Summer School: FAQs

The programme is open to current undergraduates and postgraduates*. We require all students to be studying towards or have completed a Bachelor degree. We expect all applicants to be achieving strong results and on track for a minimum of an upper second class honours degree (2:1) from a UK university (or the international equivalent) but we do consider candidates with slightly lower results and may make an offer for the Summer School, depending on the strength of the whole application.

Read more about our entry requirements.

*Please note that current Imperial College MSc and PhD students are unable to apply for the Summer School.

The Summer School is aimed at candidates who are currently studying for their undergraduate degree and the majority of students are aged between 18 and 21 years of age. The teaching is not intended for people with a significant amount of work experience, so it would be unlikely that our offering is what you are looking for in your studies. You may wish to take a look at the Business School’s Executive Education suite as it offers programmes in similar subject areas to the Summer School but instead aimed at those with more professional experience.

Students can only take one course. Please visit our Courses page for more information.

Applications to the Summer School are made through our website. Please ensure that you fully complete the application form as otherwise there could be delays to your application. Please visit our How to Apply page for further information.

There are no application fees for our Summer School courses.

Please see our Entry Requirements page for full details of our English language requirements.

Please note: you must have scored results that meet our requirements before we will consider your application.

References are not required for the Summer School programme.

For more information on the fees, please visit the Fees and earlybird discount page.

Please note that the tuition fees do not include living expenses, accommodation or the social programme.

Unfortunately, we can only accept students onto the Business School Summer School if they have completed at least one year of Bachelor level studies and are over the age of 18 on the first day. There are no exceptions to this rule. You may wish to consider the Imperial College Global Summer School which is specifically for under-18s.

Students with physical disabilities, learning disabilities or other special needs may be entitled to special arrangements in their examinations such as extra time or permission to use a PC. Students should ensure that any such requests are made to the Examinations Manager, Jo Chaffin . For Imperial College procedures, please see the College website.

The courses are intensive; many require both self-study and group work outside of the scheduled teaching hours.  We therefore strongly recommend that students do not undertake any form of work while they are participating in the Summer School.   

Please note that if you enter the UK on a Standard Visitor visa, you are not entitled to work (paid, unpaid, voluntary or as part of a work placement or internship).

Completion provides no guaranteed route onto one of our MSc courses as each Masters programme has their own set of entry requirements which are significantly higher than those for the Summer School courses.

There are scholarships available - please check our scholarships page.

If you have been made an offer for the Summer School you will receive an offer email which will include a payment link. You will have fourteen days from the date the offer email is sent in which to complete your payment. Your place on the programme will not be confirmed until you have paid your fees.

Students from outside the UK may require a visa to join the Summer School. 

Short Term Study Visa

The Standard Visitor Visa allows students to come to the UK for periods of up to six months (per calendar year) in order to undertake a short course of study. If you have no other form of immigration permission, the Standard Visitor visa is the required route for Summer School students at Imperial College Business School. 

• If you are a National of one of the countries NOT on this list (Appendix 2) it means it means you can obtain your entry clearance on arrival in the UK and you DO NOT have to make a Standard Visitor visa application before travelling. It is vital that you make sure you tell the border officer what your intention is for entering the UK and that you take the visa letter we have provided as it will provide the information about the course.
• If you ARE a National of one of the countries on this list (Appendix 2) it means you MUST make a visa appointment as soon as possible for a Standard Visitor Visa. You will need to include the confirmation letter from Imperial College Business School as proof that the course is less than 6 months long. Once you have your visa please upload a copy of this and the photo page of your passport to your My Imperial account.

You can find more information on the College website about visa requirements for short-term study.

Tier 4 Student Visa

If you are currently on a Tier 4 student visa which will be valid during Summer School, you are not required to apply for anything else. You will, however, need to upload the following to your MyImperial account:

1. A copy of your Tier 4 visa student visa
2. A copy of your passport (photo page only)
3. A letter from your current university/institution confirming that you are a registered student

EU/EEA/Swiss nationals

Students who hold settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme do not need any immigration permission for the UK.  

