your absence must not directly result in you having to extending your stay to complete your studies.
You may be asked to provide evidence to support your request for authorised absence.
If your absence is for a medical leave, you must provide a letter from your doctor at the hospital or medical centre on official headed paper which includes all of the following:
If your evidence is not in English, you must provide a certified translation which contains all of the following:
You must contact your Faculty Office to find out the process to apply to suspend or withdraw from your studies.
When you suspend or withdraw, you will no longer be actively studying so the University cannot continue to sponsor your current Student visa. On the date you are suspended or withdrawn, the University will remove sponsorship of your Student visa and report your change of circumstances to UK Visas and Immigration. We will email you the same day to explain that:
If you suspend your studies, you will need a new visa to return to your studies. When you know the date you are planning to return, you must prepare to apply for a new visa. Visit our webpage about applying outside the UK for more information.
If you are considering writing up your dissertation or thesis outside of the UK, you must discuss this with your Faculty Office and supervisor before you leave the UK. If your Faculty and supervisor are able to approve your decision to leave the UK, you must inform the Visa and Immigration Student Advice Service (VISAS) using our online enquiry form. When you inform VISAS that you will complete your dissertation or thesis outside of the UK, the University will remove sponsorship of your Student visa on the date you plan to leave the UK.
When the University removes sponsorship of your Student visa, we will report your change of circumstances to UK Visas and Immigration and we will email you on the same day to explain that:
The University will remove sponsorship of your Student visa when we are informed about your decision to repeat externally.
If you need to return to the UK to attend examinations when you are repeating externally, you will need to apply for a Short-term study visa.
Following successful completion of your repeat external period of study, you will need to apply for a new Student visa from outside the UK to continue with your programme of study at the University of Southampton. You can find more information on the University's webpage about applying for a Student visa outside the UK.
Please note: The University of Southampton cannot accept responsibility for the content of external websites.
If you are uncertain about anything or you have a query, then our comprehensive frequently asked questions (FAQs) page may have the answer.
You can talk to one of our visa advisors by either coming along to one of our visa drop-in sessions, or you can book an appointment for an in-depth discussion.
You can contact us through our online enquiry form. We strongly encourage people to contact us through the online enquiry form rather than emailing us directly.