Rules for Student visa holders taking placements
Full-time Student visa holders can complete work placements during their time in the UK. However, part-time students on a Student visa are not allowed to undertake placements.
The placement must:
- be an integral and assessed part of your course
- take up no more than 50% of the total time that you spend on your course
You can work full time on a paid or unpaid placement for more than 20 hours per week if it is an integral and assessed part of your course. You must not be self-employed, or employed as a professional or semi-professional sportsperson, or an entertainer.
Adding a placement to your course (taught courses only)
If you want to add a placement to your course you will need to:
- Speak to your department. If they agree with the course change they will submit a change of course form to the Student Immigration Service. We will contact you if you need to do anything with your visa.
- Make sure you have enough time left for study in accordance with UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) time limit (i.e. you must be within the five-year time limit).
- Make a Student visa application (if applicable).
You can change onto a placement course before getting a new visa. You can apply for your new visa either before the placement or after the placement has finished (but not during the placement). Contact the Student Immigration Service for more advice.
Your faculty has staff dedicated to maintaining links with employers and helping you find a placement. The Careers Service can also offer good advice to prepare you for interviews and applications.
Doing a placement overseas
If you do a placement overseas, the University will continue to sponsor you. You must follow the same guidelines as if you were working in the UK and keep us informed of any changes.
Deciding not to do your placement
If you decide not to do your placement you should:
- notify your department
- ask your department for a change of programme form (with section C completed) - both your department and the Student Immigration Service will need to sign it
- inform UKVI by completing the change of circumstances form
The Student Immigration Service will inform the Home Office that you will not be completing the placement year. If your visa included the placement year, it will be cut short. It will remain valid for four months after the completion of your studies, but you must then leave the UK or apply for a different visa.
Doctoral students on a work placement
Placements for Doctoral students must be approved by your supervisor and the Student Immigration Service as part of the authorised absence process before the placement starts. Therefore, any sponsored student wishing to undertake a doctoral placement must first request it via the authorised absence form available on SAMIS online. Your placement must also be an integral and assessed part of their research / course.
Starting placement late or finishing early
You are expected to be on your placement during the University teaching periods. Teaching periods for placement students are:
- October to April for year-long placements
- October to December for semester long placements taking place in semester one
- February to April for semester long placements taking place in semester two
If your placement starts later and/or finishes earlier than stated above, you need to submit an authorised absence request (via SAMIS) to cover the period when you are not on placement. The maximum length is 60 calendar days. If your absence will exceed this, please speak to your Placement team.
Your responsibilities while on your placement
You must respond quickly to all University communications to your University of Bath email address. You also need to provide your new address and contact details to:
- the University via Registration On-Line
- UKVI
You are required to tell the University and your employer about any unexpected absence e.g. taking a day of due to illness. For more information on your responsibilities please read our see our academic engagement monitoring policy.