Policy and Criteria for SoGE Student Visitors

This policy is for postgraduate students who are not direct students in the School, nor covered by the University procedures for awarding visiting student status, and who wish to make a short-term visit of 4 months or less to support collaborations on a specific topic under the guidance of a named academic with a with a demonstrable link to the chosen area of study.

Students who wish to visit for longer periods should apply through the University of Oxford's Recognised Student Scheme.

An award of student visitor status is governed by five main principles:

1. The status is awarded for a fixed time period, and a maximum of 4 months. Renewal of status is not offered under this scheme.
2. The status is dependent upon a demonstrable association with a named academic staff member resulting in a material benefit to the research activity of the School.
3. The status must be formally considered and approved by the Head of School. No person shall be entitled to claim student visitor status without having successfully completed this approval process.
4. Applicants are expected to acknowledge the School in any papers written during the period of the association, but should not list the University of Oxford as their main institutional affiliation in any such publications.
5. The award of a status may entitle the holder to access to University and/or School services, subject to the following charges (to be met by the applicant or the nominator):
   • a compulsory standard set-up fee of £50 (note this will rise to £150 from 1 January 2027);
   • a bench-fee of £5,000 per annum (pro-rata) if access to hot desking is required;
   • fees to cover additional access to Small Research Facilities or other IT facilities, or visa/work permit fees.

The application form can be downloaded under 'Further Specifics' below.

Applications are accepted in two annual gathered fields with the following deadlines:

1. 15 March (note this has been extended for 2026 only to 20 March)
2. 1 September.

To allow time for processing applications, the start date for any visit should be at least 3 months after the deadline for the relevant gathered field, e.g. for applications made by the deadline for the 1 September gathered field, visits should not commence before the 1st of December of that year. Be aware that where student visitors require a visa for travel to the UK and/or ATAS clearance a further 3-5 months delay in the start of the visit may be necessary to account for application processing times.

In addition, where the student is affiliated to an institution based in a country with which the UK currently has a trade or arms embargo, the UK government’s Trusted Research requirements will apply; processing times for these applications could be further increased by 3-5 months. Please contact trusted.research@ouce.ox.ac.uk for advice.

The application process is as follows:

1. Application form completed by the student visitor

The form will ask to confirm specific aims for the association and intended benefits to SoGE. The form will also ask for basic details of the applicant, proposed dates of the association, specific requests and justification for access to facilities, including hot desking (where allowable) and details of the source of funding. The applicant must carefully read the Terms and Conditions of the association and sign to confirm they will comply.

2. Application form completed by the nominator

The nominator must be a member of academic or research staff on grade 8 or above. The nominator will be asked to confirm the benefits of the association, justify any requests for access to facilities, and confirm funding sources (if internal to SoGE). The nominator must carefully read the Terms and Conditions of the association and sign to confirm they will comply.

3. Application form approved by the Research Centre Director.

This is mandatory for all applications nominated by ECI, SSEE, or TSU. Requests for desk space should be approved.

4. Application form sent to Head of School's PA for processing

Applications made on behalf of SoGE can be sent directly to the HoS PA by the nominator; applications from research centres (ECI, SSEE, TSU) will be sent to the HoS PA on behalf of the Research Centre Director.

Head of School’s PA: alexandra.norrish@ouce.ox.ac.uk

All Student Visitors will be required to complete a feedback survey at the end of their visit.

Submitted applications will be reviewed by the following individuals:

1. Facilities & Services Manager

Where a desk space and/or access to other building facilities has been requested. Conditions and/or additional fees may be applied.

2. Head of IT

Where IT equipment, access to the HPC, or other IT facilities has been requested. Conditions and/or additional fees may be applied.

3. Head of School

Final approval will be granted by the Head of School.

Approved applications will be sent to HR to process. HR will contact the applicant to confirm:

• Approval of the application;
• Total fees payable (unless fees are being covered by SoGE funds);
• Access to facilities (where requested) and any conditions that have been applied;
• Any visa and/or ATAS requirements for the visit.

Please note: Applicants to the Student Visitor Scheme are responsible for applying for and securing (i) the appropriate visitor visa and (ii) where required, the relevant ATAS clearance prior to travel. SoGE will issue a formal letter confirming the appropriate visa route, and the correct CAH code where ATAS clearance is required. Visitors will be required to present evidence of the appropriate visa and, where applicable, ATAS clearance upon arrival. A Bodleian card and access to associated facilities will not be issued until this documentation has been received and verified.

