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Exams & Assessment Assessment, Progression, and Degree Classification

Safety Net What is the Safety Net and what does it mean for undergraduates and students on integrated masters programmes? For undergraduate (UG) and integrated masters (IM) students at all stages, the Safety Net will recognise prior academic achievement of each student through a ‘baseline’ of academic performance. This baseline average will be determined as at the end of Semester 1 of 2019-20 and guarantees that each student’s academic average would not be reduced by undertaking their assessments for the remainder of the academic year, provided that students meet the learning outcomes for their programme by achieving the normal requirements in respect of the amount of credit awarded for their Semester 2 modules. The rationale for the cut-off at Semester 1, is that for marks from Semester 1 of 2019-20, it will be possible to more clearly distinguish them as unaffected by Covid-19; where necessary the marks resulting from Semester 1 will be appropriately considered in light of the impact of Industrial Action following the completion of our processes for assurance, and the confirmation of the marks by the relevant Module Moderation Board and Board of Examiners, using the methods already in place via the emergency guidance. What will happen with Programmes with Accrediting Bodies? It is recognised that there will be a number of programmes both at UG/IM and PGT level with professional accreditation where the requirements of the relevant accrediting bodies do not allow the Safety Net to be applied in whole or in part. In those cases, the University will work with the relevant subject discipline to support them in trying to secure an acceptable approach for the relevant accrediting bodies. Below you will find additional frequently asked questions (FAQs) that provide you with more detailed information about the Safety Net approach. Please do look through these FAQs and see if the answer to your question is included. If not, or if you require more detail, please contact your School. Do these guidelines replace my programme, degree, and modulation regulations? No, they are time-limited for the 2019-20 Academic Year and therefore supplementary to your University programme, degree, and module regulations. So, the regulations and specifications for your degree programme remain in place but are informed by the guidance explained in these FAQs where extenuating and exceptional changes have been made, which includes the implementation of the Safety Net. How does the Safety Net work in practice for my programme? We are currently compiling and processing all the data that we need to produce your provisional baseline average under our Safety Net. This is because each programme is different, has different weightings of modules, and may have accreditation from a professional body (more on this below). We need to take all of this into account, and will then make your individual baseline average available to you the week commencing Monday 27 April 2020. As with all marks, your baseline average will be a provisional mark, which will be confirmed by the Board of Examiners after internal moderation and External Examiner consideration during the week of Monday 6 July 2020 for undergraduate and integrated masters students. For postgraduate taught students, Boards of Examiners will take place between mid-September and mid-November. Your School will be able to confirm the proposed date for the PGT Boards and release of final marks and degree classifications. What is the baseline average for undergraduate and integrated masters students? The baseline average is calculated from the marks from your modules up until the end of Semester 1 of 2019-20. For undergraduate students, the baseline average will be used as your minimum mark so that you will not receive a stage average or degree classification (as appropriate) that is lower than your baseline average. In short, your performance in your Semester 2 assessments can only improve your overall stage average or degree classification in relation to your programme regulations for the 2019-20 academic year; you will not be able to receive an average mark for Semester 2 that is lower than your baseline average at the end of Semester 1. This means that your end of stage average will be the same, or higher, than your Semester 1 average mark. As with all marks, your baseline average will be a provisional mark, which will be confirmed by the Board of Examiners after internal moderation and External Examiner consideration. What is the baseline average for postgraduate taught students? The baseline average is calculated from the marks from your modules up until the end of Semester 1 of 2019-20. For taught postgraduate programmes, when your profile of marks is considered at the close of the academic year, the Board of Examiners will look at both your baseline average and your overall average and make its decisions taking both into account. This is different to the way we will use the undergraduate and integrated masters baseline average. Most taught postgraduate programmes are one year in duration (full-time) and so we have less accumulated information on your academic performance than we do for students taking undergraduate and integrated masters programmes. This means that the baseline average is less valid as a predictor of overall performance at PGT level. We have therefore put other elements in place in the taught postgraduate Safety Net (for example, increasing the number of modules which a student is entitled to be reassessed), to ensure that we support our students on these programmes as effectively as we can. As with all marks, your baseline average will be a provisional mark, which will be confirmed by the Board of Examiners after internal moderation and External Examiner consideration. I am a first-year undergraduate, how will my stage baseline average be calculated? This will be calculated using the Stage 1 marks from Semester 1 of 2019-20 and according to the way in which these are weighted in your programme regulations. As with all marks, your baseline average will be a provisional mark, which will be confirmed by the Board of Examiners after internal moderation and External Examiner consideration. I am a second-year undergraduate, how will my stage baseline average be calculated? This will be calculated using the Stage 2 marks from Semester 1 of 2019-20 and according to the way in which these are weighted in your programme regulations. As with all marks, your baseline average will be a provisional mark, which will be confirmed by the Board of Examiners after internal moderation and External Examiner consideration. I am a third-year undergraduate in my final year, how will my