Information for prospective postgraduate students

Throughout the global pandemic, we have worked closely with Salford City Council and the NHS Trusts in Salford and Greater Manchester in order to make the best decisions for our community.

Both separately and together, we have planned for a number of scenarios relating to Covid-19. One of these is what will happen in the event of a local lockdown. There are a number of different approaches to lockdown and the advice set out below is an example. We will provide specific information and advice based on the nature of any local lockdown.

Salford lockdown

If the University is required to go into full lockdown, the University campuses will close as they did in March 2020. This means that teaching will move online – this may be all teaching, or certain courses depending on government requirements. Our teaching staff are prepared and experienced in enabling you to continue your studies with minimal interruption. We will let you know if assessments need to change and what to do with regard to any practical element of your course.

Whilst all campus buildings will close in the event of another full lock down, you will still be able to access askUS and the Students’ Union support services via telephone and online.

The library will move to online access only and you will not be able to take out or return books. Where you have equipment out on loan, we will advise if this can be kept until we reopen or if it must be returned.

Depending on health advice provided by local authorities and the UK government, students living in student accommodation may be specifically asked to either continue living in their student accommodation or to return home if possible. Those unable to return home, for example due to family circumstances or travel restrictions, will be supported while they remain in their student accommodation.

As you will know from your experience of the last 18 months, the nature of lockdowns can vary and we will keep you up to date on what any future lockdown means for your specific course of study.

Lockdown of another area

Many of you live outside of Salford and it may be that your area goes into a local lockdown. If this happens, please comply with all requirements set by your local authority.

If you want information or support on how local lockdowns may affect you, and your ability to engage in your studies and the wider student experience, please contact your School.

If you want wellbeing, financial or accommodation support, or need advice on anything else connected to your life outside of your timetabled lectures and seminars, please contact askUS.

If this impacts your ability to engage with your studies, please contact your course tutor to explain the situation. Courses will vary depending on a number of factors, so please get advice for your specific circumstances and don’t rely on information from friends.

The event of a local lockdown may also change who teaches your course or the way in which it is delivered – it may, for example, be your tutor that is impacted. As stated in our Terms and Conditions, we will give you notice as soon as reasonably practicable and do what we can to minimise any adverse effects on your learning.

Keeping up to date

In the event of a lockdown prior to you joining the University, we will inform you directly if it affects us here in Salford and would advise that you please check the University website (www.salford.ac.uk) and your personal email address for the most up to date information. Once you have registered with us formally and your student account is created, all information for students will be accessible via the Student Hub and shared with your University email address. Please be aware that not all information shared on social media is correct and we would always advise that you check the official University channels.

Please be assured the University has plans in place to address the situation of a lockdown and will continue to support you. If you have any worries or concerns about this information, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Our academic year is divided into three terms, known as trimesters, which are 14 weeks long, including vacation periods. To see an overview of the 2021/22 academic year, please click here.

Please bear in mind that the majority of courses do not have teaching during trimester three. However, if you’re on an accelerated course, a course with a mid-year start or a course aligned to a healthcare profession, you will be taught during this period.

While you are an applicant, all communications will be sent to the email address you gave as part of your application. If you applied through UCAS, please make sure you keep your details on UCAS up to date as our information comes from there. We may also use your postal address and your mobile number, so keep these up to date as well.

Once you have registered for your course you will have a University email address set up and given to you, we will then use this for all future communication. You will receive information from a number of different places once you've registered, so it's really important that you continue to check your University email address.

This page, our FAQs and our FAQs for international students will be updated with any further information that comes in. As you can imagine, we are continuing to review and respond to government and Public Health England guidance regularly and the picture can change. If there is a significant change to your course, we will inform you directly.

As part of the registration process, you will confirm that you have read and agreed to the information on this page so it’s really important that you read carefully and ask us any questions you might have.

It's difficult for us to make guarantees as we’re sure you can appreciate, but we will keep you up to date as best we can.

If you have any queries about this or anything relating to your future studies, please give us a call on +44 (0)161 295 4545. We’re on campus taking calls, on live chat, on email and we’d recommend that you follow our social media channels too. Get in touch!