University of Lancashire — Attraction in Preston

I am upset with this university on so many levels. Their organization is atrocious and I understand that COVID had a lot to do with it, but after over a year of being in this situation you would think they would have it under control. I started here in September of 2020, I have duel citizenship and it took them almost five months to decide whether or not I was a home or an international student. This made it so it was difficult for me to get student financing. After I was confirmed as a home student, I asked for a refund for what I had paid as Student Finance England were now paying the tuition. I originally had to take out a loan in order to begin at the university. They took 6 months to issue this refund, in that time my loan incurred interest leaving me with 2 grand in debt, which is only growing as time goes on as they completely ignored my pleas. They say a refund takes 4-6 weeks. Even with COVID considered, it should not take 6 months. I was unimpressed. I continued to feel like the students weren’t getting the support they needed throughout my time here. In October of 2021 I decided to drop the course I was in and apply to different universities. I was told I had been successfully removed from the course within days of submitting my withdrawal form. However, this month I was asking for my transcripts and they inform me that I’m still a student with them and that they hadn’t received my form. At this point I am exhausted with this university, and it’s a shame because they’re are some great people there. But when I try and try to sort out the issues, continuously call and email only to get passed to the next individual who was as helpful as the last, it’s extremely frustrating. Hopefully my withdrawal is official this time. I have email proof of all of my difficulties. Some staff members decide to leave the emails completely, even after having a full conversation, and won’t respond. Some of the phone numbers at the end of the staff emails lead to a dead line. Needless to say, I’m glad that I’m...

I would strongly advise anyone considering this course at UCLan to think carefully before enrolling. My experience has been deeply disappointing and distressing.

During my time on the course, I found that many of the long-term staff appeared burnt out, unsupportive, and resistant to feedback or challenge. The atmosphere often felt unsafe for students to express concerns or think independently, and this caused me significant stress and deterioration in my mental health.

It became clear that the staff who genuinely cared for students and tried to make positive changes did not stay long, while others who had been there for years created a difficult and unhelpful learning environment. The staff seem to favour certain students, keeping the “popular” ones happy while leaving others feeling excluded and divided. The overall atmosphere is tense and unhealthy.

In my view, the university prioritises fees and bureaucracy over student wellbeing. When concerns are raised, they are often ignored or dismissed. I felt silenced and invalidated when I tried to seek help or express how the environment was affecting me.

I ended up with poor results — not because of a lack of effort or ability, but because of the way the course was taught and managed. I actually learned far more during my placement than from the teaching staff.

I genuinely feel sorry for the students who are still on this course — and I wish them good luck, because they will need it. Students deserve far better support, compassion, and integrity from a university offering a mental health–related degree.

If you’re already on this course and struggling, speak out and don’t stay silent. Use your mental health team and support network — you have to protect yourself and survive. No qualification is worth sacrificing your...

Be careful when studying on a Postgraduate Degree Programme by Distance Learning at the University. If you quit early they will write off your Access to Learning Fund and Bill you for Tuition Fees. I am a disabled student and had to quit since they pay pittance through the Access to Learning Fund. UCLAN think of themselves and do not care about students well being. My car broke down also so I could not attend one of the modules, no sympathy only a full wack bill! DSAs were late, postgraduate loan was late also, UCLAN lecturer wrote off 3 webinars. I was still faced will a full bill for tuition fees for the webinars. I only had 2 webinars for another module as well so I would be careful going to this University as a Postgraduate. Modules I also wanted to study were cancelled for the academic year and I was only notified the modules I wanted to study, were not running when I enrolled not before! I was told I was getting a refund from the finance department in writing by email, they changed their mind, so it seems any reply by email should not be taken seriously. The accounts department cannot be trusted. The Head of Student Services just wrote everything off even though I seen a refund on my student account. UCLAN cancelled my student account, I could not login then, presented a full bill for the first quarter. They will take back the Access to Learning Fund and not count this even though under the contract, I would have been bound by the terms and conditions, they override it seems. A Postgraduate Loan of £10,000 and a Access to Learning Fund of £1,474.50, they say is the full amount, will not be enough. I will never get my refund I am due and I will never go back to this University again even if I secured...