programme baseline average be calculated? This will be calculated using the Stage 2 marks and the Stage 3 marks up until Semester 1 of 2019-20 according to the way in which these are weighted in your programme regulations. As with all marks, your baseline average will be a provisional mark, which will be confirmed by the Board of Examiners after internal moderation and External Examiner consideration. I am a fourth-year undergraduate (for programmes with a fourth year), how will my programme baseline average be calculated? This will be calculated using the Stage 2 marks, the Stage 3 marks, and the Stage 4 marks up until Semester 1 of 2019-20 according to the way in which these are weighted in your programme regulations. As with all marks, your baseline average will be a provisional mark, which will be confirmed by the Board of Examiners after internal moderation and External Examiner consideration. I am on Stage 3 of a programme with four stages (e.g. an integrated masters programme), how will my stage baseline average be calculated? This will be calculated using the stage average for 2019-20. If your programme regulations include Stage 2 in your final degree classification, your 2019-20 stage average will be combined with your Stage 2 average, weighted as in your programme regulations, and then carried forward for degree classification at the end of Stage 4. As with all marks, your baseline average will be a provisional mark, which will be confirmed by the Board of Examiners after internal moderation and External Examiner consideration. I am an External Candidate returning to complete my assessment in Summer 2020, how will my baseline average be calculated? This will be calculated depending on your stage of study and how many previous semesters worth of marks you have. Depending on what stage you are in any assessed material that you submitted and completed during Semester 1 of 2019-20 and before this point will be used to calculate your baseline average so the Board of Examiners can take account of any significant variations between performance across your years of study when making its decision. As with all marks, your baseline average will be a provisional mark, which will be confirmed by the Board of Examiners after internal moderation and External Examiner consideration. I am an Erasmus student from another institution, will my marks at this institution be used for my baseline average? No, different institutions may be taking a different approach and the credit level towards your home degree will be outlined in your home programme regulations. If however, the work you undertake at Newcastle University does count towards your home institution degree then we can show the baseline average on your transcript. As with all marks, your baseline average will be a provisional mark, which will be confirmed by the Board of Examiners after internal moderation and External Examiner consideration. I am currently an Erasmus student from Newcastle University at another institution, will my marks at this institution be used for my baseline average? No, different institutions may be taking a different approach and the credit level towards your Newcastle University degree will be outlined in your degree programme regulations. If however, the work you undertake at that institution that counts towards your degree here at Newcastle University then we can request information from your Erasmus institution on how they have calculated your assessment on your credit bearing modules. As with all marks, your baseline average will be a provisional mark, which will be confirmed by the Board of Examiners after internal moderation and External Examiner consideration. I am a taught postgraduate student on a full-time programme that is one year in length, how will my baseline average be calculated? This will be calculated using all marks from assessed work up to and including Semester 1 of 2019-20. However, we recognise that this may be a small amount of the total of your assessed work that will ultimately be considered, so the Board of Examiners will receive this information and all your other assessment information for the year so it can take account of any significant variations between performance across the three postgraduate semesters when making its decision. I am a taught postgraduate student in my first year of a part-time programme, how will my baseline average be calculated? This will be calculated using all marks from assessed work up to and including Semester 1 of 2019-20. However, we recognise that this may be a small amount of the total of your assessed work that will ultimately to be considered, so the Board of Examiners will receive this information and all your other assessment information for the year so it can take account of any significant variations between performance across both years of your study when making its decision. As with all marks, your baseline average will be a provisional mark, which will be confirmed by the Board of Examiners after internal moderation and External Examiner consideration. I am a taught postgraduate student in my second year of a part-time programme, how will my baseline average be calculated? This will be calculated using all marks from assessed work up to and including Semester 1 of 2019-20. Most likely, this means that there will be more marks from assessed work to consider and the Board of Examiners will receive this information and your other assessment information for the year so it can take account of any significant variations between performance across the three postgraduate semesters when making its decision. As with all marks, your baseline average will be a provisional mark, which will be confirmed by the Board of Examiners after internal moderation and External Examiner consideration. I am a postgraduate research student and some of my modules are taught, will the baseline average be used for these modules? If you are on a research programme that has a taught element (for example, an MLitt or an MRes) then the taught modules will be considered using the baseline average in line with the PGT information set out above. As with all marks, your baseline average will be a provisional mark, which will be confirmed by the Board of Examiners after internal moderation and External Examiner consideration. Unfortunately, I failed my Semester 1 modules does this mean my baseline average will be calculated upon my failed marks? If you have failed your Semester 1 module of 2019-20 then your baseline will be below the pass mark and you will be considered by the Board of Examiners on a case by case basis, however we follow the principle that your Semester 2 marks will not be brought down. In the calculation of the baseline average, what does ‘weighted in your programme regulations’ mean? Each UG, IM and