Which visa will students need to apply for?
Students will apply for either a Tier 4 visa or short term study visa, depending on their pathway and how long the student will be in the UK for each period of study. Due to the part time, flexible nature of the programme, many students may only need to apply for a short term study visa instead of a Tier 4 (usually for full time international students).
Further information about visas is available on the Home Office website:
Short term study visa
Tier 4 visa
How will students apply for a short term study visa?
Students will not need a CAS (Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies) or a £1000 deposit for a short term study visa. However, they need to be very clear about when they will be studying in the UK and for how long as this will depend on the type of invitation letter that they will be provided. This visa will allow students into the country for a maximum of 6 months. If the student is attending short sessions as part of a distance learning course then they will need to visit for no more than 56 days in a 6 month period to allow for successive short term visa applications to be made.
For students to apply for a short term study visa, they must have first received an invitation letter from the University of Manchester to study. To receive this, they will need to apply to the course through the university, and have received and accepted an unconditional offer. Students can apply for the short term study visa online, but will need to travel to a visa centre in order to enrol their biometrics (photograph and fingerprints). This does not have to be a British embassy, though some countries may not have a visa centre, which means that some students may need to travel to a different country to do this. A list of visa centres can be found here.
Information about applying can be found on the Home Office website.
