Kim Day | Senior Immigration Adviser

Can I Study On a UK Skilled Worker Visa?

04/03/2025

The Skilled Worker visa is the main visa route for people coming to the UK for employment purposes. Whilst fulfilling their sponsored employment, many Skilled Worker visa holders have asked us whether it’s possible for them to also study in the UK outside of work.

The short answer to this question is yes, you are allowed to study in the UK if you have a Skilled Worker visa.

We’ll go into more detail on this rule below, including a few restrictions to bear in mind before you start studying on a Skilled Worker visa.

Am I Allowed to Study on a Skilled Worker Visa?

According to the gov.uk list of what you can and cannot do on a Skilled Worker visa, you are allowed to study in the UK.

This means you can study for an academic qualification, like a Bachelor’s (BA), Master’s (MA), or PhD degree whilst on a Skilled Worker visa. You can also study for specific research project studentships or other qualifications. You do not have to apply for any other visa like a Student visa to do so.

You also don’t need to notify the Home Office or make any changes to your immigration status before your study if you already hold a Skilled Worker visa.

Any time spent on your Skilled Worker visa, including if you are also studying whilst holding it, will continue to count towards a 5-year route to settlement (ILR).

There are however a few restrictions that you will need to bear in mind before your course starts.

What Study Restrictions Are There on a UK Skilled Worker Visa?

There are a few Skilled Worker study restrictions that you need to know before you start studying. The first and most important of these is that any courses you start in the UK should not interfere with your sponsored job.

This means you must keep working in your sponsored job role alongside your studies. You will always need to check that your employer is happy for you to start studying, and make sure that your study hours don’t clash with your contracted work hours.

You are allowed to study either full-time or part-time, again as long as your study doesn’t interfere with your sponsored employment.

You will not usually be eligible for a UK student loan to pay for your degree, as this is only available to people with settled status.

If your degree is in science, engineering, or technology you may also need to apply for a certificate through the Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) scheme. Courses that require the ATAS scheme are uncommon, but if you need to apply for this certification or require more information about it please contact us directly.

Remember that these are the Home Office’s rules and restrictions for studying on a Skilled Worker visa, not taking on a second job or supplementary employment. If you want to work in a second job on a Skilled Worker visa you should instead review our previous article about running a YouTube channel on a work visa, as this includes more information on secondary work rules. You can also refer to this gov.uk page.

Finally, it’s advisable to only study courses that you’re able to complete within the time you’ve been granted in the UK on your Skilled Worker visa. Otherwise, you will need to either extend your working visa to complete your course (which means also continuing with your sponsored employment) or apply to switch to a Student visa.

Can I Switch From a UK Skilled Worker Visa to a Student Visa?

It’s very common for visa holders to switch in the opposite direction, from a Student visa to a Skilled Worker visa, after completing their studies and finding a job in the UK.

But it’s also possible to switch from a Skilled Worker to a Student visa in certain circumstances. These tend to be rarer cases, and what you need to do will depend on whether you’ve started your course or not, whether your sponsorship has been cancelled or not, and a number of other factors.

If you want to switch from a Skilled Worker to a Student visa, please contact our team directly using the details below. We’ll be able to give you more detailed advice that takes into account your specific circumstances.