PGT programme has modules that have a weighting. Some are worth 10 credits, some 20, 30, 40, 50 or 60 credits etc and different stages are weighted differently as well. What this means is that the weight or amount of value within the final degree classification can be different for different modules. If you want to know how your modules are weighted you can look for the credit value and the relative weighting of different stages in your degree programme regulations. I am repeating my prior year of study, which year will be used for my benchmark average? If you are repeating a year then the baseline average will consider your current studies for this year and not your first attempt. However, if you have carried any completed marks from modules from that prior year into the repeat-year those will be considered. Do the upcoming Semester 2 assessment marks still count towards my grade? Yes. For undergraduate and integrated masters programmes our Safety Net ensures that if you pass all your remaining modules in your current stage of study, your overall stage or programme average can only be increased, when compared to the average you have achieved by the end of Semester 1 of 2019-20. If your marks in Semester 2 are lower than the average you have achieved by the end of Semester 1 of 2019-20, then we will use the higher average from the end of Semester 1 of 2019-20 to determine your progression or degree classification. For taught postgraduate programmes your marks from assessments from the start of Semester 2 of 2019-20 onwards will count towards your mark, but we will ensure that all Boards of Examiners also receive your baseline average (see above) based on your Semester 1 of 2019-20 marks. The Board of Examiners will consider both, and will make decisions on award and classification taking both into account. Do I still need to pass the modules I am currently studying? And what happens if I fail a module? Yes. You will still need to pass the modules you are currently studying. For all taught programmes to progress from one stage of your programme to another, or to be awarded your degree, you will need to pass each of your modules and your overall stage average meets the normal progression requirement. This is because achieving the pass mark for a module shows that you have achieved the learning outcomes for a module, and achieving the learning outcomes is crucial to ensuring you can be awarded your degree. I am on a taught postgraduate programme and the regulations say that I can only be reassessed on any failed modules up to the value of 40 credits. I am worried that I won’t be able to pass the programme? The University’s regulations for reassessment on taught postgraduate programmes for 2019-20 have now changed; we are now permitting that as of right you can have one reassessment in any and all taught modules that you do not pass at the first attempt. This change to our regulations is for the taught modules only in taught postgraduate programmes. Such resit attempts will be capped at the normal pass mark of 50. What happens if my degree classification decision falls into the area of discretion; for example I am on a borderline between a lower and upper second-class degree (undergraduate and integrated masters), or between a merit and a distinction (taught postgraduate)? The principles of discretion will remain as part of the Board of Examiners considerations; it is worth remembering that a Board of Examiners can only use its discretion to benefit a student (for example to promote from one classification to another) and cannot use it against a student). For more information, see Section I (27) of Newcastle University’s Assessment Regulations. I have a Student Support Plan (SSP), will this be taken into account with the Safety Net? Student Support Plans (SSP) will be considered in the normal way, and it will continue to make adjustments to the teaching and assessment of your modules. The Safety Net does not replace your SSP, it is an addition to the normal procedures for all students. So, if you have a SSP, you will have the Safety Net and the recommendations from your SSP. My assessment is being marked as pass/fail. How will this be used in the calculation of my module mark and baseline average? Whilst there will be a formula based upon the weight and mark for each module, where modules have a pass or fail outcome they will also be assigned a formula to reflect this so you are not disadvantaged in your baseline average. My programme is accredited by a professional body. How do I know if the Safety Net applies to me? When you applied for entry to your programme, the information provided to you by the University will have included any professional accreditations your programme has from an accrediting body. Information on these accreditations will also have been included in your Degree Programme Handbook (or equivalent). The University’s programmes are accredited by a wide range of accrediting body, and schools and the University have been liaising extensively with these accrediting bodies. Several of these professional regulatory bodies have already confirmed that they are willing to consider supporting the type of measures the University has agreed to include in our Safety Net but some professional regulatory bodies have not yet confirmed their position, or have told us that this is not possible. There are also some accrediting bodies who have yet to confirm either way, and we are continuing to work with those bodies to get confirmation of their stance on our Safety Net. If you are studying an accredited programme, further details will be confirmed to you as soon as possible following discussion with the relevant accrediting bodies – this communication will be sent to you by your School. Students on accredited programmes are asked to remember that these decisions are not in the University’s control, but the University will do what we can to support your interests. My programme includes a compulsory placement/year abroad how will this be recognised? This will depend upon whether your compulsory placement/year abroad carries a numerical mark, is a pass or fail mark, or is a record of engagement that does not feature in your final mark profile. If the compulsory placement/year abroad carries a numerical mark or a pass/fail mark then your engagement and any assessment up until Semester 1 of 2019-20 will be considered within the calculations of a baseline average in-line with the credit weighting of the placement/year abroad as set out in your degree regulations. If your compulsory placement/year abroad does not carry a mark that is recognised within your degree programme regulations, then normal process will apply and your transcript will show your record of achievement in regard to this placement/year abroad in the normal way.

