Under 18s Admission Policy

Introduction

The University of Derby is committed to equal opportunities and all applications are considered on their individual merits.   

Occasionally the University admits students who are under the age of 18 years.  These students and their parents/guardians should understand that the University of Derby predominantly admits students who are over the age of 18 years and that they will be entering into an adult environment.  The University treats all its students as independent, mature individuals and students who are under the age of 18 years will be treated in the same way.  

The usual personal and academic support arrangements will apply to students who are under 18 years. This normally includes the allocation of a personal tutor and access to a comprehensive range of specialist student services.  

However, the University acknowledges that anyone under the age of 18 is legally a child and recognises that students under the age of 18 may therefore have additional needs in relation to their wellbeing.  

Download the Under 18's policy

The Process

Admissions will identify on receipt of your application whether you will be Under 18 at the point you start the course you have applied for or are being considered for by the Admissions Office.  This means if you are Under 18 at the point you submit your application it does not mean you will be subject to the Under 18 policy.  If you are identified as Under 18 we will first consider your application for the potential of an offer first for either the course you have applied for or a suitable alternative that may be available. 

After this initial assessment, your application will be forwarded to the academic to verify that the course is able to support you as an Under 18 student in line with the University’s Under 18 policy and its requirements.  This will occur prior to any other admissions checks required before an offer can be made e.g. criminal convictions or disability assessment.  This approach means we inform you at the earliest point whether your application can continue without commencing more in-depth procedures unnecessarily. 

The academic will consider your whole application profile, the course content, delivery methods, materials, activities, etc up to the point you turn 18 years of age on the course applied for or the alternative course we are considering you for.  Any requirements for reasonable adjustments will be considered but cannot be guaranteed.

The university does not operate under loco parentis and therefore is not obliged to make such adjustments.

If the academic states they are unable to support an Under 18 student on the course, then your application will be made unsuccessful on this basis.  If however, the academic states your application can continue, the Admissions Office will then seek approval from the Academic Registrar or their delegate to proceed to an official invite to interview where relevant or an official offer.  Admissions will send you a Parental Consent Form, by email, for completion.  This will be sent separately to the offer.

The offer will be conditional on submitting a Parental Consent Form to myapplication@derby.ac.uk.  Overseas applicants will also be required to provide a UK contact who we will then communicate with to confirm the arrangement and inform them that we are holding their data.    Applicants will be expected to meet these requirements in order to secure an Unconditional Firm place and proceed to enrolment.

Interviews are generally conducted in person and on site, however on occasion particularly for overseas applicants these can be conducted via SKYPE.  Interviews are usually carried out by a panel of academics (minimum 2) and sometimes will include external professionals.  On occasion, the interview can be on a one-to-one basis, this is particularly the case with SKYPE interviewing. 

If you have any special requirements for interview, you can put forward a request to myinterview@derby.ac.uk.  Your request will be considered fully and we will work with you to ensure that requirements can be met where possible.  If we are unable to meet your request either due to practical reasons or where it is felt to be inappropriate, you will be informed and your application will be unable to be progressed further.

Academics will not consider accommodation requirements as this will be managed by our Accommodation team (Derby Student Residential Living) separately as you will be required to hold a separate contract with them and undergo similar procedures to get an offer for accommodation.  Please note that applicants are only able to apply for accommodation after an offer has been made and it has been accepted as a Firm choice.