Academic Regulations Guide for Taught Courses

1. Academic Services Division

2. Progression and Award Regulations for Taught CoursesRegistryAcademic Services Division Chris Bexton, PG Registry Manager Ian Hamley, UG Registry Manager

3. Objective of Session • Undergraduate Regulations • Postgraduate Taught Regulations • Extenuating Circumstances

4. Undergraduate Regulations - Progression • September 2004 onwards • Qualifying Year, Part I and Part II • 120 credits per stage • Pass mark = 40% (normally) • Remember the Supplementary Regulations too! • What happens at the end of a stage…

6. Undergraduate Regulations - Awards • 3 models – Arithmetic Mean, Ordinal Scale & Threshold • Arithmetic Mean is the most common • Parts I/II/III weighted according to programme specification • Final weighted average equates to a degree classification: • 1 – 70%+ • 2.1 – 60% - 69% • 2.2 – 50% - 59% • 3 – 40% - 49%

7. Undergraduate Regulations - Awards • Borderlines: • 3 – 39% • 2.2 – 49% • 2.1 – 59% • 1 – 68% or 69% - Programme Spec defines • 26b – allows Examiners discretion if the final mark is deemed “unrepresentative of normal performance” • Classifications published in the Atrium (PB) & on the Portal

8. Postgraduate Regulations • Introduced from 2006/7 onwards • Pass mark - Master’s level 50%, PG Dip/Cert level 40% • Compensation possible if passed modules worth at least 80 credits (or 40 credits for students on Postgraduate Certificate courses), and have a weighted average for taught stage of at least 50% with no module marks of less than 40% (a weighted average of at least 40% with no module marks of less than 30% for Postgraduate Diploma and Certificate students) unless programmespecifications state that module marks for up to 20 credits can be below 40% • Supplementary regulations will state where modules are non-compensatable

9. Postgraduate Regulations • Progression hurdles in some regulations • Schools have choice over timing of reassessments • Resit marks used for progression and overall award, not classification • Courses with non-standard starts; notify recommendations when available

10. University Progression, Compensation and Reassessment for Postgraduate Taught Courses

11. Postgraduate Regulations - classification • Regulation 22: • Postgraduate Masters, Diploma and Certificates will be awarded with: • Merit to students who achieve a final credit-weighted mark of at least 60% • with Distinction to students who achieve a final credit-weighted mark of at least 70%. Programme specifications may, though, additionally state any or all of the following: • a mark of at least 70% must be gained in the dissertation/project stage for a Distinction to be awarded, • a credit-weighted mark of at least 70% must be gained in the taught stage for a Distinction to be awarded, • an award of Merit is not available.

12. Extenuating Circumstances • Student to demonstrate ‘sufficient cause’… presence of circumstances under which it would be unreasonable to expect [the student] to have attempted the assessment. • Quality Manual, Assessment Regulations

13. Extenuating Circumstances • Third party evidence: • Independent and reliable source • Original and in English • Timely (not retrospective) • Explains underperformance • 7 working days • Extenuating circumstances consideration meetings

14. Contact Details Registry: http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/academic-office/studentregistry/ Email: studentregistry@nottingham.ac.uk Location: E Floor, Portland Building, University Park