UCC’s international student body has expanded dramatically since the early 2000s. With that growth, they needed a solution that could streamline the tuition payment process for students while providing staff with a transparent way to track funds and move more efficiently.
About
University College Cork (UCC) is an Irish third-level educational institution, established in 1845. Ranked in the top 1.1% of universities worldwide, their international student body now represents over 100 countries.
The Challenge
Internationalisation at University College Cork did not happen overnight.
It unfolded steadily over the past 20 years, evolving into a campus with over 100 countries represented. With that global reach came an unavoidable operational reality. Tuition payments were no longer domestic, uniform, or predictable. They were multi-currency, time-sensitive, and deeply tied to a student’s ability to secure visas and begin their studies.
For the International Office, the priority was clear. They needed a streamlined way for students to pay their fees while ensuring their staff had a highly transparent, real-time view of what was happening. Just as importantly, they required a system that would remove friction from student interactions and allow teams to focus on what mattered most.
As Marita Foster, Head of International Admissions (Non-EU) and Mobility at University College Cork, puts it:
“We’re very much a student-facing office. And for us, the student has always been number one. Our main goal has been to have a satisfactory experience for our students.”
Before TransferMate, tuition fee payments were fragmented and opaque. Visibility was limited, creating uncertainty for both staff and students. As Marita recalls:
“Students were paying by EFT, and there were delays in the money coming into the UCC account. Another issue was that we didn't have visibility of the funds arriving, unless we got the monthly bank statement from our bank. It was a challenge to know when the payments were received.”
This lack of visibility became particularly acute during visa season. Students were required to show proof of payment. However, the International Office didn’t issue receipts.
“Another big challenge for us was the requirement that students needed to provide proof of payment to apply for their visa. And there was a lot of pressure put on our office and the fees office to get receipts. We don't issue receipts, but we were the ones students were contacting, saying, "I need a receipt. I'm going for my visa appointment. I have to have a receipt.”
The International Office found itself caught in the middle, fielding urgent student queries while waiting for confirmation that funds had arrived.
Refunds added another layer of complexity.
Payments were often made by parents or third parties, leading to administrative confusion. The process was slow, manual, and emotionally charged, particularly given that parents were paying significant amounts for their children’s education.
“The student might not necessarily have paid in their own name. It may have been a parent. So, very often there's confusion when we try to verify account details, the amount due for a refund, and things like that. With all of that, it took a lot longer for the refund to find its way to the student's or parents' bank account.”
The Solution
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TransferMate was introduced as a dedicated tuition payment platform, and the impact was immediate. For students, it simplified the process of paying their fees. For International Office staff, it introduced daily visibility.
“Now, once our international students get their offer from UCC, they'll be asked to make a payment, and they use TransferMate to pay their fees. It's very much a linear process. For students, it's a very streamlined process. For us, it's a very transparent way to receive funds."
"We can literally see, on a daily basis, the tuition fees coming into the UCC fees account. So it has significantly reduced the administrative burden of collecting fees from international students.”
One of the most transformative changes came in the form of receipts. “Since the Department of Justice accepts TransferMate’s receipt as proof of payment, that has made everybody’s life so much easier,” Marita says. What had once been a major administrative bottleneck was now resolved automatically at the point of payment.
Refunds were streamlined too; instead of weeks of verification and back-and-forth, funds are returned to the originating account. For the Fees Office, this capability was met with immediate enthusiasm.
“Another big plus for us, and again, I would say for our colleagues in the fees office, has been the refund system, which allows students to be refunded within 24 hours. I know from talking to my colleagues in the fees office that when this was first demonstrated to us, their eyes just lit up! They were saying, "Oh, my God. This is going to make our lives so much easier." So yeah, it's certainly been a game-changer in terms of the amount of work they would have had to do previously.”
Beyond functionality, the relationship itself mattered.
“If any issues do arise, you can get on immediately to our specific customer relations manager… and they will be onto it straight away,” Marita notes.
That direct engagement meant fewer unresolved queries and less burden on university staff.
The Results
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Over time, TransferMate became embedded in UCC’s international student journey, delivering compounding benefits across teams.
From an operational perspective, “it has eased the administrative burden of the staff in the international office.” Staff no longer needed to act as intermediaries between students and finance teams. “We don’t need now to be picking up the phone or emailing our colleagues… we can say, ‘Oh yeah, I’ve seen it coming in.’”
For students, the experience became clearer and more reassuring. “It’s very transparent… they can see exactly what’s going on,” Marita explains. In a world of increasing payment fraud, that clarity matters: “it’s a secure, robust system… we can see exactly where the money is coming in from.”
Speed has also been critical at an institutional level.
“It’s almost instantaneous… the money leaves the student’s account, it’s almost instantaneously in the UCC account.”
Given that one of the biggest sources of income for universities is international student revenue, that revenue directly supports financial sustainability.
Just as importantly, staff time has been reclaimed. “We can then use the time saved to engage with the students; it’s not such a transactional relationship,” Marita reflects.
Instead of chasing receipts or refunds, the International Office of UCC can now focus on helping students prepare for life in Cork.
The Final Word
“I would recommend TransferMate without hesitation. What stands out is not only what the platform does today, but how it continues to evolve; it’s not static. TransferMate is always looking at ways to improve the platform.” - Marita Foster, Head of International Admissions (Non-EU) and Mobility, University College Cork
To learn more about how TransferMate can help you upgrade your international student payment process, contact the education team here.
