Petition to stop mandatory £1000 deposit for MA students

‘This student-led petition demands that the deposit is dropped, and the application fee abolished’


Students wanting to study for a Masters degree at King’s College London have to pay a £50 admissions fee, which the university introduced this year.

If a student’s application is successful then they will be required to pay a mandatory, non-refundable deposit of £1,000 for domestic and £2,000 for international students.

Petition starter Giovanna Marasco writes “many frustrated students will have to decline their offers, purely because they cannot afford to pay such a huge portion of their fees, so many months before enrolment… This bizarre and unjust admissions policy declines to give those students the chance to save over the summer, or earn while they learn.”

This admissions policy has already affected the number of applicants and accepted offers seen in the school of Arts & Humanities (a drop in both). It also poses a threat to the existence of smaller courses that may not get enough applicants to cover their costs.

It is very possible that students will choose to study at another university that doesn’t demand such ridiculous upfront costs which would undoubtedly damage King’s competitiveness.

So who are they trying to benefit with this admissions policy? Certainly not the students.

Sign the petition here.