Finance and Scholarship
Tuition Fees
The tuition fees for your course will be detailed in your letter of unconditional offer. The fees are non-negotiable and cover the cost of tuition and RGU facilities, including library and computer access. The fees do not cover any other necessary expenses, such as accommodation, reference books, stationery, etc.
There are a number of payment options available to you, including the opportunity to pay in instalments.
More information can be found on the Student Finance website at:
Please click on the links below to access the September 2009 Guide to Tuition Fees.
January 2010 International Fees Guide
Scholarships and Funding
Robert Gordon University is pleased to announce the introduction of a major scholarships scheme for postgraduate students commencing in September 2009. To support our students at a difficult financial time, and to encourage the very best students to choose Robert Gordon for their postgraduate studies, the University will be offering a total of £380,000 of scholarships across a wide range of courses at postgraduate level.
The award of a scholarship not only reduces the financial costs of study, but is a valuable sign to future employers that you stand out from the crowd as a high achiever. For these reasons, we recommend that you actively consider applying for a scholarship if you meet the eligibility criteria.
The key points of the Robert Gordon University scholarships scheme are as follows:
- All scholarships will be awarded on the grounds of merit, including previous academic performance and personal achievements.
- There are no automatic awards. In order to be considered for a scholarship you must submit an application.
- Scholarships are available both to home and to international students.
- The value of each scholarship varies, with a range from £1000 to £9000, but with most awards in the region of £1000-£2000.
- All scholarships will be awarded in the form of a discount on tuition fees.
- In order to be considered for a scholarship, you must hold an offer of a place to study on a relevant postgraduate course at the University commencing September 2009. Please note that not all courses are offering scholarships.
- There are deadlines for applying for most of the scholarships; these vary from department to department.
- Full details (including application forms) are available online at www.rgu.ac.uk/scholarships. Follow the link for “postgraduate” and then “University merit scholarships”.
We hope that you will be encouraged to apply and wish you good luck with your scholarship application!
Scott Sutherland School
Final year (year 4) students on undergraduate architecture and built environment programmes may be eligible for a further £1,000 scholarship from the Scott Sutherland School. Please contact the School for further details.
Scotland’s Saltire Scholarships
The British Council and Scottish Government are pleased to announce the Scotland's Saltire Scholarships scheme.
There will be a total of 200 awards made under this scheme to students applying from Canada, China, India and USA. The awards will be open to students who are pursuing a taught one year Masters degree at a Scottish University. Successful scholars will be offered a scholarship totalling £2000. Students from the above countries can apply for the scholarship when they hold a conditional offer or an unconditional offer from the respective Scottish institutions. The closing date for applications will be Friday 11th June 2010.
Full eligibility criteria and an application form can be found at:
You can also find out more within the e-flyer attached below:
Scotland's Saltire Scholarship Eflyer
You can find out about other sources of funding for International students from the British Council's database:
There is also a useful leaflet to download from UKCOSA, the Council for International Education at:
There are a number of scholarship schemes, particularly at postgraduate level, but competition for these is fierce and you will need to apply well in advance of your course - a year before it begins is typical.
Cost of Living
You can live relatively cheaply in Aberdeen when compared to alternative locations such as the South of England. We estimate the cost of living in Aberdeen for 1 year to be between at least £5650 per year (for undergraduate students, assuming 9 months of full-time study) and £8050 per year (for postgraduate students, assuming 12 months of full-time study). These costs are based on self-catering accommodation - including heating, lighting and insurance -in a university residence, food, the cost of books, local travel and basic social expenses. They do not include travel to or from Aberdeen or the cost of tuition fees.
How should I bring money in to the UK?
Bank Drafts
Many students bring bank drafts for fees and living expenses:
- one draft for fees and, if applicable, RGU accommodation - payable to RGU
- a separate draft for living expenses - payable to you
This is highly recommended. Bringing bank drafts is one of the safest ways of bringing money to the UK. The down-side is that you will need to set up a bank account before you can receive the money. In addition to this, drafts can take up to two weeks to clear in your account (depending upon the bank). You should therefore bring some of your living costs as a mixture of cash and travellers cheques until your main draft clears.
Direct Bank Transfer
Many students receive money from their family or sponsors by means of a direct bank transfer from a bank account in their home country. You should note that transferring money is not instantaneous - it can take some days or even weeks to come through. Again, please ensure that you have some cash or travellers cheques with you which will give you some money for your first weeks in the UK.
If you need money sent through in an emergency, Aberdeen has a few businesses which operate Western Union money transfer facilities. Instructions, costs and a list of addresses of Western Union operators are available at the website below:
www.westernunion.com
Cash
There are many disadvantages with bringing large amounts of cash in to the UK. The most obvious problem is safety - if your cash is stolen, it is gone for good. For this reason we do not accept payment of fees in cash.
However you will need to bring some cash with you in order to meet day to day expenses, at least for the short term.
Childcare
£100+ per week (full time)
Transport
| Weekly travel fares | £8 (student bus pass giving unlimited travel on First Aberdeen) |
| Bicycle | £100 and up |
Entertainment
| Restaurant meal (no drinks) | £5 minimum, £12 average |
| Wine (very dependent on quality) | £3 minimum |
| Beer (prices vary) | £1.50 - £2.20 per pint |
| Newspaper | 30p - £1.20 |
| CDs | £5 - £20 |
| Portable music system | £50 and up |
| Cinema ticket | £4 - £8 |
Information for US students
The Robert Gordon University is approved by the US Department of Education for participation in federal loan programmes. Our School Code is G31028.
