Academic calendar
Academic calendar 2025/26
In the new calendar, a semester is a study block with 10 weeks of teaching and a reading week. Each semester includes a learning and assessment period, meaning there will be two assessment periods each year, one in January and May, as well as a reassessment period in August.
Academic calendar
| 2025/26 | Start date | End date |
|---|---|---|
| Welcome week | 22 September 2025 | 26 September 2025 |
| Semester 1 | 29 September 2025 | 17 January 2026 |
| Reading Week | 3 November 2025 | 9 November 2025 |
| Revision and Assessments | 5 January 2026 | 16 January 2026 |
| Semester 2 | 19 January 2026 | 22 May 2026 |
| Reading Week | 23 February 2026 | 1 March 2026 |
| Revision and Assessments | 27 April 2026 | 22 May 2026 |
| Summer Dissertation period (PGT students only) | 25 May 2026 | 25 September 2026 |
Break periods
| 2025/26 | Start date | End date |
|---|---|---|
| Christmas | 15 December 2025 | 2 January 2026 |
| Easter | 23 March 2026 | 10 April 2026 |
| Summer (except for PGT and PGR Students) | 23 May 2026 | 20 September 2026 |
University closure days (incl. Bank Holidays)
| 2025/26 | Closure days |
|---|---|
| Wednesday 24 December | Closure day |
| Thursday 25 December | Christmas Day (Bank Holiday) |
| Friday 26 December | Boxing Day (Bank Holiday) |
| Monday 29 December | Closure day |
| Tuesday 30 December | Closure day |
| Wednesday 31 December | Closure day |
| Thursday 1 January | New Year’s Day (Bank Holiday) |
| Friday 2 January | Closure day |
| Thursday 2 April | Closure day |
| Friday 3 April | Good Friday (Bank Holiday) |
| Monday 6 April | Easter Monday (Bank Holiday) |
Postgraduate and research dates 2025/26
Postgraduate taught students
Masters students are expected to work on their dissertation throughout the summer—for these students, the period between the end of Term 3 (or end of Semester 2 from 2025/26) and the programme end date is not classed as a vacation and is considered term time.
For Masters students, only the Christmas and Easter breaks are vacations.
Postgraduate research students
Research degrees at SOAS are continuous, year-long programmes. Enrolment runs from the first day of the academic session in September until the day before the next academic session begins the following September.
While the School refers to academic semesters and calendar years for administrative purposes, research students are expected to engage in their studies throughout the entire academic year. This includes the summer period, which is considered an active and integral part of your research programme, regardless of the taught course academic calendar.