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► Exam Issues for undergraduates
Exam Issues
for undergraduates
1. Exams & class tests
2. Extenuating circumstances
3. Exams not taken
4. Exam regulations
5. Results & Failure
6. Asked to Leave
7. Academic appeals
8. Certificates & Diplomas
9. Costs of repeating
10.Definitions
The information below has been checked for accuracy at the date of printing. It will be updated when significant changes occur.
Aston Students’ Guild
Advice & Representation Centre
March 2010
Definitions of the phrases used in this leaflet may be found in section 10
1. Exams and Class Tests
Examinations and class tests may be used to assess your performance in a module. Examinations are tests contributing over 25% to the assessment of a module and may only be held at the end of the first and second teaching periods Class tests, which may be used to assess up to 25% of a module, may be held at any time of the year, but should also be held under normal examination regulations, with a minimum of 2 weeks’ notice of the date, time and location. You may be given provisional marks from either of these assessments but none are final until they have been approved by your Exam Board. If problems affect your exams or your class tests, follow the procedure described below.
2.Extenuating circumstances
(Soon to be called Exceptional Circumstances)
Your School of Study will consider extenuating circumstances. Extenuating circumstances allow the School to make an informed decision when considering your overall academic performance. However your marks are not increased if your extenuating circumstances are accepted. You will need e.g. for illness: a medical note or G.P.letter. The University do not contact others to ask for a evidence about you.
*You should contact the School, about your circumstances, before it considers your results. It can be hard to persuade the School to accept retrospective claims. *You will need good reason for failing to notify at the correct time.
*Your circumstances will usually be considered by a Module Board or an Extenuating Circumstances Panel.
*Students are encouraged to use the University’s Extenuating Circumstances form. The forms are at http://www1.aston.ac.uk/registry/for-staff/regsandpolicies/examinationsandassessmentregulations/
Scroll to the foot of the page and select the extenuating circumstances form
Unless you have been told otherwise, put the form in an envelope and address it to the Programme Director of your course, then hand it in at your School office by the published deadline.
3. Unable to take the exams: deferral.
If you attend an exam you will be regarded as having deemed yourself fit enough to take it. During the exam period if you are ill, or are affected by other personal circumstances, you will need evidence. You must write to the University following the procedure outlined in section 2. If you can not take or complete your exams, the University may allow you to defer your exams. Exams missed in January, or in May/June, are usually deferred to the August/September exam week.
There are two issues caused by deferring to August/September:
1. You can usually only take 4 exams during this 5 day exam week
2. If you fail exams in August/September, there may not be an opportunity to do the exam again until January or until the next summer term which means that you may not be allowed to start your next academic year. Sometimes you may trail modules into the next year:
If you miss, or do not complete finals, either the exam board may ask you to sit them at the ’next normal occasion’ probably in January or in May/June or offer you an aegrotat degree or recommend a classified degree on evidence available e.g. completed exams and coursework. It is not normally possible to take finals in the August/September exam week unless you study pharmacy or psychology as far as we are aware.
4. Exam regulations. The University have issued new regulations in most academic years following the introduction of modularisation in 1998. Strictly the regulations which apply to you are the ones issued for the year during which you began to study at Aston. However they are advised to use the regulations most favourable to their students.
5. Results and Failure
Your Exam Board may allow you no more than 3 attempts at each exam or assessment but they can also decide after only 1 or 2 attempts that you may not be allowed to continue on your course.
►You can not choose to re-take an exam in order to improve the grade. However, if you ‘restart’ your course you will be asked to do the whole
module again thus voiding your first set of results.
► Sandwich or language students asked to undertake repeat assessments can sometimes do their placement first before taking the repeat
► If you query or challenge exam results must
marks have been received and correctly totalled.
marks have been received and correctly totalled.
Most common options following failure:
Failure at the 1st attempt
► If you fail in up to 40 credits you may be offered refers
► If you fail over 40 credits you may be offered repeats or a restart
► If you fail no more than 60 credits and you have good performances in some areas plus extenuating circumstances, you may be offered refers
► If you fail very badly, you may be asked to leave your course
Failure at the second attempt
► If you fail referred assessments you may be asked to repeat the modules with or without attendance or you may be asked to leave your course
► If you fail repeated modules you may be offered the chance to take referred assessments or you may be asked to leave your course
► If you fail a restart year you may be offered a chance to take referred assessments or you may be asked to leave your course.
► Sometimes you are allowed to continue on an Ordinary degree without honours
Failure at the third attempt
► If you fail repeated modules you will be asked to leave your course
► If you fail referred assessments you will be asked to leave your course
► Sometimes you are allowed to continue on an Ordinary degree without honours
Failing finals
► If you fail finals, you may be allowed to repeat your failed modules within 2 years with or without attendance. If you fail for the second time you may be offered a Pass degree for having studied an honours course but having failed to reach honours standard.
►There are no referred assessments except for students studying pharmacy and psychology.
6.Asked to leave your course
► If you have received letter your Exam Board stating you may required to withdraw, you have the right to make 'representations' to a Representations Board against such a decision in writing or person or by doing both.
► If you have received letter your Exam Board stating you may required to withdraw, you have the right to make 'representations' to a Representations Board against such a decision in writing or person or by doing both.
► You may your case helped by a member of the academic staff oranother student. The Welfare Manager Welfare Adviser the Guild’s Advice & Representation Centre also allowed to represent .
►You may only an Board about circumstances which were
unknown to them when they made their original decision. You are likely to need proof of any extenuating circumstances.
