College Transfer Requests

Durham University has a policy that once a college allocation is made then it is part of our broader offer and not something that will be changed at an applicant’s request.  Having multidisciplinary academic communities is very important to maintaining our unique collegiate experience and so our allocation process is designed to ensure that this academic balance is maintained.

The only exceptions to this is if an applicant has declared that they have a disability or medical need that they feel cannot be met by their preliminary college allocation.

In this circumstance, the applicant themselves must contact their preliminary allocated college to see if their needs can be met or mitigated. It is important that applicants liaise directly with the college in the first instance so the college are aware of any concerns an applicant has, but more importantly to fully establish how the college can meet their needs, where possible.

If the preliminary college are unable to meet or mitigate for any needs addressed, the college will provide further details to enable the applicant to submit a written request for further consideration of their needs to the Accommodation and Allocations Office. Written medical evidence from a healthcare professional to support this request is also required.

CONSIDERATIONS FOR MEDICAL EVIDENCE

• The medical evidence must clearly link the applicant's medical needs with the stated requirement within the request to transfer to enable us to make reasonable adjustments to support equality of access and opportunity to students with specific needs.

• Please be aware that any reasonable adjustments may be able to be met by the preliminary allocated college. Only when this has been fully explored would consideration be given for a potential reallocation. 

• Reasonable reallocations are made on the basis of removing potential barriers to begin your studies at Durham University. The University will not normally consider reallocations based on a desire for proximity to other Durham locations that are not part of the University. It is not sufficient to provide evidence where the GP or other healthcare professional suggests a reallocation to a specific college or location without further context.

The University will work closely with individual applicants to ensure that their needs are being addressed appropriately. This may require the applicant to be reallocated to a college where the University considers those needs are best supported to mitigate for particular needs.  

In the case where an undergraduate applicant wishes to defer their offer of a place at Durham, please note that colleges are allocated in the year of application and would not be changed once finalised.

PLEASE NOTE

• College staff and the Accommodation and Allocations Office are unable to discuss individual applications with parents or interested third parties.

• University staff in colleges, departments, the Accommodation and Allocations Office, and the Recruitment and Admissions team are unable to reconsider applicant requests to change college allocations that have already been made.

We would advise any applicant with a disability or medical need to contact Disability Support to ensure appropriate provisions are in place for their academic studies and any further guidance required.