Attempts to enter the SoGE building on an incorrect visa could result in delayed or cancelled association with the School. Please see the UK Border Agency website for more information.

Application form

Application form: Student Visitor Application Form [MS Word : 128 KB]

Fees

Hosting visitors incurs certain costs, including the provision of space and IT facilities. The department charges a one-off set-up fee of £50 (£150 from 1 January 2027) to all student visitors, regardless of their location. The set-up fee covers the cost of setting up the University Card, access to library services and access to an email address. The set-up fee should be paid immediately after confirmation has been given to the associate. 

The bench fee is charged when the student spends time working from the SoGE building. The bench fee covers:

• Use of a hot desk in the department and access to the booking platform to reserve a desk;
• Support from Professional Services Staff teams including IT helpdesk, HR, facilities, finance and communications;
• Access to book meeting rooms and pods for online meetings in the building;
• Online Microsoft package;
• Access to events and seminars being hosted in the department.

The bench fee should be paid before arriving to work in the department. 

Where the student is going to spend less than 20 days in the department cumulatively over the course of the visit, bench fees are not applicable. However, it is the responsibility of the nominator to update the HoS PA if the duration of the stay is subsequently extended. The School has a duty of care to its staff and students to know who may be in the building at any one time, therefore it is the responsibility of the nominator to update on visit dates at the earliest possible opportunity.  Fees may then become chargeable.

The applicant’s source of funding should be stated in the application form. The School has provision to reduce or waive bench fees in exceptional cases, and this will be assessed based on information provided in the application form. The decision to reduce or waive fees sits with the Head of School.

Facilities and Resources available:

• ouce email account and addition to relevant mailing lists;
• University card;
• Use of a hot desk in the department and access to the booking platform to reserve a desk (bench fees apply);
• Access to book meeting rooms and pods for online meetings in the building;
• Access to events and seminars being hosted in the department;
• Basic IT-helpdesk support;
• HPC connection up to 100 hours/month CPU (upon request);
• Lab or other facilities access (upon request, additional fees may apply).

Visas

Student Visitors travelling to Oxford from outside the UK may require a visa. Student Visitors should also assume that ATAS is required unless arriving from an exempt country or otherwise confirmed by SoGE.

Student visitors are responsible for applying for and securing (i) the appropriate visitor visa and (ii) where required, the relevant ATAS clearance prior to travel. SoGE will issue a formal letter confirming the appropriate visa route. Where ATAS clearance is required, HR will provide written confirmation of the correct CAH code and the information to be used in the ATAS application.

Student Visitors will be required to present evidence of the appropriate visa and, where applicable, ATAS clearance upon arrival. A Bodleian card and access to associated facilities will not be issued until this documentation has been received and verified. Attempts to enter the SoGE building on an incorrect visa could result in delayed or cancelled association with the School. Further information on ATAS can be found on the University webpages: ATAS for Students.

Reporting

Student visitors will be required to complete an end of visit feedback survey.

Nominator Responsibilities

SoGE staff members who nominate or support a student visitor application have responsibility for:

• The associate’s induction including: ensuring University card is issued, arrange desk space (where approved), booking a building induction, introduction to research groups, arranging access to facilities as required;
• Ensuring the purpose of the association is met and the relationship remains mutually beneficial;
• All paperwork associated with the relationship including end of association report;
• The associate’s conduct and behaviour for the duration of the relationship.

If you have any queries, or have problems completing the application form, please contact Alexandra Norrish

Information provided about yourself ('personal data') in the above application form will only be used for the purpose of processing your application. If we need to use your data for an unrelated purpose, we will seek your consent to use it for that new purpose. We are processing your data only because you have given us your consent to do so by submitting your application. You can withdraw your consent at any time by contacting us. In this event, we will stop the processing as soon as we can. However, this will not affect the lawfulness of any processing carried out before your withdrawal of consent. Access to your data within the University will be provided to those who need to view it as part of their work in carrying out the purposes described above. We will only retain your data for as long as we need it to meet our purposes, including any relating to legal, accounting, or reporting requirements. Your data will be held securely in accordance with the University's policies and procedures. Further information is available on the University's website.

We (the University of Oxford) are the 'data controller' for this information, which means we are responsible for looking after it in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation and associated data protection legislation. If you wish to raise any queries or concerns about our use of your data with respect to the purposes described above, please contact the Head of School’s PA, Alexandra Norrish, in the first instance.