If you do not have this status because you did not live in the UK before 31 December 2020, you will need to enter the UK as a Standard Visitor in order to study on the Summer School. You can obtain your entry clearance on arrival in the UK and do not need to apply for a visa before travelling.

If you have any questions which may not be addressed on this page, please contact us in the first instance and we will be happy to help.

Please visit the Accommodation page for more information.

We would advise students, wherever possible, to check into their accommodation in advance of arriving at the Business School. If it is not feasible to do so, please contact us to arrange a left luggage facility for Day 1 (Induction) of each session, details of which will be provided closer to the time.

Details on how to reach the Business School from the airport can be found on the following webpage.

Imperial College Business School currently does not offer an airport transfer.

You are recommended to budget for approximately £25-£30 per day (excludes cost of accommodation).

Induction will take place on the first day of each course and students are expected to attend.

Summer School courses are intensive and consist of at least 45 contact hours over the three-week period. Courses may include lectures from guest speakers and academic excursions. Teaching takes place in person, from our campus in South Kensington.

Lectures are attended by all students on the course and usually take place in the morning. They are supplemented by afternoon sessions, such as workshops or tutorials (typically 2 hours each). Groups are allocated at random, and you will be notified of your group after the start of the session. It is not possible to switch workshops.  

There will be no teaching on the second Friday of each Summer School session to enable students to focus on self-study as well as exploring London and beyond. 

You will receive your timetable on the first day of your course. Timetables are not available in advance as they are only finalised shortly before the start of each session.

As the programme is paperless, students are required to bring a laptop/tablet with them, in order to access course materials and participate in assessments.

Due to the short duration of the programme, Summer School students are unfortunately not eligible for an 18+ Student Oyster Card.

Please be aware that the usual day-to-day dress code for the Business School is casual (jeans are permitted). That being said, you may want to consider bringing a smarter outfit with you so that you have the option whilst you are here.

You will be able to access Ethos Sports Centre during your studies. 

Imperial College London has a range of outlets meaning that students are never too far away from a hot meal, refreshments or a quick snack.

You will be issued with a College account and login details prior to arriving at the College. Please ensure you check your e-mail account on a regular basis (at least once a day), as important information may be sent via this method of communication (in addition to that which is posted on the Hub).

Students are automatically registered with the library.

Access to the Hub (the Business School’s bespoke online learning platform) once Summer School has finished is not guaranteed. We would therefore recommend that you download and save any materials during the programme that you would like to keep.

Final exams typically take place on the last day of each session – times will not be confirmed until Summer School starts.

Important: there are no exceptions to taking the exams at the given time and date and this should be taken into account when making your travel arrangements. 

Exams are not compulsory for those who are not seeking to gain credit for undertaking Summer School. Students who attend at least 80% of classes and do not sit the final exam will receive an electronic Certificate of Attendance – please be aware that your home institution is unlikely to accept this in exchange for credit.

If you experience serious illness or other major problems which you consider to have affected your academic performance, please contact us and provide us with the details in writing, along with any other relevant evidence.

For Imperial College policy relating to mitigating circumstances, and other undergraduate guidelines, please see the College website.

The suggested credit level for each Summer School course is 7.5 ECTS or 3-4 US credits.

Students who wish to receive credit for their chosen course will need to liaise with their home institution (usually the Study Abroad Office but this may vary). Although it is ultimately up to students' home institutions as to how much credit is awarded, we are happy to provide any necessary information to your home institution. Please contact us to receive the necessary information. 

Summer School students will receive an electronic Certificate of Attendance (subject to achieving an overall attendance rate of 80%) and a transcript which will include the final overall numerical mark.

Electronic copies of transcripts will be made available to students via their MyImperial portal after the External Exam Board has taken place (usually at the end of August). Certificates of Attendance will be emailed to students.

Please note that we cannot usually provide copies of transcripts in other formats, including hard copy.