transfer or withdrawal

[Franklyexhausted]

My DD has had to temporarily withdraw from her first year at uni as a result of mental health issues (eating disorder and depression). This was the right decision for her; she is now getting help and hopefully is on the road to recovery so that she can start again in Sept 21. However, she is now reconsidering whether her original choices (course and university) were the right ones for her, and whether she should apply elsewhere.
If she decides that she wants to start again with a different course and / or at a different university, would this be a transfer - in which case, how does she go about it (are there time limits, does she have to be released from her existing university place first, does she apply direct to the new university)? Or would she have to start again with a new application through UCAS? Or does it depend on the university?
Neither of us can find the answer anywhere - including on the UCAS website - and obviously time is fast running out as if she does have to be released and then re-apply, the deadline for UCAS is 15 January.
Finally, if anyone has ever been in this position before, how does she explain her reasons for leaving and her mental health issues in a way that won't be held against her?

My son started at Lancaster in September but withdrew after 4 weeks due to all learning going online. Although he liked his flat and the people there, he felt it was a complete waste of money as he wasn’t getting a true uni experience and online learning wasn’t what he signed up for. He spoke to different people in the uni and they said he could leave and defer to next September instead. It’s all been done internally so he didn’t need to go via UCAS.
Your DD would be wise to speak to the uni as soon as possible. They will be able to advise what she can do and how to go about it. Lancaster were very good and it was all sorted within a couple of days.
I’m glad your DS is getting the help she needs and is hopefully on the road to recovery. This academic year has been far from normal for anyone starting uni and next September, things will hopefully be a lot better. I hope she gets some answers soon. Act quickly though, that’s the only advice I’d give.
My son, is so glad he deferred especially with the way things have turned out. Good luck with whatever your daughter chooses.

My daughter withdrew from Y1 of her degree sometime during the Summer term 2020. She didn't want to return to her first uni, so followed up on two possible options.

First she applied through UCAS to start another course from scratch. As she had her A Levels, this was very straightforward and was offered a place to start from September very quickly. The course was too different from her original course to transfer to year 2.

Secondly, she decided to see if she could transfer to Y2 of a course that was very similar to her original course. She looked up similar courses and compared the modules she also looked on the admissions information on individual uni websites. Some said that they didn't act transfers for certain subjects as a matter of policy.

She contacted the admissions tutor for a similar course. This was very much at the last minute in September. They asked her to provide a transcript of the modules she studied in Y1 and her results. It was incredibly difficult to get this from the original uni and I ended up making a complaint - but I think that this problem was probably unique to that (Russell Group) uni. She sent a copy to that uni and they offered her a place - she would have also needed to apply through UCAS.

In the end she decided to go with the course that required her to start again. It has worked out well and she is pleased that she didn't stay at her first uni.

Thanks both.
user - my daughter is currently going through the temporary withdrawal process with her existing university. It looks as if a) they will allow her to do that and to re-start next year back in the 1st year, and b) that they will agree that there are extenuating circumstances due to her health issues and will back date her withdrawal to the start of the academic year which should mean that there are no financial implications. Having said that they have been spectacularly slow and unhelpful - her tutor has made no contact with her at all, and the academic, accommodation and financial aspects are all dealt with by separate departments who clearly don't speak to each other!
Springquartet - does this mean that your daughter was able to apply via UCAS at a time other than the normal university entry deadline that she would have had if she was in yr 13 at school? My concern is that if DD has to apply through UCAS that she would have to do it by the cut off point of 15 Jan, and she hasn't yet even had the withdrawal application confirmed so I am not sure she could meet the deadline. On the other hand, if you can continue to apply at other times of the year, how do you do that? Surely the places will all have been filled?
I guess what I'm really asking is - if she wants to apply elsewhere is the position that she has to a) leave (not just withdraw) from her existing university, and then b) apply as if this is her first application and c) get all of this done by 15 Jan?!

Hi OP,

I think it can depend upon the Uni your DD wishes to move to.

She should contact them ASAP, explain the situation and ask what they would require. Her existing Uni won't be able to answer that question.

@Franklyexhausted She applied well outside the UCAS deadline. I think in about March or April. I knew that she was safe to do this, because the course that she would need to start from scratch, was in clearing the year before (you can look up this information). In the case of more popular courses, there may not be places left later in the year.

I would recommend researching courses and talking to their admissions tutors. It is harder now because you can't go to open days in person. In the case of the uni that she now attends, we went to an open day in January and spoke to the course director after attending a talk. The other thing is that if things haven't worked out in Y1, there are a lot more questions that you know to ask.

In the case of the uni that she nearly transferred to, she looked up the email of the course director and contacted them direct. As I said, the application would still have gone through UCAS, but through the initial communication, my daughter found out whether a transfer was feasible and the helpfulness of the reply gave her an indication that the uni was worth consideration.

Just to add that my daughter also experienced the problems that you describe in relation to slow communications. Whenever she phoned, she got a message saying no one was available to answer calls, as they were working from home. She also couldn't get a response to her emails. As she needed her transcript if she wanted to transfer, I looked up the Chief Operating Officer of the uni and emailed them direct. I had a reply within hours and she received her transcript. I would recommend doing this if it helps you to sort things out.