Help again please :)

You can only apply a maximum of 3 months before the course starts, so if the course doesn't start until September (for example, as most courses do start around September time), then you can't apply for the visa until around June, even if you get the CAS before that.

The sponsor cannot issue the CAS any sooner than that anyway.

The sponsor cannot issue the CAS any sooner than that anyway.

I'm looking at the UKBA website and all I can find regarding when the CAS can be issued is:

A CAS is valid for six months from the date when it is assigned. If the migrant does not use it within this period to apply for permission to stay under Tier 4, it will automatically become invalid.

To be able to apply for permission to enter or stay in the UK under Tier 4, the migrant will need a confirmation of acceptance for studies (CAS) from their Tier 4 sponsor. The student's application must be made no more than three months before the start date of their course.

So what it's saying there is that the CAS is only valid for 6 months and the student can only apply 3 months before the course starts (which is what I said above).

Even looking through the Sponsor Guidance, I can't see any mention of when the CAS can be issued, only that the above restrictions are in place (the student can't apply more than 3 months before the course and the CAS is only valid for 6 months once issued).

Maybe individual universities have their own rules regarding when they will issue the CAS, but that doesn't seem to be dictated by the UKBA at all - from what I can tell, the UKBA are simply offering guidance as to when the CAS should be issued in order for the student to successfully apply for their visa in time to start the course.

@NoseOverTail, Kay, thank you. I'll send them an email today to ask about that.

Hey Pandaz,

I've been following your threads about HE. Would you be at all interested in doing a foundation year at University then going straight onto a degree course? They really catch you up to high school/a level standard during the year and provided that you pass you can continue with a regular degree. I just figured I'd throw that out there since it's only a year and if you have any sort of high school qualification they basically send you an unconditional offer.

So THAT'S what a foundation year is. I had heard about those, but I wasn't 100% on what exactly they were. I'd be very interested in something like that. Wow, really? Thank you very much for that info!

No problem! I've been through one myself so if you need any help just PM me .

Thank you very much, I will definitely probably end up PM'ing you. Also! I was wondering, what exactly is the difference between a foundation year and an HE course? Hmmm. Because the HE course I'm signing up for is also a year long. @__@ So confusinggg.

i think you may be getting your terminology mixed up because colleges in the UK are FE institutions not HE institutions. In general, anything below university level is not HE, it is FE. A levels or the equivalent are considered Post-16 FE courses, so if you are doing a course that gives you qualifications equivalent to A levels to get into university, it will most likely be only FE level, rather than HE.

I'm not sure about foundation years-I'm writing this on my kindle so i can't look it up right now.

Possibly. I just get a bit confused because I went on the college's website, I click on 'Full Time courses,' and 'Access to HE' is the first thing on the list, which I have signed up for. Arghhh. >.<

ah okay. so the course you are doing is going to be an FE course then. Access to HE means that if you complete the course then you will have the qualifications required to apply for an HE course in the future- it gives you the skills needed to progress to HE afterwards. it doesn't mean that the course itself is HE level because colleges can't actually teach HE courses.

Oooh, Ok, I understand now!

I suppose there isn't a huge difference between what you're getting into and foundation year. The duration is the same but foundation year gaurantees you a place on a degree course of your choosing (they let you choose from a very diverse list of subjects) after you've passed. It does not give you a qualification though. So it's not like A-levels. It's just a catch-you-up-to-speed course really. I liked the idea of it since it means that you're going to be accepted on a course straight away and you wouldn't have to apply to universities again unless of course you want to transfer to a different one.

Oh and it's also good for competitive degrees like social work and nursing. A lot of the students during the year, were trying to get onto one of those courses because they didn't make it first time around. They require you to pass with atleast a 60% and do an interview for these though.

Just be aware that after this last Consultation on Student Visas the eligibility of the College to be a Sponsor for a Tier 4 Visa may be removed since it is not a University Degree Level program. So making plans now for the fall may be a bit premature and I would really advise that the OP wait until we know what will happen with the Tier 4's, and we should know in the next few weeks.

It's also worth noting that the rules are slightly different in Scotland than they are in England and Wales (and I have no idea about N.Ireland). 

It's also worth noting that the rules are slightly different in Scotland than they are in England and Wales (and I have no idea about N.Ireland).  

Oops didn't realize the OP was hoping to live in Scotland.

Pandaz, I have no idea if Scottish universities have foundation years. I haven't done a single piece of research on Scotland, Sorry  .