To be heartbroken for DH

[RabidRabbit]

Who has just been told that he won't be able to graduate, or get his degree certificate, because he owes the university £6,500. All he will get to show for 4 years at university as a mature student, for working his bollocks off juggling full time work, full time university, full time family... is a piece of fucking paper with his credits on it. How on earth will that compete with his classmates shiny new certificates when applying for his first graduate job?

The reason he owes the university money as well as the student loan company is because he got deferred for a year when DD was born so that he could be around more, but he wasn't entitled to any more funding from the student loan people as he went to uni for 2 years before dropping out when he left college. The university agreed to fund his last year as he was an 'exceptional' student, and now they're basically saying "jog on", after he has paid them £300 per month for the past 2 months to try and clear the debt, which was supposed to be an ongoing payment plan until the debt was cleared. Now they want the full balance by the end of June, or it's a shitty transcript of his credits and no graduation.

I'm just so bloody sad for him right now. It just seems to be one thing after another this year. Is it too early to get pissed?

[Scholes34]

dishesinthesink - the rules around equal qualifications changed about three years ago, and you can no longer have funding for another degree at the same level. If you received an additional year's funding to do a four year MSci course, there no doubt would have been some carefully worded Change of Circumstances forms from yourself and your university to your LEA, with a seeking to discount the first year. Now that everything is covered by Student Finance rather than a number of LEAs, there is a more uniform approach to this and procedures are followed more strictly. BTW, a medic's course is now six years long (that changed about four years ago when it used to be 5 years and one term). Four years of a medic's course is supported through Student Finance loans and grants and the final two are supported by NHS bursaries.

[Longtalljosie]

His students' union is there for him on this issue in just the same way as a professional union is. When I was a Union officer I knew a lot of the admin staff personally and had their direct lines, I was also in a position to ring some of them up and say, "come on, this isn't fair, what else can be done".

I suggest he contacts them pronto. It was a long time ago I did all this, but this would have been the sort of situation I would have been pretty confident I could have resolved.

I would have been pressing for a payment plan and a guarantee the degree would be released on completion of payment, which I think realistically is the best you'll be able to do. If you paid back, say £103 for 5 years, you'd then get the degree in 5 years time. If you paid back £200 / month you'd have it in just under 3.

[LIZS]

It may vary but if he is applying for jobs which are directly related to his degree course (ie accountancy where exemptions for professional qualifications may be claimed or subject specialist teaching) he would need to produce the certificate and grades. Agree I can't see how this situaltion has arisen completely out of the blue, surely 6.5k is more than one year's cost. The govt/tax payer cannot afford to subsidise endless courses, especially for those who then don't complete.

[givemeaclue]

what is DH's degree in? what kind of jobs is he likely to be looking for? is there a careers advisory service relevant to that profession that can say whether not actually having the degree will be an issue for employers in that sector?

It is bound to vary between sectors/employers.

[CinnabarRed]

My HR department have just confirmed that if a candidate was unable to produce an original degree certificate and transcript because they owed fees to their uni, then the next step would be for my firm to contact the uni directly to ask for confirmation of grades.

I have no idea if the uni would give that confirmation or not.

[Jenstar21]

I've worked in two Universities, and I'd agree this is entirely normal. Both Universities would not let you graduate with a debt to the institution. The key thing here is that, without graduating, you are still a graduand - you've sat and passed the exams, but the degree has not been conferred. You don't need to attend a ceremony for this, but the degree still has to be conferred. (Granted, I've only worked in Scottish Ancients, so it might be different elsewhere.)

I have always had to produce my original degree certificates for any professional job, and I'd be very wary of saying I had a degree without actually having the degree conferred.

Good luck to him!

[Jjou]

I work in a Uni - your husband will get his certificate once his debts are paid and the holds on his account are lifted. We issue transcripts of modules and their marks even if the student is a debtor, but the credit attained column is blank, there's no mean mark (so no classification), and it clearly states at the top that it doesn't constitute an award due to unpaid fees. If your husband's transcript is similar then potential employers can see the modules he's studied and whether he got good marks and that his degree is pending.

[shirleyshortcut]

so you cant say you got a 2.1 or a first or whatever then?

[Jjou]

It wouldn't say so on your transcript, though you could work out the mean mark yourself, and say which classification you were due to get.

[unspoilmykid]

Im sorry but you cant say you have a degree unless it has been through the board of studies and awarded. Transcript means nada.

[Jjou]

Of course, but it wouldn't be unreasonable for him to say his was pending - once the debt has cleared his degree would be conferred and he could graduate. The transcript would show potential employers that he'd completed the modules to be eligible to get his degree.

[unspoilmykid]

Would they send his transcript without him being passed through?

[Jjou]

Yes, but the transcript would say on it that it's doesn't constitute the conferment of an award or qualification due to outstanding debts, or something along those lines. His marks would be on it, but the credits wouldn't be released.
Someone upthread said something about data protection etc. - maybe that's why a lot of Unis will give out some record of marks.

[unspoilmykid]

He wont get a reference either