Postgraduate: Funding your time at university

If you’re planning on taking a postgraduate course you will already be familiar with the financial commitments involved in Higher Education studies, from tuition fees to accommodation and living expenses.

There are a few differences in funding your time at university for postgraduate students and our Student Fees team is here to offer support and advice to help you. Email studentfees@rau.ac.uk.

For some useful information on managing your finances you can read The Student Money Manual produced by The Money Charity.

Tuition fees

Tuition fees cover the cost of your academic studies. This usually includes teaching costs, registration and examination fees (excluding repeat or trailing modules, re-sit fees or coursework re-submission). Any costs associated with work placements will be your responsibility. There may be additional study tour charges on some courses. Please refer to the fees section on the individual course pages for details.

The tuition fee you will be charged and the support available is determined by your fee status, which will be UK or international/overseas.   

Please note: The fees listed on this website represent those payable by new postgraduate students starting in 2025.

Course charges will be reviewed annually and may rise in line with inflation and any other permitted increases announced by government each year. Full details of postgraduate fees for 2025/26 can be found here.

In addition the following general charges may apply:

Postgraduate dissertation extension

  • 10% of course fee

Repeat or trailing module fees (part-time students)

  • Repeat or trailing modules taken on a part-time basis will be charged at the module fee rate.

Determining your fee status

On receipt of your application, the University will assess the level of fees that you'll be required to pay during your study. To enable us to determine your classification status for fees purposes as either a UK or international fee paying student we may ask you to provide the following information: 

  • Your nationality
  • The nationality of both of your parents
  • Date of arrival in the UK (prior to the start of the course)
  • Your immigration status in the UK
  • The place and country where you have lived for the past three years
  • The place and country where your parents have lived for the past three years

In certain cases, when a fee status assessment cannot be completed based on the information above, we may ask you to complete a fee status assessment questionnaire.

Further information on fee status can be found on the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) website.

Part-time students 

We offer some courses on a fixed part-time basis, please refer to the individual course page for more information. 

Research students

Please check the individual course pages to see the specific fees for each course.

All experiment costs to be paid by self-funding students. Any supervisor travel costs to be paid by self-funding students. 

Please note part-time students from non-UK countries are currently unable to enrol on research degrees due to visa regulations.

RAC/RAU alumni 

From January 2021, all RAC/RAU alumni who are accepted for postgraduate research degrees at the RAU are eligible for a 20% reduction in tuition fees, even if they have previously received an alumni discount on a taught programme.

Additionally, alumni may also be eligible for other funding in the form of scholarships, bursaries and awards.

The 20% reduction in fees* is available to visiting students who have completed a minimum of one term of studies at the RAU campus, and also to RAU students studying at one of our UK partner colleges or on one of our International Programmes.

*This applies for 2024 entry.

Accommodation and living costs

The RAU is located just outside of Cirencester in the South West of England. You have three choices for your accommodation during your studies. You can live on campus with a room in one of the halls of residence with the option of full, half-board or self catering. You can rent accommodation in Cirencester or surrounding areas or you can live at home and commute into the campus each day. 

Please refer to these page for more information on the costs associated with these options:

Funding your university costs

UK students

Postgraduate loans

There is financial support available from the Government to help UK postgraduate students cover the costs of living and studying. Funding is available whether you are studying full-time or part-time. There are two types of loan available: Master's and Doctoral. Please visit www.gov.uk/funding-for-postgraduate-study for more details of Master's and Doctoral loans.

Additional support for students with a disability

You may be entitled to Disabled Students' Allowances (DSAs) from the government. You’re considered disabled under the Equality Act 2010 if you have a physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long-term effect on your ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. Disabled Students' Allowances (DSAs) are grants from the government to help pay the extra essential costs you may have as a direct result of your disability, including a long-term health condition, mental-health condition or specific learning difficulty, such as dyslexia or dyspraxia. You don’t have to pay these back 

For both full-time and part-time postgraduate students there’s a single allowance of up to £26,948 which can cover:

  • Specialist equipment, for example a computer if you need one because of your disability
  • Non-medical helpers
  • Extra travel because of your disability
  • Other disability-related costs of studying

How much you can get doesn’t depend on your household income, but does depend on your individual needs. You’ll be asked if you want to apply for DSAs when you’re applying for your main student finance. Once you’ve applied for your main student finance you’ll be able to apply for DSAs online.

After you’ve submitted your application for DSAs, you’ll be told what evidence you need to send to support your application. If you only want to apply for DSAs and no other type of student finance, you need to complete a DSA1 application form which you’ll be able to download at www.gov.uk/studentfinance once the service opens. You should apply and send your evidence as early as possible, the application process for DSAs can take around 14 weeks. 

You can find out more information about what’s available where you live from the following websites.

Funding for students from the Armed Forces

The MOD's Enhanced Learning Credits scheme (ELC) promotes lifelong learning amongst members of the Armed Forces. The scheme provides financial support in the form of a single up-front payment in each of a maximum of three separate financial years. For more information visit the ELCAS site. 

Bursaries and awards

There are different forms of financial support on offer to prospective postgraduates. Each has different criteria. Please visit our bursaries, awards and scholarships page for more information.

This list is not exhaustive and you may be eligible for financial support from other sources such as charitable trusts. For any further assistance email scholarships@rau.ac.uk. 

Paid employment

Some students undertake paid employment whilst studying at the RAU. However, the university strongly recommends that your paid employment is no more than 10 hours per week so that you have time to concentrate on your studies. It is very important that you check that your visa permits you to undertake paid employment. If in doubt, contact the RAU payroll team on studentfees@rau.ac.uk.

Financial advice and Access to Learning funding

If you are in financial hardship you can apply for additional help from the Access to Learning fund at any point throughout the duration of your course. Please contact financial.support@rau.ac.uk for details and we'll be happy to advise.

Paying your fees

Please visit this page to find out about the options for paying your fees.

Finance-related policies

Please make yourself familiar with the various University policies related to fees and finance.