Course Dates and Holidays for International students

These dates may differ from the official course start and end dates, as they refer specifically to the teaching delivery period. These dates are provided to support discussions with employers regarding work hours, ensuring alignment with the UKVI work permissions for students on a student-sponsored visa.

Holiday Breaks:
These breaks apply to all courses and programmes.

• Winter Break: 20 December 2025 - 04 January 2026
• Spring Break: 28 March 2026 - 12 April 2026

Letter of Term Dates for Employers  

Student Visa holders, enrolled on undergraduate or postgraduate taught (not research) degrees, may be asked to provide proof of term dates to employers. 

We do not provide a letter of individual term-dates.  The information provided below is sufficient for employers requesting this, a link can be emailed to the employer.   

In addition, most employers will also require a Student Status Certificate, and this can be downloaded by the student, from the student’s Graduate Intelligence account. Link: Graduate Intelligence 

It is the student’s responsibility to provide all the above. The university does not provide bespoke term time letters. 

Why is my employer asking for this? 

Your Student Visa has working restrictions which apply to Term Time and Holiday periods, also known as vacation periods. Your employer needs to ensure that if you are working full time, that you are doing so, outside of term time.  By providing the information above, you are providing sufficient evidence to your employer.  

What the Home Office says about your working hours 

Home Office Conditions 

Student Visa holders are entitled to work in the UK subject to Home Office Conditions; if they are studying on an undergraduate degree or a postgraduate level course, they can work up to 20 hours per week during term time.  If they are studying on a foundation degree course, they can work up to 10 hours per week during term time.  Unless their visa (in the form of a sticker in their passport, a Biometric Residence Permit or electronic visa) states, No Work or Work Prohibited. 

Home Office Definition of a Week  

A week is defined as a 7-day period starting on a Monday. If a student works irregular hours or has more than one employer, a detailed record of the hours worked must be kept.  

Home Office Guidance about the work a student cannot do  

Students must not engage in business, self-employment or provide services as a professional sportsperson or entertainer, or be appointed to a permanent, full-time vacancy.  

During term time, Student Visa holders must not exceed the hours per week outlined above, except in the case of an Agreed Work Placement which forms part of the course.  

University standard Term Time definitions 

Term time, is a period of time where a student is expected to do academic work, this includes, but is not limited to, attending lectures, writing academic work, submissions week, preparing for and taking exams, general coursework.  

Holiday time, also known as vacation time, is untimetabled time that falls outside of term time as defined above. 

Exceptions to standard Term Time definitions 

There are periods when students are not expected to attend classes but when they should be studying, writing a dissertation, or preparing for exams as part of their course. These periods are classed as term time, for the purpose of working hours, as stipulated above.  

If a student needs to resubmit an assignment or re-sit an exam during what would normally be classed as, outside of term time, the student cannot work full-time, because considering the resubmission, the period is now classed, for that student, as term time.  

Full-time work  

During recognised vacation periods, Student Visa holders, except Postgraduate Research Students, are permitted to work full-time. The dates for Christmas, Easter and Summer vacation periods where full-time work is permitted can be found below. 

Note: The University’s Summer vacation period does not apply to all students or courses. See term-dates below. 
 
PhD Students 

PhD students do not follow the usual term times, instead these students are entitled to a maximum of seven weeks (35 working days) holiday leave (including all times when the University is officially closed e.g. Christmas and bank holidays).  

PhD Students must agree in advance any leave of a week or more with their supervisor.  

There are some restrictions for students holding international visas to study in the UK. These students are under obligation to report annual leave periods to their supervisor at the University of Suffolk for monitoring purposes, as defined by Home Office Student visa immigration policy. 

Students will need written permission and approval from their supervisor to take vacation and agreed dates must be confirmed in writing. Once approved, students can work full-time during the agreed vacation period and during these additional closure dates, listed below.  
 
The University closure dates for 2025/26 are as follows: 

Dates	Holidays
25/08/2025	Bank Holiday
24/12/2025	UOS Closure Day
25/12/2025	Bank Holiday
26/12/2025	Bank Holiday
29/12/2025	UOS Closure Day
01/01/2026	Bank Holiday
02/01/2026	UOS Closure Day
03/04/2026	Bank Holiday
06/04/2026	Bank Holiday
04/05/2026	Bank Holiday
25/05/2026	Bank Holiday

It will be the discretion of the Suffolk Doctoral College and supervisor to determine if a PhD student can take all 7 vacation weeks consecutively.  

Volunteering  

A student can volunteer while they are studying. Volunteering is different from voluntary work (unpaid employment) and does not count towards your weekly working hours limit. Volunteers will normally help a registered charity or voluntary or public sector organisation. 

If you are volunteering with an organisation, you must not: 

• have a contract of employment 

• take the place of an employee 

• receive payment for your contribution, including payment in kind, such as vouchers, meals, clothing, or accommodation for example  

Voluntary work 

A student is allowed to do voluntary work in the UK but be aware that voluntary work counts towards your weekly working hours limit. 

As a voluntary worker, you are usually paid in some form and often have a contract with an employer. 

If you’re unsure, you should check with the organisation whether what you are doing can be regarded as voluntary work. 

More information about volunteering while on a Student Visa is available on UKCISA's website. 

Working after completion of studies 

After completing their studies and reaching the course end date stated in their CAS letter, a Student Visa holder may have up to 4 months of remaining leave on their visa, depending on the length of their course. During this time, they are generally allowed to work full-time. 

It is the student’s responsibility to evidence to the employer that they do not have any referral study or retakes, that would prevent them from being able to work full-time.  

 For further guidance, please see the UKCISA website: Working after studies for international students

The University does not provide a letter to students when they have completed their course. The student can provide their Student Status Certificate, this is sufficient.  The student can access this via their Graduate Intelligence account. 

Link: Graduate Intelligence 

Students receive an email, via their UOS student email account, after completing enrolment; inviting them to create a student account with Graduate Intelligence. If they cannot locate this email, they can go directly via the link here to create a student account.