Smiling man in suit seated with laptop open

Information for sponsored students

How to apply for sponsorship and types of sponsors

You can get your tuition fees and other costs covered by a sponsor. Sponsorships are open to undergraduate students and postgraduate students.

Sponsors are usually an employer, government body, charity or non-governmental organisation (NGO), not a relative who's paying your costs (unless they are paying through their business).

You'll only be classified as a sponsored student if the organisation sponsoring you pays fees directly to the University – if you're receiving direct payment, you're still classed as a self-paying student. As an international sponsored student, you're not eligible for any other tuition fee discounts.

How to apply for sponsorship

You aren't able to apply directly to us for sponsorship – instead, you'll need to arrange this with your sponsor first. For example, if the company you work for is willing to sponsor your studies, you'll need to make arrangements with them first, and your sponsor must then let us know that they're planning to pay your fees.

The best way for them to do this is to fill in an External Company Sponsorship (RE2) Form. They need to complete this in full, sign it and send it to us.

Your sponsor can use a digital signature, or print the form out and sign it. They should email it to sponsors@port.ac.uk or post it to:

Department of Student and Academic Administration
Student Administration Services Team
Floor 5
Mercantile House
Hampshire Terrace
Portsmouth
PO1 2EG
UK

Additionally, if your employee is a new student (joining the University from September 2020 onwards), you can pass the completed form to them and they can upload it using their Applicant View – the online account which was set up when they applied to study with us.

Alternatively, your sponsor may want to send a standard confirmation letter, or an embassy's Financial Guarantee instead of our standard form. This is OK, but it must be on official headed paper and signed by the sponsor.

You can ask your sponsor to use our template letter to use directly, or copy details from this to their standard letter. See below for the template they should use:

Student Name: <<insert name>>

University ID Number: <<if known>>

Reference/P.O. Number: <<if none, name of authorised signatory>>

Course Title: <<insert course>>

CURRENT SESSION: <<insert academic session>>

Please accept this letter as confirmation that <<company name>> will fund the tuition fees of the above named for the total amount of <<£>> and bench fees (where applicable) of <<£>>.

In consideration of us providing tuition and/or bench fees for the above named student, I/We accept responsibility for payment of the Tuition Fees set out above for the period stated, and agree to pay the said fees in full within 30 days of invoice date directly to the University of Portsmouth. I/We confirm we have, or will make our own agreement with the student to cover his/her obligation to us, should he/she interrupt his/her studies (temporary suspension) or withdraw from the programme, or leave our employment.

I confirm I am authorised to enter into this contract, and am an authorised signatory of the organisation named below.

I/We have read and accept the University’s Tuition Fee Policy concerning fees charged which is available on our Tuition fees terms and conditions page.

Please forward the tuition fee invoice to:

<<Accounts Payable Generic Email>>

<<Address line 1>>

<<Address line 2>>

<<Address line 3>>

<<Address line 4>>

<<Address line 5>>

Please contact me on <<telephone & email>> if you have any queries.

Yours Faithfully,

<<Name>>

<<Position within Company>>

If the sponsor sends us a letter without all these required details and declaration, this could be rejected, leaving you liable for the tuition fees.

What do I need to tell my sponsor?

There are a few things that your sponsor will need to be aware of.

Firstly, they should know that they must send an External Company Sponsorship (RE2) Form or official Letter of Sponsorship for each academic session you complete. This generally means they'll need to send this for each year of your course.

Secondly, they must pay your tuition fees in full with 30 days of the date on the invoice we will send them.

If your sponsor can't pay invoices without a purchase order number, the External Company Sponsorship (RE2) Form or official Letter of Sponsorship should not be submitted without the relevant number. Your employee's progress could be interrupted or facilities withdrawn if the PO number has not been quoted and our invoice is returned unpaid.

If your sponsor doesn't have a purchase order or reference number, they should use the signatory's full name instead. We'll use this as a reference so your finance department can match the invoice up when they receive it. 

To avoid any delays in payment, they must ensure the External Company Sponsorship (RE2) Form or official Letter of Sponsorship includes the following:

  • Your full name
  • The course you'll be studying
  • The amount the sponsor wants to contribute (specified in £GBP)
  • The purchase order number
  • The email address of your Accounts Payable Department – this is where the invoice will be sent
  • If they cannot provide an Accounts Payable email address, we must have the sponsor's full address, including postcode or zip code – this is where the invoice is to be sent instead
  • The academic session the letter covers – for example, if your course takes place within the period of 1 August 2018–31 July 2019, this would be 2018/19
  • A contact email address of the person signing the letter or form, and the name of the sponsoring company or government body

If the form or letter is incomplete or doesn't contain enough information, we won't be able to accept it and you'll need to pay the full tuition fee amount. 

Your sponsor can choose to pay for more than one year's course fee at the start of your programme of study, allowing them to pay a fixed entry fee for all of your course. They can see terms and conditions and application details of this policy here: International Fixed Entry Fee Agreement.

What if I leave my course?

The External Company Sponsorship (RE2) Form or official Letter of Sponsorship confirms your sponsor’s contractual obligation to pay fees for you for the period stated, even if you withdraw from your course or you leave your employment.

We recommend that your sponsor forms their own agreement with you to cover your obligation to them if you decide to leave the course or your employment.