LibAnswers

Information and Q&A via the Deans' Forum & Heads' of Departments Forum (13 July):

The purpose of the letter you received last week was to encourage you to contact the Fees Office to discuss a way forward with the payment of your outstanding fees. We thank those of you who have already paid outstanding fees, or who have made arrangements with the Fees Office to review your payment plans. Your results should also have been released.

 The university has had to withhold results in June because it has never before been in such a difficult financial position at this time of the year..

The university is serious about its commitment not to financially exclude any academically deserving student. In 2015, the University agreed to the request from the student body to replace the 50% Minimum Initial Payment (MIP) with a 10% Registration Fee.  This has affected the income from fees significantly as fees were agreed to be paid in instalments and not upfront. This was typically in the form of debit orders and it was hoped that most of the fees would be paid by June, which proved incorrect.  The university did not anticipate this situation at the start of the year, and the decision made in late June to withhold results was not made lightly.

 If you are affected and have had your results withheld, the following Frequently Asked Questions and Answers should assist you in current situation and options:

1.            Q – If a student’s results are being withheld what should they do?

A – Contact the Fees Office to find out why their results are being withheld and what they would need to do to get their results released.

2.            Q - Will students whose results are withheld be allowed to continue studying in the second semester?

A – Yes, students will be allowed to continue unless they have failed to meet the academic requirements to continue such as not writing the exam, failing a subminimum or not obtaining a mark high enough to allow for continuation. Individuals in this situation will be informed of this by their Head of Department. November rewrites and supplementary exams will be awarded as is usually done. Students will be informed if they will rewrite in August or November, or have been awarded a supplementary exam in January.

3.            Q – What criteria will the Fees Office / Fees Committee use to decide whether to release students’ results or not?

A – The release of results will usually be based on an acceptable payment plan being received.

4.            Q – Will students who are in residence whose results are withheld be allowed to continue staying in residence in the second semester?

A – Yes, students may remain in residence.

5.            Q – Will students whose results are being withheld be allowed to see their exam scripts?

A – Yes. Rule G 28.1 allows for any student to see their exam scripts free of charge. Students need to make an arrangement with the Head of Department to view their scripts. Please note, this does not include script re-scrutiny and copying a script.

6.            Q – If a student wishes to apply for post-graduate study at Rhodes and their results are being withheld what should they do?

A – Apply as usual. The departments considering students for post-graduate study will have access to a student’s results.

7.            Q – If a student wants to apply for post-graduate study at another university and their results are being withheld what should they do?

A – The Student Bureau can be approached and they will forward these results to the other university. Other universities may at some point require proof that you have no outstanding fees from Rhodes University.

8.            Q - If Honours students don’t have June results what should they do?

A - Most departments don’t release June exam results for Honours students. Students who need marks to apply for Master’s programmes should ask their departments for a letter with a provisional statement of their results so far.

9.            Q - If students need their results to apply for bursaries or scholarships for 2017 what should they do?

A – Students should contact Academic Administration and provide them with details of the scholarship/bursary and they will forward your results the relevant bursar/administrator.

10.          Q – How does the withholding of exam results affect students who need to submit results to funders of existing bursaries for 2016?

A – Students should contact Academic Administration and provide them with details of the scholarship/bursary and they will forward your results to the relevant bursar/administrator.

11.          Q – If a student is not allowed to continue with a subject based on their first semester mark how will they know this if their marks are withheld?

A – Academic administration or the Department will let the student know that they will not be able to continue with the subject in the second semester.

12.          Q – If students have weak results and should receive a G7 warning/Advise to withdraw will they receive the warning letter even if their results have been withheld?

A – Yes, the letters have already been released.

13.          Q – If students have excellent results and should receive a letter of congratulations will they receive the letter even if their results have been withheld?

A – Yes, the letters have already been released.

14.          Q - What about students with pre-arranged payment plans: What options are available for making new plans / alternative arrangements?

A – Students should contact Student Fees to make alternative arrangements for the payment of fees.

 Please also refer to the email sent out via email to Studentnews 12/07/2016 for full content.

See Also RU News - Student Fees     Posted 5th July 2016