University Tunku Abdul Rahman (Utar) will give 11 journalism students more time to settle tuition fees, putting to rest their fears of dismissal.

The affected students - all from the Petaling Jaya campus - will be allowed to pay their fees when they receive their loans from the National Higher Education Fund Corporation (NHEFC).

Contacted today, an officer in the External Affairs Department said this arrangement has been cleared with the National Accreditation Board.

"It has been settled...I can't provide any more details," said the officer, who declined to be named.

The university's finance department had sent the students a warning letter dated Jan 19 to pay up or face expulsion, after issuing a verbal reminder.

The students filed an appeal, asking for a grace period as the loans had yet to be disbursed.

The NHEFC had earlier explained that the study loans could not be released because it had yet to receive confirmation of the students' status from the university.

The fund received the documents on Jan 18, which it described as "a bit late", and said the loans would be released soon.

Utar, established and run by the MCA, has campuses in Petaling Jaya, Sungai Long and Kuala Lumpur.