Overview

The Access to Bristol scheme is an initiative that provides local students with an opportunity to experience life at the University of Bristol, gaining access to its academic expertise and facilities. The scheme is designed as a curriculum enrichment opportunity for students studying A-levels or equivalents and is open to all students in the first or second year of A-level study.

Priority is given to students in the following categories:

• Local students (resident in BA or BS postcodes);
• Those with the academic ability to study at the University of Bristol;
• Those who are part of the first generation in their family to go to university;
• Those living in a Low Participation Area (LPA).

Students whose residual household income is £25,000 or below and who have completed our Access to Bristol scheme will be guaranteed our enhanced financial support package:

• A full tuition fee waiver, plus;
• A bursary to assist with your expenditure over the academic year valued at £3,855.

This means that, taking into account government living cost grants, these students should be able to complete their studies at Bristol without incurring any financial obligations in respect of either tuition or maintenance costs.

Eligibility

• To be eligible for the Access to Bristol support package, students must be resident in England, apply for means tested support through Student Finance England and have been assessed by them to have a household income of £25,000 or less, and have been awarded a maintenance grant or special support grant.
• Students on any year of their course which is NHS funded are not eligible to receive the Access to Bristol tuition fee waiver or bursary.
• Students undertaking a year abroad will be eligible for a tuition fee waiver to match their tuition fee liability, and will continue to be eligible for a bursary. This includes students who are not eligible for means-tested support on their year abroad.
• Students undertaking a year in industry will be eligible for a tuition fee waiver to match their tuition fee liability, and will continue to be eligible for a bursary.
• The Access to Bristol bursary will be available to students who start their studies at the University of Bristol in the academic year following the completion of their A-levels or equivalent course, or one year later.
• We understand that there are exceptional circumstances which may mean that students are unable to start their studies at the University of Bristol within the timescale outlined above. Therefore, if you are expecting to start your studies outside of the above timescale you must contact us before applying to the University of Bristol to discuss your eligibility.
• New UK undergraduate students who start a programme of study at the University of Bristol between 2012/13 and 2014/15 and who are eligible for 'home' fees.
• Students who have successfully completed the Access to Bristol scheme (successful completion defined as having attended the majority of sessions provided in one academic year).
• Students who satisfy, by virtue of having been on the Access to Bristol scheme, a range of widening participation criteria including parental occupation, parental experience of higher education, domicile progression data and school performance, as collected in the Access to Bristol application form.

Students in any academic year who are entitled to the Access to Bristol package of support (full tuition fee waiver and bursary) cannot also be considered for the main University of Bristol tuition fee waiver/bursary package of support in the same academic year.

Award

There are two elements to the Access to Bristol award: a tuition fee waiver and a bursary.

Eligible students will receive a full tuition fee waiver (£9,000). This amount will be reviewed each academic year so that the tuition fee waiver matches the tuition fees to be paid.

Eligible students will also receive a bursary worth £3,855.

The University will review the value of the Access to Bristol Bursary from time to time.

How to apply

All students who have successfully completed the Access to Bristol scheme will have any application to the University of Bristol tracked. Eligible students must firmly accept their conditional or unconditional offer to go forward for consideration for the Access to Bristol bursary.

Any students confirming a place at the University will automatically be eligible for consideration for the Access to Bristol Bursary.

Award process

1. After finishing the Access to Bristol scheme, you will be notified of successful completion and issued with a certificate. You will be invited to a graduation ceremony to receive your certificate.
2. You will receive confirmation of your place at university from UCAS, on or after A-level results day.
3. Once you know your place has been confirmed and you know that your household income is under £25,000 per year, you can cancel your tuition fee loan if you requested one in your application for Student Finance. If you are unsure whether your household income is below £25,000 or you want to cancel your tuition fee loan, call Student Finance England on 0300 100 0607.
4. Once you are fully registered at the University, we will be able to generate the tuition fee waiver and bursary payment.
5. We would expect to do this by mid-October and contact you at that point.
6. The Access to Bristol bursary element will be paid directly into your bank account in three termly instalments.
7. Students are required to provide the University with the correct bank details to ensure timely bursary payments. Please follow these instructions: Entering Bank Details to receive payments by BACS (PDF, 654kB).
8. The University reserves the right to use the bursary to offset any debt owed to it by the student.

