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Purchasing, travel reservations and expense claim processing - FSE PGR

Notes on purchases and expenses as a PGR student

Introduction to financial services available to PGR students

The Faculty of Science and Engineering has a team who are dedicated to providing guidance and support in respect of all university based financial services. The following guidance refers to the following spend categories:

Purchasing of goods and services
Travel reservations
Expense claim processing

University International Activity Information Sheet

Overview

The guidance outlined below is supported with links to the relevant university finance policy details so that you can be assured the information provided is regularly updated as and when policies are amended.

Purchasing of goods and services

Overview of Purchasing of goods and services

To purchase any goods or services the following guidance is to be followed:

Discuss your need to purchase goods or services with your supervisor as they will be responsible for the funds that will support your purchase.
Your supervisor will review your request and will confirm whether approval has been granted. They will then confirm the account code details that will need to be verified in your purchase request submission.
Your purchase request should then be submitted as follows:

Students without access to ABW

Please complete a copy of the following purchase order request form: Engineering Order Form.xlsx
You will need to confirm the details of the purchase – please include links to the relevant intranet based details where possible and upload any supporting documentation.
Please note that a form must be completed on a per supplier basis – if you submit multiple purchase requests at the same time each request will need to be submitted on a separate purchase order request form.
The purchase order request form(s) should then be emailed to your supervisor so that they may review and approve on your behalf. They should confirm their approval as follows:
Add their signature digitally to your purchase order form.
Forward you an email confirming that they approve the purchase details.

The approved purchase order request form together with all supporting documentation should then be forwarded to the faculty finance team for processing on your behalf to the following dedicated email address: fseorders@swansea.ac.uk

Please title your email heading in the following format: URGENT: Student purchase order request on behalf of (student name and student number)
This will enable us to quickly identify your email as a purchase order request. We will then ensure that it is processed as soon as possible.
If there are any queries associated with your purchase order request(s) a member of the faculty finance team will contact you via email for further information.
All queries relating to your purchase order request should be forwarded to the following dedicated email address: fseorders@swansea.ac.uk

Travel reservations

Overview of Travel reservations

The university has implemented a travel management policy in order to support the travel needs of staff and students. The policy makes provision for travel reservations both in the United Kingdom and overseas. Another key element of the policy is to ensure the health and safety of all staff and students who undertake travel on behalf of the university in accordance with our duty of care.

When planning travel reservations the following guidance is to be followed:

Discuss your travel requirements with your supervisor as they will be responsible for the funds that will support your travel requests.
Your supervisor will review your request and will confirm whether approval has been granted. They will then confirm the account code details that will need to be confirmed in your travel request.
You will need to complete a number of forms for both international and national travel. More details can be found in the travel section here.

Expense claim processing

Overview of Expense claim processing

The university has implemented an expense claim policy that applies to staff and students. Details of the policy are confirmed via the following link: Expenses Policy and Procedure - Swansea University

The guidance should be reviewed ahead of you making any direct purchase yourself with a view to being reimbursed by the university at a later date. As a rule only a limited range of travel based costs can be reclaimed via the expense claim system. These include the following:

Subsistence
Mileage allowance
Fuel for hire vehicles
Short distance/low cost travel: for example – service buses and local taxis

The reimbursement of all other costs are only considered on an exception/contingency basis where prior approval has been granted.

Expense claim processing guidance

The expense claim form should be completed confirming the details of your claim.
Receipts must be uploaded to support your expense claim as evidence of having made payment for the costs claimed. ** Please note that itemised VAT receipts must be provided, as these provide full details of the items/services provided. Visa slip receipts are not accepted as they do not evidence which items/services have been purchased.
Your expense claim should then be forwarded via email to your supervisor together with copies of the receipts so that they may review and approve on your behalf. Your supervisor should confirm their approval as follows:

i) Add their signature digitally to your expense claim form.

ii) Forward you an email confirming that they approve the expense claim details.

The approved expense claim form together with all supporting documentation should then be forwarded to the following dedicated email address: fseexpenseclaims@swansea.ac.uk
Please title your email heading in the following format: URGENT: Student expense claim on behalf of (name and student number)
This will enable us to quickly identify your email as an expense claim.
We will review your expense claim and will then approve payment on your behalf. The claim will then be forwarded to the university’s Payment Office for processing.
If there are any queries associated with your expense claim we will contact you via email to request further information.
Payments to students are issued on a weekly basis. By following the guidance provided we will arrange for you to be reimbursed at the earliest opportunity.
All queries relating to your expense claim should be forwarded to the following dedicated email address: fseexpenseclaims@swansea.ac.uk

Contact

Please contact the faculty finance team via the following dedicated email addresses:

Purchasing of goods and services – fseorders@swansea.ac.uk

Travel reservations – fseorders@swansea.ac.uk

Expense claim processing – fseexpenseclaims@swansea.ac.uk