6. Funding and finance

You are permitted to use your research allowance for expenses such as attending conferences, travel to libraries and other archives, conference registration fees, library fees or other archive access, photocopying, accommodation and subsistence (within standard limits).

Please refer to the University’s Expenses Policy for details of the regulations governing permissible expenditure.

Please note that you are not permitted to claim for travel to and from the University if you are based outside Exeter or Penryn and are visiting for supervisions, research seminars or any other activity which is normally required of our research students.

Students studying at the Penryn Campus, however, may claim for travel expenses incurred in travelling to the Streatham Campus to attend seminars held as part of the Faculty Research Training programme. These expenses will be funded from a separate budget and will not be taken from your personal research allowance.

Mileage

In order to claim mileage, a driver must be registered on the University’s Expense System. They must also become an ‘Authorised Driver’ by completing the ‘Authorised Drivers Registration Form’ (DRF01), obtaining a driving licence summary sheet (using the Gov.UK website) and providing a copy of each to the PGR Support Team, along with their photo card driving licence and a copy of their current and valid motor insurance policy. Full details can be found on the University’s Driving Vehicles on University Business SharePoint site. Motor insurance must be valid for business use.

Please note that claims for mileage will not be approved until you have provided the PGR Support Team with evidence that you have car insurance which covers business use.

If you do not have the correct insurance, we would encourage you to use public transport for any journeys related to your research.

Information about the University’s expense policies relating to mileage.

Books, software and equipment expenses

In exceptional circumstances, and after discussion with your supervisor, students may apply to use a maximum of £200 of the above research allowance for special purchases. However, it is expected that you explore all means possible to avoid paying for items or services where possible. For example, the use of Inter-Library Loans (ILL) is recommended rather than buying a book. Possible examples for reimbursement include:

• Books and journal purchases (where ILL is not possible)
• Small items of software or licenses
• Small items of equipment up to a maximum total cost of £80. This is not meant to pay or part-pay for more expensive items such as lap-top computers or tablets, such as iPads or Kindles. Maintenance and insurance of such items are the responsibility of the student.

Students on by Practice/Performance Practice programmes are allowed to claim for the costs of specialist individual goods or equipment associated with their practice.

To claim back expenses you must complete an Expenses claim through the finance system called T1 and attach original receipts with these forms. (Email booking confirmations are accepted as receipts). Expenses should be claimed after the event has taken place unless the expense is non-refundable. 

To claim your expenses:

• Please log into T1 via the weblink available to staff and PGR students.
• The T1 expenses application ‘My Travel and Expenses’ is a simple form. Add a new expense document using the expense template and select the correct budget (the code will have been emailed directly to you) then add your lines of expenses and submit for approval to the budget holder. This will be the relevant HASS PGR Support Officer for Faculty personal research allowance claims, or your lead supervisor for RTSG claims (UKRI-funded students)
• The budget codes are included in the HASS Faculty Weekly Round-Ups, or will have been emailed directly to you if you have a separate research training support grant for UKRI-funded students). If you are unsure of the correct code to use please contact the HASS PGR Support Team at hass-exeter-pgrsupport@exeter.ac.uk.
• There is a specific help guide available for PGR student expenses: Student Expenses Crib Sheet. We recommend that you read and view the online training documents and videos for PGR students. If you have any questions please contact your PGR Support team.

Claims must be received and processed within 3 months of the activity taking place; however, at year end (31st July) claims must be received before 5th August in order to be included in the previous financial year. Claims received after this date will not be paid. Claims will be allocated to the personal research allowance in the financial year that the activity takes place.

Please note that the Research Students’ Allowance is not available to students who are on interruption, who have fees outstanding on their accounts or those who have submitted their thesis for examination.

The additional research allowance is only available once the standard research allowance has been used up (£1000 over the course of their period of normal registration).  The Faculty has made available an additional research allowance of up to £1,000 for PGR students to use towards conference attendance, research training or research dissemination and travel/fieldwork. Please note that additional research allowance cannot be used to cover the costs of proofreading services. You will need to secure approval from your supervisor (normally lead supervisor) and department Director of Postgraduate Research before applying.  

If you would like to apply and you meet the criteria, please complete the following application: HASS Additional Research Allowance Support.

Please note:

• It is important to make a clear business case for the importance of your expenditure to your research
• It is important to make a clear academic case
• Funding cannot be guaranteed
• If you receive the extra funding, you will not be able to apply for it again during your studies.
• Funding must be applied for in advance of the event.

Eligibility criteria

• You must not have fees outstanding or have already submitted your thesis for examination
• Your standard PGR allowance must be spent
• You must not be in receipt of external scholarships where the sponsors provide research allowance support

Your application will be assessed on:

• The added value to your doctoral research
• The contribution to your professional/personal development
• The potential reach and impact
• Supervisor support

The Faculty of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences provides free printing, photocopying and scanning for all postgraduate research students on any of the student print stations across the University.  View details of how to use the printers.

While this will be free at source, please be aware that the Faculty will be charged for your printing, photocopying and scanning and we therefore expect you to be sensible with your use of these facilities, for both economic and environmental reasons. Usage will be monitored, and if your printing is deemed to be excessive (above the notional limit of £40 per month) then your free at source access will be removed. If you are working as a Postgraduate Teaching Assistant in the Faculty and need to print or photocopy as part of that role, please remember to use your staff account to undertake the printing or photocopying and use the relevant Department billing code.

The Guild Advice Unit offers help with applications for the University-level hardship funds (Access to learning, SELS and FISH). They also provide advice on many other aspects of student finance and funding.

The University has also introduced the Success For All Fund which Is intended to provide support for all students (including PGRs) who are experiencing financial difficulties.

The HASS Faculty PGR Student Hardship Scheme is a faculty-level fund.

The Scheme is used to make payments to relieve financial hardship of eligible students undertaking an MA by Research, MPhil, PhD, or EdD programme. A student is regarded as suffering financial hardship if they are in such serious financial difficulties that access to their programme of study, or continued attendance on their programme of study, may be at risk. There is no automatic entitlement to funding, and funding for the full amount requested will only be paid in exceptional circumstances and where an unexpected change in circumstances has had an effect on finances.

Please note that this fund will not cover costs relating to tuition fees, credit card debt, a debt which pre-dates your doctoral studies or loan repayments.

Making an application:

1. Complete the HASS PGR Hardship Fund application formfully and return it to the PGR Support team (hass-exeter-pgrsupport@exeter.ac.uk or Cornwall-pgr@exeter.ac.uk). Remember to attach the appropriate evidence to verify your claim; failure to do so will delay the application process.
2. Please include a brief reference/covering letter from your supervisor to support your claim. This should outline your academic progress to date, and indicate the impact that financial problems are having/are likely to have on your studies. You do not need to discuss your financial circumstances in detail with your supervisors.
3. Your application will be considered by a panel comprising representatives from the Faculty PGR Support Team and the Faculty Director of Postgraduate Research.
4. There is no deadline for applications. On receipt of an application a date will be arranged for the panel to meet to consider the request.
5. The University has a Success For All hardship fund available for students and we require you to make an application for this fund in the first instance before applying to the HASS Hardship Fund.