Setting up your stipend

You will be notified by email when your stipend payments have been set up. Your scheduled payments and amounts will then be visible in your financial statement. Only payments for the current academic year will be visible.

Payments for the 2024/25 academic year will be set up by mid-September 2024. If your funding is due to continue, you will be notified by email when this has been set up.

If you have queries about your funding duration or amounts, contact your faculty administration team.

Receiving your stipend

You must be a fully registered student before any stipend payment can be released to you.

You are also required to register your bank details with the University before any stipend payment can be released to you. Stipend payments are made via BACS transfer to your nominated UK bank account. International students will need to set up a UK bank account to receive their stipend.

Payments

Stipends are paid in advance on the first day of each month. If this falls on a weekend or bank holiday, you will be paid on the last working day of the previous month.

If your programme start date is in September, your first payment will be for the month of October. Any unfunded days for September will be paid to you in the last month of your PhD.

If you receive any payments that you are not eligible for, you will be required to return them to the University.

If your tenancy agreement is paid in quarterly installments, you may request your stipend to be paid in quarterly installments. To arrange this, email pg-funding@bristol.ac.uk.

If you require a letter to confirm the stipend you are due to receive for the current academic year, email pg-funding@bristol.ac.uk.

Change of circumstances and overpayments

If you make changes to your study programme, your funding entitlement may also change. Changes that affect your funding include:

• suspending your studies
• extending your studies
• changing your mode of attendance
• withdrawing from your studies.

If you are suspending your studies, you should refer to the University's Regulations and Code of Practice for Research Degree Programmes.

If you have any questions about a change of circumstance, contact your supervisor or faculty administration team.

Overpayments

It can take several weeks for a change of circumstance to be reflected in your funding amounts. This can lead to an overpayment of your stipend. You will be required to return any overpayment, so it is important you talk with your supervisor or school.

The Money Advice and Funding team will notify you via email if you have been overpaid. This will include:

• details of the total overpayment
• a breakdown of how this has been calculated
• instructions of how you can return the overpayment to the University.

Expenses and consumables

If there is a Research Training Support Grant (RTSG) attached to the studentship, contact your faculty administration team. They can provide information on how to use these funds.

Tuition Fees

For information relating to your Tuition Fees or other programme costs, please refer to your Offer/Funding Letter. This will have been provided by your Faculty. You can also contact your School or Faculty PGR Administration Office.