to think this is petty bureaucracy - unneccasry and totally unjustifiable?

[aufaniae]

Student Finance have just asked to see my son's birth certificate for the fourth time.

They already have it on record from the last 3 times it's been presented to them, but as I have had a gap of 2 years (to have a baby), they want to see all my documents yet again. While I think it's a monumental waste of time to make me present documents they already have copies of when I'm returning to the same course at the same uni, I can kind of understand them wanting to see my passport etc - I could have changed my name or nationality in that time.

But my the record of my son's birth doesn't change. Nor is it anything special that I have it - anyone can request a copy of a birth cert from the Records Office.

Sending them another photocopy of it is just a waste of time, pure and simple, isn't it?

TheGreatHunt my thoughts exactly!

God almighty, the day universities have considered admin policies will be the day the world ends. Always assume otherwise unless there is evidence to the contrary.

'Thinking'
University admin aren't very good at that.

In the entire science registry there was one woman who could answer postgrad questions. Fortunately she was the only black member of the department. This meant we could cast a quick eyeball round the door and see if she was there and leave if she wasn't.

Talking to anyone else was a nightmare because they just got it wrong.

I should add this was a large RG university there were no small number of science PGs.

Have you asked them why?