Terms and conditions for group courses

Language Centre terms and conditions

Fees

Fees for academic year 2023-2024 are effective from 1 August 2023 and are payable in advance of the start of the course. They are not subject to V.A.T. Fees for all courses are exclusive of course materials.

Corporate payments

  • Sponsors must supply an official purchase order or a letter confirming that the company will be responsible for payment of the fees. An invoice will be issued.
  • Please ensure that the purchase order accompanies the application form.
  • Failure to comply with the above may result in withdrawal of a student from the course and/or the student becoming liable for payment immediately.

Recording of online classes

Online classes may be recorded for use as a learning resource. SOAS has a legitimate interest in recording classes to maximise the resources available to support students’ learning and instruction. The recordings will be available to students enrolled in the class. We will retain the recordings until the end of the academic year. By enrolling for a SOAS Language Centre course, you agree to the recording of online classes.

Online course requirements

Online courses will be delivered via Zoom or Microsoft Teams. SOAS LC does not take responsibility for individual technical issues not related to SOAS.

Withdrawal from courses

We strongly advise you to ensure that you will be able to attend for the whole of the course before enrolling. SOAS Language Centre cannot accept any responsibility for unforeseen changes in students’ circumstances that may prevent their attendance for all or part of a course. 

  • No refunds can be given for classes not attended, unless non-attendance relates to a class rescheduled to a different day by the Centre. 
  • All cancellations of enrolment must be received in writing (including email) by the Language Centre at least 14 working days before the scheduled start of the course.  
  • Those who cancel their enrolment at least 14 working days before the start of the course may:
    • receive a refund minus a cancellation fee of £50, or 
    • defer to the next term (only possible when the next term is in the current academic year which runs 1 August to 31 July). 
  • Those who cancel their enrolment less than 14 working days before the start of the course are not eligible to receive a refund or to defer to another term.  
  • Refunds will be returned in the same way as the payment was made. Please note the refund procedure may take up to 30 days.  

Quorum requirements

  • Our courses are subject to quorum requirements; the minimum is 13 students, and the maximum is 16.
  • If a scheduled class does not reach the quorum number, the course may be cancelled. Language Centre Administrators will inform applicants, normally 5 days before the start of the course, and advise them as to alternative options.
  • For cases where students need to move to an alternative course with a higher fee, the course fee difference will be due in order to confirm enrolment on the new course. For cases where the fee is lower than the one paid, the difference can only be refunded or credited to the next term if requested at least 14 working days before the start of the course.

General

  • If a class (on campus or online) is postponed or disrupted for any reason (including, but not limited to, teacher illness, personal circumstances, transport issues, network outages), the teacher will arrange a replacement lesson by extending the end date by a week unless a different date is mutually agreed upon by all the students and the teacher.  
  • Should we need to suspend on-campus teaching to ensure the health and safety of our campus community, the University will continue to deliver language courses by moving them temporarily online.
  • If a teacher, for any unavoidable reason, cannot teach the rest of the course, we will aim to replace that teacher as soon as possible in order to minimise disruption to the class.
  • We strongly advise you to enrol as soon as possible before the start date as places are allocated on a ‘first come’ basis. Places cannot be reserved in advance without payment.
  • Unless otherwise specified, our classes are limited to 16 students per class.
  • Classes are only for learners aged 18 and above.
  • Students undertake to adhere to the college Student Disciplinary Procedure (PDF) at all times.

These terms and conditions may be subject to change without prior notice.