Step 7: Tuition Fee Deposits
A tuition fee deposit is a payment of a proportion of your tuition fees at the point that you accept your offer.
Selected postgraduate taught programmes at UCL will need you to make a tuition fee deposit payment to secure your place.
Check if you need to pay a deposit
If your course requires you to pay a deposit, it will say on your offer letter.
The offer letter will confirm:
- if a deposit is needed,
- the deadlines to accept your offer,
- the deadlines to make the deposit payment, and
- the amount you need to pay.
If your offer letter does not say that you need to pay a tuition fee deposit, then you will not need to make a deposit payment before you enrol on your course.
When to pay
If your course requires you to pay a deposit, your offer letter will set two deadlines for you. The first is for you to confirm acceptance of your offer, which you can do via your applicant portal.
The second deadline will be to pay the tuition fee deposit amount in full.
If you do not meet either of these deadlines, your application will be withdrawn.
You cannot pay your deposit until you have accepted your offer on the applicant portal.
If you need to request an extension
If you are waiting for a decision on a funding application, please submit your request for an extension by completing our contact form.
We will respond to let you know if we can consider your request and, if so, to ask you to upload evidence of your application for funding through the applicant portal.
You must provide evidence in the following format:
- An official, dated letter from the funding body,
- signed by an authorised officer of the funding body,
- confirming your full name, and the expected date by which you will receive a funding decision from them.
Once we have reviewed the evidence you have uploaded, we will confirm whether an extension has been given. If UCL agrees to extend the deadline, full payment must be made or proof of sponsorship provided, by the extended deadline.
Exceptional circumstances
UCL will only consider requests for extending your deposit deadline for reasons other than awaiting the result of a formal funding application, in exceptional circumstances.
The expectation is that you will pay the deposit by the deadline given in your offer letter.
If you have funding
If you have been successful in getting funding that will cover the full cost of your tuition fees, we will be happy to consider exempting you from paying the fee.
Funding may have come in the form of a:
- Studentship
- Scholarship, or
- Sponsorship
You can request an exemption from the payment by completing our contact form. We will respond to let you know if we can consider your request and, if we can, to ask you to upload evidence of your funding award letter to the applicant portal.
The award letter must:
- be an official, dated letter from the funding body,
- be on headed paper and signed by an authorised officer of the funding body,
- confirm your full name, the programme of study and full amount of funding awarded.
Once we have reviewed the evidence you have uploaded, we will confirm whether UCL will grant an exemption.
If UCL does not agree to exempt you from the deposit, you must make full payment by the deadline.
How to pay
You can only pay your tuition fee deposit once you have accepted your offer on the applicant portal.
Flywire
Payments can only be made through UCL’s online payment system Flywire. You can do this yourself or arrange for a third party to do so on your behalf.
Full details of how to make the payment are available in the Financial Deposits tab in the applicant portal.