Changes in circumstance

Withdrawal from a course

• If you withdraw from your course before your next bursary payment date, you will not receive payments but the repayment of any previously paid instalments will not be sought. As long as you are in attendance on the date that bursary payments are made you will receive your bursary instalment.
• Withdrawing students will have their tuition fee waiver adjusted to meet their tuition fee liability for the year in which they withdraw.

Repeating studies

• If you repeat a year, you are entitled to the Access to Bristol financial package of support during your repeat year provided you continue to meet the household income eligibility criteria.
• If you are not repeating a full year of study/modules, the fee waiver will be adjusted to match any tuition fees for which you are liable.
• The bursary element will only be paid for the terms when you are in attendance.

Changing from studying full-time to part-time

• If your faculty allows you to temporarily change from full-time study to part-time study due to medical circumstances, you will normally continue to be eligible for financial support through the Access to Bristol scheme.
• As long as you continue to have a household income of £25,000 or less and are awarded a maintenance grant or special support grant from the government, you will be entitled to a fee waiver equivalent to the full tuition fees being charged while studying part-time. Also, the Access to Bristol bursary will be paid for those terms when you are in attendance on your course.
• Support will be limited to one full-time equivalent year. For example, if you study at 50% full-time equivalent for one academic year, and another 50% during the following academic year, you will be eligible for support in both years, subject to the above conditions.

Change of course or course length

• If after starting your studies you choose to undertake a year abroad which lengthens your degree programme, you will be eligible for a tuition fee waiver to match your tuition fee liability and will continue to be eligible for a bursary.
• If you intercalate on a medicine, dental or veterinary science course, you will not be eligible for the Access to Bristol Bursary in your intercalation year.
• After you have been notified of your bursary, if you transfer to a course that is longer than your original course (eg from a BSc to an MSci), you will continue to be eligible for the bursary.
• If you transfer to the first year of a new course from the first year of your original course, you’ll receive the bursary but not the fee waiver for the duration of the new course. However, if you repeat a year of study, you won’t normally receive the bursary in that repeat year. If you have extenuating circumstances for a repeat year, then you could still receive the bursary.
• If you transfer to the first year of a new course from the second or third year of your original course, you’ll only receive the bursary in some years of the new course, and you will not receive the fee waiver. Contact the Student Funding Office if this applies to you. If you repeat a year of study, you won’t normally receive the bursary in that repeat year. If you have extenuating circumstances for a repeat year, then you could still receive the bursary.
• After you have been notified of your bursary, if you transfer to a course with a higher tuition fee than your original course, you will be liable to pay the difference between the two tuition fee levels yourself.

Change in household income

• Students who are initially assessed as eligible to receive the Access to Bristol support package, but whose household income increases above £25,000 during the academic year, will stop being entitled to the Access to Bristol tuition fee waiver and Access to Bristol bursary.
  • Affect on tuition fee waiver: In such cases, the student's entitlement to the tuition fee waiver will cease and an adjustment made to their entitlement on a pro-rata basis for the period they were eligible. The student will then be advised of the period not covered by their tuition fee waiver and the amount of tuition fees that they will be liable to pay. They would be eligible to apply to Student Finance England for a non means-tested tuition fee loan to cover any amount of tuition fees not covered by the tuition fee waiver.
  • Affect on bursary: The student would not be expected to repay any instalment of the bursary already paid prior to the household income increasing above £25,000, but any instalment of the Access to Bristol bursary not already paid would be cancelled.
• Students who have graduated from the Access to Bristol scheme but who do not qualify for the Access to Bristol support package, on the basis of their household income, will have their entitlement reassessed if their household income falls below the qualifying threshold during the academic year.
• Entitlement to the Access to Bristol package of support will be reassessed annually. Therefore graduates of the scheme who may not have been eligible in one year due to their household income being too high, may be eligible in future academic years if they subsequently meet the qualifying household income threshold.