7. Academic Appeals to the University. It is not possible to appeal against the academic judgement of examiners. The fact that you may think you deserve more marks is unfortunately not a valid reason. Your academic appeal deadline is not later than 14 days, including weekends and public and University holidays, after your transcript of marks or the formal notification ofyour examination or assessment results has been issued by your School or Combined Honours. You can not use the academic appeals procedure if you still have the right to make representations to an Exam Board . (section6.) There are only 3 possible reasons for an appeal to the University against the exam board’s decision:
7. Academic Appeals to the University. It is not possible to appeal against the academic judgement of examiners. The fact that you may think you deserve more marks is unfortunately not a valid reason. Your academic appeal deadline is not later than 14 days, including weekends and public and University holidays, after your transcript of marks or the formal notification ofyour examination or assessment results has been issued by your School or Combined Honours. You can not use the academic appeals procedure if you still have the right to make representations to an Exam Board . (section6.) There are only 3 possible reasons for an appeal to the University against the exam board’s decision:
1.Your performance was adversely affected by illness or other specific factors for which you had valid reasons for not submitting Exam Board before they made their decision. or
.An administrative or material error has affected the assessments or
.Assessment procedures were not conducted within regulations.
.An administrative or material error has affected the assessments or
.Assessment procedures were not conducted within regulations.
8.Certificates and Diplomas.
If you can not complete your degree, Special Regulations allow the award of a Certificate of Higher Education after 1 year or a Diploma of Higher Education after 2 years or a Placement year Certificate .
If you can not complete your degree, Special Regulations allow the award of a Certificate of Higher Education after 1 year or a Diploma of Higher Education after 2 years or a Placement year Certificate .
9. Repeating or restarting and money
● Tuition fees (09/10) rates for students who started from 06/07
Repeating without attendance £269
Attending £269 per single 10 credit module
Restarting the year £3,225
University bursaries are paid on a pro rata basis if you repeat with attendance
●Tuition fees (09/10) rates for students who began in or before 05/06
Repeating without attendance £107
Attending £107 per single 10 credit module
Restarting the year £1285
International students pay the annual fee divided by 12 modules multiplied by the number of modules being taken. Without attendance is equivalent to one twelfth of the annual tuition fee.
Home rate tuition fee payers: If you repeat your studies you should tell your local authority or Student Finance England, as appropriate. The Guild’s Advice & Representation Centre stocks ‘change of circumstance’ forms.
● Student support for repeat year, for home tuition fee rate payers
In principle student support (a tuition fee loan, a loan for living costs and a grant if you are entitled to one) is available for the length of your course plus one year; minus any years of study for which you have already received support.
If you need more than one extra year, it will mainly have to be self funded. You will be entitled to a living cost loan provided you don’t already have a UK honours degree. Unless you have ’compelling personal reasons’, no other student support will exist except for supplementary grants (e.g. for single parents)
● Non Attendance - all home tuition fee rate payers
There is no financial support for tuition fees, loans or extra local authority help.You may be able to find paid work.It is impossible to claim benefits unless you are disabled or a single parent.
There is no financial support for tuition fees, loans or extra local authority help.You may be able to find paid work.It is impossible to claim benefits unless you are disabled or a single parent.
●Access to Learning Fund & repeat/restart with/without attendance.– all home tuition fee rate payers
You may apply for help from the Access to Learning Fundas you will still been enrolled full time but, especially if studying without attendance, the Fund may expect you to find work to support yourself unless your circumstances are unusual.
- Definitions.
► Aegrotat degree: an unclassified degree without honours awarded if a student would have qualified for a degree had it not been for illness or incapacity
► Condonement/Compensation: provided you have performed adequately overall, you may receive a credit for a module you have technically failed. Marks below 30% may not be condoned. Normally only 20 credits per year are eligible except for final years where 40 credits may be condoned.
► Credits & modules: Acredit measures the amount of work for each unit of teaching, learning and assessment. 10 hours = 1 credit,credits = 1 single module. 120 credits allow you to proceed to the next year. You need at least 40% to gain credit for most modules. Exceptions occur eg Pharmacy Practice modules @ 50% and Matthew Boulton Year Zero @ 60%
► Deferred exam: an exam delayed until the next normal exam session
► Module: see Credits and Modules
► Ordinary Degree: (not an option for all courses) an unclassified Intermediate degree ( like a Diploma of Higher Education) for which only 300 credits are needed. An Ordinary degree with merit can be awarded to students of an exceptionally high standard. The rules are complex.
► Pass degree: where you have studied for but failed to reach honours standard and have an overall average of 35% and a specified number of credits
.
► Referred assessment: new assessment in a module without further tuition.
May mean taking exams in the 5 day August/September exam week which occurs no later than 5 weeks prior to the new teaching year.
The maximum mark from a referred exam is 40%.
► Repeat assessment: a new assessment a year later than the original assessments in one or more module(s) which may or may not require you to attend and receive more tuition.The maximum mark from a repeat is 40%
.
► Restart assessment: requires full attendance & the retaking of
all modules.There is no 40% limit on marks gained from a restart.
all modules.There is no 40% limit on marks gained from a restart.
► Special regulations: All courses have specific regulations written for them
► Trailed module:In exceptional circumstances an Exam Board may reduce the normal 120 credits by 20 credits and add them to the next academic year; with the total number of credits needed to achieve the degree remaining the same. This allows you to add missing credits by taking those exams alongside your main exams in the following year. The trailed modules have to be paid for and you may need to pay these additional fees yourself if you are claiming the max tuition fee amount.
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