Applying for an interruption

• Interruption due to mitigating circumstances:
  • The University defines mitigating circumstances as ‘unforeseeable or unpreventable circumstances that could have, or did have, a significant adverse effect on the academic performance of a PGR’. They are circumstances that prevent a PGR from working altogether or severely affect their ability to work effectively.
  • Caring responsibilities: for example, changes to childcare or other caring arrangements.
  • Personal issues: a broad definition that may include bereavement, family health, personal relationships, and unexpected changes to your source of funding.
  • Unforeseen changes to research or programme: this may include changes to the research project caused for example by ethics delays or equipment problems, change of supervisor, or requests to return to work.
• Interruption for the purpose of maternity, adoption, and unpaid parental leave.
• Interruption for the purpose of sickness:
  • Health, including mental and physical health: this includes short-term mental health difficulties such as bereavement or stress (generally expected to last less than one year), and longer-term difficulties (that have lasted or are expected to last for at least a year) e.g., diagnosis of depression or anxiety disorder, eating disorders, personality disorders, mood disorders and psychosis. Short-term physical health may include routine operations or an accident. Longer-term difficulties may relate to an underlying health issue e.g., chronic fatigue, epilepsy, back conditions.
  • Interruptions for the purpose of sickness should only be applied for if your sickness leave exceeds four weeks and is likely to affect your research. Funded Postgraduate Researchers may be entitled to sick pay for a restricted period of time. Please ensure you have read your contract with your sponsor carefully.
• Interruption for the purpose of internship.
• Interruption for the purpose of jury service.
• Other: Any other issues which cannot be categorised in one of the six main categories.
• Retrospective Interruption:
  • Applications for an Interruption to Programme should be made at the time the mitigating circumstances first arise. Retrospective applications for interruptions will only be considered if the period of time to be interrupted is still current and you must provide credible and compelling reasons why the interruption was not requested at the time the circumstances first occurred.

• Your finances, including existing loans, tuition fee agreements, stipend/maintenance payments, and sponsorship arrangements.
• Future funding or loan bids.
• Your accommodation, for example if you are living in halls of residence.
• Your visa status (if you are an international student) - interruptions for more than 60 days can have implications for students with a student visa. Further guidance is available from the Student Immigration Team.

We will ask you to provide any relevant documents and correspondence in support of your application. Details of the types of evidence that may be suitable can be found in the guidance and policy documents linked below.

Interruptions of less than four weeks, or those requested during the submission pending period, are not permitted.

Before completing the form, you should have:

• Read and understood implications for your tuition fees.
• Read and understood the  Change of Circumstances Policy for Postgraduate Research Students.
• Read and understood the Interruptions Procedure for Postgraduate Research Students.
• Discussed the interruption with the  Doctoral Academy  and with your supervisor(s).
• Discussed any ATAS and visa implications with the  Student Immigration Team  if you are an international PGR.
• Discussed the interruption with your sponsor if you are on a funded studentship. If the funder’s terms and conditions require the funder to confirm that you are eligible to apply for this interruption, you will need to attach evidence of this approval as part of your application (this evidence should also confirm if the funder is willing to pay additional tuition fees and/or living costs if appropriate).
• Checked your contact details in  My Manchester  and made sure we have a correct permanent address and non-University email address for you.

Applications must include supporting evidence. This evidence should be independent, relevant to the time of the circumstances affecting your studies and provided in English (or accompanied by an accredited translation). 

You will need a letter of support from your supervisor.

• The letter can be a copy of an email sent by your supervisor, or a Word or PDF document written by them. Where applicable, the letter should contain the following:
  • A note, if appropriate, on the current status of the research/project and thesis
  • Confirmation that all relevant parties (e.g. sponsors, collaborators, Visa Team) have been consulted and support the interruption. 

You will need any relevant accompanying evidence to support your application.

Examples of evidence we accept include:

• Extracts from your medical notes (you can request these from your GP practice).
• Medical certificate or sick note from your GP practice.
• letters from a doctor or medical professional about a change in your health or the health of someone close to you.
• A copy of your prescription or photo of name label on prescribed medication;
• Appointment cards from medical unit or hospital admissions letter.
• Confirmation text of medical appointment.
• Communications from a school or care facility confirming that they are closed or the person you care for is unable to attend.
• An obituary or letter from a family member, in the case of bereavement;
• Financial records, such as bank statements or letters from debt collection agencies.
• Police, security or insurance report.
• Press or media report.
• Internal confirmation of existing engagement with our counselling / Advice and Response service.

Here are some examples of what we would not consider valid reasons to request an interruption:  

• Voluntary service overseas.
• Expeditions/sport.
• Inadequate planning and time management.
• Pregnancy (excluding events which may arise during pregnancy that may constitute a mitigating circumstance).
• Difficulties with English language (including delays as a result of proofreading).
• Computer or other equipment failure or theft where use of an alternative is possible or any loss of work was avoidable, except where the work is lost through the failure of University of Manchester (UoM) systems as confirmed by UoM.
• Change in employment conditions (except for part-time PGRs who are working while studying where a change in employment conditions was unforeseen).
• Lack of sufficient funds (PGRs must ensure that have the necessary funds before embarking on their degree).
• Holidays, moving house and events that were planned or could reasonably have been expected.
• The act of religious observance.

If you are registered with DASS (Disability Advisory and Support Service) and this relates to your reason for interruption, please let us know as you may not need to supply new evidence.

You should provide supporting evidence to allow your application to be considered, such as:

• A diagnosis of the illness/mental health problem.
• History of the illness/mental health problem.
• Treatment plan and how long that would be expected to take to see improvements (if applicable).
• For interruptions of 12 months, health care professionals support of the application for interruption of studies.

Postgraduate researchers can self-refer to the Occupational Health Service in confidence and there will be no report or contact with Human Resources Partner/line manager or the School/tutors without consent. Please visit the Occupational Health website for more information and contact details.

Your application will first be reviewed by your department and then considered by the FSE Degrees Panel before a final decision is confirmed by the Doctoral Academy. You will be contacted with the outcome as soon as possible. Please note that this process can take up to five weeks, so we recommend submitting your application at least two months before the end of your programme.

If your interruption is approved, all official communications will continue to be sent to your university email account. Please ensure you check this account regularly, including your junk folder.

As you approach the end of your interruption, you must contact the Doctoral Academy to confirm your planned return date and discuss any return to study support requirements. This should take place at least one month before your agreed return date.

If your interruption was approved under the Support to Study Procedure, please refer to the Procedure on Supporting Return to Study for full details.

If your interruption was granted for medical reasons, you may be asked to provide a letter from your healthcare professional confirming that you are fit to return. In some cases, advice from Occupational Health may also be required.

If your circumstances have not sufficiently changed to allow you to resume your studies, you will need to apply for a further interruption. Please note, however, that additional interruptions are not automatically granted.

If you need to request a further interruption, you cannot submit the same mitigating circumstances more than once unless your situation has worsened or lasted longer than originally expected. In such cases, you must provide additional evidence to support your new application.