Fees and finance

 

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Funding your year abroad

The year abroad in East Asia is an essential part of our 4 year language based degrees. For the year that you spend in East Asia you will pay a reduced tuition fee to Sheffield and you will not pay any fees in China, Japan or South Korea.

Study abroad year tuition fees

UK/EU Students studying abroad in 2020/21 will pay a significantly reduced tuition fee rate. The percentage of tuition fee payable may differ in subsequent years. Full details of year abroad fees can be found on the SSID pages.

International students will pay reduced fees whilst abroad. Please contact the fees office for the exact amount.

Whilst on your year abroad you are still entitled to any student finance, grants and scholarships which are available to you when you are studying in Sheffield. The School also has a number of scholarships available to help you fund your year abroad.

With your student loans, any possible bursaries, grants, scholarships and personal funds you will need to pay for the following:

Airfare to your host country

Students who receive help from Student Finance England may be entitled to a travel grant to help with the cost of travelling to East Asia.

More information about travel grants can be found on the Student Finance England website.

We are able to contribute £300 for each student going on their Year Abroad to Korea and Japan for the 2023-2024 academic cycle.

China, Japan and South Korea all require students to obtain visas before being allowed into the country. You can find information about visa requirements and costs on each country’s embassy website.

• Chinese embassy
• Japanese embassy
• South Korean embassy

Medical checks

If you are travelling to China or Japan you are required to undergo a medical check in order to qualify for your visa. The checks required vary slightly between countries. To get up to date information on the current medical requirements and costs please visit the University Health Service web pages.

In South Korea, there is no government requirement for a medical check but some institutions require specific checks such as TB. You will be advised on these requirements once you have been accepted for study depending on which of our host universities you will be based at.

Financial guarantee

in order to study abroad you need to show the government of your host country that you have the necessary funds to study there for an academic year before you can be issued with a visa.

The amount they ask for varies per country from £6,000 - £9,500.

As an "International" student studying abroad, the host country needs to see that you can support yourself during your studies and need to see actual proof that the money is available, so that they can be ensure that you are not going to try and live off state funding. Also, if you left debts at the University or country, they would then be able to go to your 'sponsor' or 'guarantor' to retrieve the money to cover the debt.

The money itself can be made up from a number of sources which include student finance, scholarships and bursaries. Your parents and/or guardians can also act as guarantors for all or part of the money. You are not required to give this money to anyone, just provide proof that the money is available to you.

Find out more details about financial guarantees

Insurance

Students travelling overseas as part of their degree programme can be covered by our travel insurance policy. Full details can be found on the Finance pages.

Living costs

You will be responsible for paying for your accommodation and day-to-day living whilst in East Asia, just as you are when you are living in Sheffield.

Country	Rough living costs
China	Estimated £500 – 600 per month (rent, utilities, food). Prices vary depending on which accommodation you live in.
Japan	Estimated £500 - 900 per month (rent, utilities, food) – some areas of Japan are more expensive to live in than others.
South Korea	Estimated £500 - 900 per month (rent, utilities, food) prices vary depending on which accommodation you live in

Scholarships and help available

China

Chinese Government funded one-year scholarship
We often have a generous number of the scholarships available which are awarded to the highest performing students in semester 1. The scholarships cover your accommodation costs for the year. They also provide a monthly payment of 1700 Yuan (£170) for the duration of your year in China and a one off welcome payment of 1500 Yuan.

Confucius Institute scholarship
We are also able to offer a smaller number of scholarships through the Sheffield Confucius Institute which are awarded on a competitive basis. These scholarships also cover your accommodation and provide a monthly payment of 1700 Yuan and a one off welcome payment of 1500 Yuan.

Japan

JASSO (Japan Student Services Organisation) Scholarship
Most host universities offer one of these competitive scholarship which provides you with a monthly stipend of ¥80,000, for all or part of your year abroad. To be considered for this scholarship you must obtain average exam results of 2:1 or above.

MEXT Scholarship
Students with exceptional results (1st Class average) may be eligible for the Japanese Government’s MEXT scholarship programme. This is a prestigious and highly competitive scholarship, awarded by the Japanese Ministry of Education. The scholarship covers return air-fare to Japan and a stipend of around ¥120,000 per month.

Toyota-shi Trevelyan Trust Scholarships
The Toyota-shi Trevelyan Trust provides support (a grant of up to £5000) for UK nationals studying Japanese Studies at university in the UK to spend their year abroad in Japan. Please note: These scholarships are only available every other year.

South Korea

Bursary from Sheffield

If you are receiving the full amount of student finance, you may be eligible for a bursary from Sheffield of up to £1,400.

The Korean Veterans’ Association Bursary

The Korean Veterans’ Association (UKVA) of the Royal British Legion offers a competitive bursary of around £1000 for students going on their year abroad to Korea.

Other potential costs

If for any reason, you fail or are unable to complete an assessed piece of work which is a requirement to pass your course, you may be required to pay a reassessment fee. information about these fees can be found on the University's exam pages.

If you have international fee status and are required to resit examinations you may be able to apply to sit these in your home countries. To do this a fee will be payable to the University. Find out more

If you are late registering for your course you may be required to pay a late registration fee of £50 depending on your circumstances.