A - Z Glossary of terms
A
- Academic Fees
Academic Fees are also known as Tuition Fees.
- Academic Technolgy Approval Scheme (ATAS)
A condition of your offer might be to provide ATAS clearance. For further information regarding ATAS please visit the Meeting conditions of your offer section.
- Attested documents
Attested documents are 'official' copies of your original documents that have been verified by either your university, British Council, solicitor, lawyer or official notary. Each page of the copy of the document should include an official stamp, confirmation that the original has been seen and contact details of the attesting officer. If you are in the UK, the Post Office offer this service for a small fee.
C
- CAS
Confirmation of Acceptance of Studies (CAS)
Once you have received an unconditional offer and you are within 3-4 months of the start of your course you will receive an email to confirm the personal details that the University holds about you. Once you confirm your details are correct, you will be directed through to the CAS request form. Please complete the form as fully as possible as the University will use this form to assess your eligibility for Tier 4 sponsorship. Typically, where no further information is required, these are usually processed within 10 working days of receipt of the request form.
- Conditional Offer
A conditional offer is made when an applicant still has requirements to meet prior to being eligible to enrol at the University. Typical conditions of offer may include achieving a particular result in a pending qualfication e.g Upper Second Class in a Bachelor's Degree, verification of qualifcations indicated in the application form, English language requirements, references and other non-academic requirements. The offer letter will state any conditions that must be met before enrolment.
D
- Deferring your offer
It may be possible to defer your offer of a place until the following academic year. You should contact the academic department to request a deferral, including reasons why you wish to defer. The academic department will consider your request. Applicants who are allowed to defer their offer will be provided with up dated course material information for the new year of entry when it is available.
- Deposit
Some coures require a deposit to secure the offer of a place at the University. Your offer letter will clearly state whether or not a deposit is required, how much the deposit is, and what the deadline is to pay the deposit. If you have any questions about paying the deposit, you should contact the academic department using the contact details in your offer letter.
E
- English Language requirements
The University requires evidence that your English Language capability is of a level that will enable you to succeed on your chosen course of postgraduate study. We therefore have English Language entry requirements based on minimum standards. There are a number of tests that students can take to meet the English requirements of the course. Further information can be found at www.warwick.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/apply/english/
F
- Fee Assessment Questionnaire
If you believe the fee status of your offer is incorrect, you can request for this to be reassessed. Please complete a fee assessment questionnaire, which can be found at: https://warwick.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/apply/pgadmissions/applicants/feesstatusguidance (you may be asked to provide additional documents to support the new assessment).
M
- Material Information
A Material (course) Information document is provided with offers for postgraduate taught courses (MA/MSc/PGDip/PGCert). The Material Information gives a general overview of the course, any compulsory modules, teaching and assessment methods and any additional costs associated with studying the course.
- MPhil/PhD
For some research courses at Warwick, students enrol initially on a 1 year Masters of Philosophy (MPhil) course, and after satisfactory progress, upgrade to the 3 year Doctor of Philosophy (PhD).
O
- Official certified translation
If you have completed a qualification in a language other than English, you may be asked to provide an official certified translation with your certificate and/or transcript. An official, certified translation of your document can be provided by an official translation company, each page will be stamped and signed and contact information for the translator will be included so that it can be verified and authenticated.
- Original documents
In most cases, the Admissions Service will accept scans of documents to meet conditions of offer so original documents are not required as part of the application process. You will be required to bring your originals with you when you enrol at the University to be checked by your department.
On occasion, the Admissions Service may ask you to provide the original of one of the documents you have submitted with your application. You will be provided with instructions on how to send this information. Examples would be to post the original version of the degree certificate that you have received directly from your previous university or institution or to post the original reference letter provided by your referee. In most cases, an attested copy of the original version of the document is sufficient.
P
- Pro rata
If tuition fees are listed as pro rata, this means they are calculated in proportion of the total amount for that academic year. An example would be where a student starts their course part way through an academic year where tuition fees are charged at one rate and completes part way through an academic year where tuition fees are a different rate. Tuition fees are adjusted 'pro rata' so students are charged accurately for their time studying across 2 or more academic years.
R
- References
An academic reference should be provided by a tutor who has taught you on your current or most recent degree and who can provide an informed view of your academic ability and suitability for your chosen programme of study. The University will accept professional references if you have been out of higher education for over two years and these must be submitted by your current or most recent line manager. Please note that personal references, such as those from family and friends, are not acceptable.
If you have studied a postgraduate degree in the past two years, we will require at least one reference from someone who taught you at postgraduate level. If you are applying as a visiting research student, please note that only one reference is required and it needs to be from your current research supervisor.
Please note that, if you have submitted an application in a previous year, we are unable to re-use references submitted in support of it. We require new references for new applications, although you can nominate the same referee/s if you wish.
- Regulated Qualification Framework (RQF)
The Regulated Qualification Framework (RQF) is an official framework used to catalogue all recognised UK qualifications. Typically Bachelor's degree level qualifications are classified as RQF level 6, Master's degree level as RQF level 7 and PhD level qualifications as RQF level 8. You may see this stated in your offer letter or CAS to describe the level of the qualification you are intending to complete at Warwick.
S
- Supporting statement
A supporting statement (also known as a statement of purpose/purpose of study) is required by the Course Selector in order to consider your application. A CV is also useful to the Course Selector, although not mandatory. Research applicants should submit a research proposal outlining their intended area of research.
T
- Terms and Conditions
All offers of study include Terms and Conditions of offer. You should read this document carefully prior to accepting your offer of a place.
- Tuition fee
Tuition fee and accommodation payments to the University of Warwick are managed by the Student Finance team. For further information on how to make a payment and when to pay, please visit our student finance pages.
U
- Uncondtional Offer
An offer is unconditional when all requirements have been met. The Admissions Service will confirm that your offer is unconditional by email. You will not be required to meet any further conditions but still need to accept your offer and follow the next steps of the admissions process so you are fully prepared to commence your studies.
V
- Verify
The Admissions Service can check, verify and authenticate English language qualifications such as IELTS, TOEFL and Pearson's PTE online.
W
- Warwick ID number
Your Warwick ID number will appear on all correspondence from the Admissions Service. The ID is unique to you and will be the same ID if you go on to become a student. Please use this number in all correspondence to the University as it helps to quickly locate your record.