This page contains important information for international students (non-UK nationals living outside of the UK) who wish to study in the UK. This page does not apply to international students who wish to take a Spurgeon’s College course via distance learning. For Distance learning courses taken outside of the UK, international students only need to meet the academic requirements for entry to the course. Spurgeon’s College welcomes applications from international students who wish to study in the UK on one of our full-time taught undergraduate or full-time taught postgraduate courses.
International students who are part of the EU Settlement Scheme
EU, EEA and Swiss nationals already living in the UK before 31st December 2020 should have applied for Settled or Pre settled status via the EU Settlement scheme (EUSS) before 30th June 2021.
Otherwise, you will be regarded by the College as an international student.
International students (those who are not part of the EU Settlement Scheme)
All prospective international students who wish to live in the UK whilst they study at Spurgeon’s College, as well as EU, EEA and Swiss nationals coming to the UK on or after 1st January 2021, will need to apply for a ‘Student Visa’, the UK’s new points based immigration system.
Details on how to apply are available here.
All international students will need to meet the normal academic entry requirements for the course and provide Spurgeon’s College with documented evidence showing their academic qualifications
International students wishing to apply for a visa to study in the UK will require a CAS (Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies) from Spurgeon’s College before they can be enrolled on their course or enter the UK to study.
We do not offer a CAS for any of our undergraduate or postgraduate part time courses.
Before Spurgeon’s College can issue the CAS, we will require documented evidence to prove the student meets the academic entry requirements as well as other financial requirements (see section on ‘Financial requirements for international students’).
The deadline for all international applications is 31st May. Please be aware that the last date the College can issue a CAS is 31st July.
Applications for our BA (Hons) in Theology can be made via UCAS, Spurgeon’s College has the code S57; or directly via our website.
Applications for our postgraduate courses can be made directly to the College via our online gateway.
Financial requirements for international students:
You will need to provide us with financial evidence that is required by the UK Government before the College can offer you a place on a course and issue you with a CAS.
The financial evidence includes demonstrating that you have sufficient funds to cover your living expenses for the first year of your studies, as well as your course fees. The amount required can differ depending on which country you are from. A list of countries for which the UK government has no financial requirements can be found here.
All those needing to provide financial evidence should read the UK government requirements before they apply. These can be found here at the bottom of the page.
Currently (as of July 2022) the ‘living’ rate for London as calculated by the UK Government is £1,483 per month which would be a total of £13,347 for your first year (please check here to confirm the latest ‘living’ rates). This amount plus your first year’s fees would need to be in your bank account for 28 days before we could issue you a CAS. On receipt of your bank statement showing this, the admissions department will begin to work on the paperwork for your CAS. This will be sent to you no earlier than 6 months before the start of your course but normally in mid-July and mid-August .
Once you have received the CAS you can apply for your student . You will need to prove you have your student visa before you can enrol on your course.
Cost of visa:
The current cost set by the UK Government (as of April 2022) for a student visa is as follows:
- £490 to apply for a student visa from outside the UK
- £490 to extend or switch to a student visa from inside the UK
- Please check here to confirm the latest cost of a UK student visa
In addition, you will have to pay the health surcharge to have access to the National Health Service. The current fee (as February 2024) per year is £776 for a student visa and for Graduate visa applications £1035 per year. For more information and to confirm the latest health surcharge fee please check here.
You can find more information on the visa application process on the Government’s website.
Important notices for international students
If you apply to us for as an international student you must tell us about any previous visa’s you have had or been refused and email us scanned copies of the refusal notice or other appropriate confirmation.
Please note that the College is not able to issue a CAS for students undertaking undergraduate part time courses.
Issuing a CAS is at the discretion of the College, and we reserve the right to refuse to do so across all of our courses.
Issuing a CAS does not guarantee that you will be successful in securing a student visa. Spurgeon’s College is not responsible for any decisions made by the Home Office and will not accept liability for any student failing to obtain a visa and/or for any losses incurred.
Administration fees
There will be an additional £1000 administrative fee for international applications (other than those on the EU Settlement Scheme), which needs to be paid on application. Our bank details can be found here.
Unlike many other UK Colleges and Universities our tuition fees are the same for British and international students). Details of our course fees can be found here.
English Language
All applicants whose first language is not English may be required to take an English language test, SELT/IELTS (academic). Further details can be found here. Applicants for our undergraduate course need a score of 6.5; the score for reading and writing bands must be 6.5. Applicants for our postgraduate courses need a score of 7.0; the score for reading and writing bands must be 7.0.
Sponsorship
Unfortunately, Spurgeon’s College is unable to offer sponsorships to international students.
Before you apply to the College as an international student, please make sure you learn about our application and interview process by reading this section .483