Your assessment questions Your assessment questions Will I still have assessments to complete for my modules? All students will have assessments in the third term (Semester 2), with postgraduate taught students undertaking assessments in Semester 3 of this academic year. The type and format of course or module assessment may need to change, due to the situation and need to avoid face-to-face assessment. You will be informed about all relevant changes to your assessments by your academic School no later than Monday 27 April 2020. Will I still have exams? There will be no face-to-face invigilated exams for the remainder of the 2019-20 academic year. You will still have assessments to complete, as alternative forms of assessment will be put in place for all students. Your School has chosen one of the two following options for delivery of exam-based assessments that were scheduled for each module in the remainder of this academic year: Option 1 - An alternative assessment: This will replace the exams currently scheduled with a piece of coursework. Where you are being asked to undertake an alternative assessment, the timing of the release and submission date for this will be communicated to you by your School no later than Monday 27 April 2020. Option 2 - A 24 hour take-home exam: This will replace the face-to-face exams currently scheduled with an exam that you undertake at home. Where you are being asked to undertake a 24 hour take-home exam, the date of this exam will be published by the University in our exams timetable no later than Monday 27 April 2020. For both option 1 and option 2, assessments will be made available to you to download through the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), and you will submit your answers through the VLE. The approaches proposed by your School are currently being approved by the Chair of the Faculty Education Committee (or their deputy) and the type of assessment you are required to undertake will be communicated to you by your School no later than Monday 27 April 2020. You should regularly check your University email and access the teaching materials and information on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) to ensure you don’t miss information relating to your forthcoming assessments. How will my work be marked? Will the marking take into account the challenges I’ve been dealing with whilst doing my assessments? All marking will continue to comply with the University’s rigorous marking and moderation procedures that are externally scrutinised. We have changed assessments where needed, to make sure that it is possible for you to complete them, taking into account the circumstances, and ensuring they can be marked in the usual way. This includes continuing to adhere to the University’s Assessment Irregularities Procedure, which promotes good academic conduct and maintains the academic integrity of our programmes. Assessments that are submitted online may be checked for potential assessment irregularities using an online similarity checker such as Turnitin. Some of my assessments have been changed – how is that fair to me? The staff in your School will take into account the impact of the disruption to your learning opportunities, and will make an academic judgment about what it is ‘reasonable’ to expect you to be able to complete an assessment on, despite the disruption. This means that the assessment may be a bit different from what you were expecting at the start of your module, but on the basis of the learning opportunities you have had, still allows you to show that you have met your learning outcomes and can progress or graduate. What will be the impact on assessments that normally involve face-to-face elements – for example presentations, practicals, labs, fieldwork and group work? As for other forms of assessment, there will be alternatives put in place that take into account the current circumstances. These types of assessments with face-to-face elements will not be able to happen as planned, but the alternative assessments will test the same knowledge and understanding. The alternative approaches proposed by your School have been approved by the Chair of the Faculty Education Committee (or their deputy) and the type of assessment you are required to undertake will be communicated to you by your School no later than Monday 27 April 2020. You should ensure you are regularly checking your University email and accessing the teaching materials and information on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE). What will happen with my research project/dissertation which needs primary research/field work/lab work/experimental data etc. which cannot now be completed? The University understands that your research project or dissertation may have been planned to require in-person research and data collection that is not possible in this period of remote learning. The impact of this will be different depending on your stage of study, level of study, discipline and point of progress through the project. As such, there will be different ways of addressing this issue, and it will depend on the specific project/dissertation topic. If your ability to complete the planned project/dissertation is affected by the current emergency situation, you should contact your project supervisor(s) in the first instance. If your project/dissertation supervisor is unavailable please get in touch with your Degree Programme Director for guidance. I am taking 2019-20 as an External Candidate and have not been on campus this semester. What do the changes to the assessment mean for me? You are not expected to return to Newcastle or the University to complete your assessment(s). Any changes made to an assessment will apply to all students taking that module, even if you have been an External Candidate during 2019-20. If you were due to undertake assessment for a module that has not run in 2019-20 and it is not possible to deliver the original assessment as planned, an alternative assessment will be put in place for you. Your School will update you regarding your assessments so please check your University email account regularly. If you have any queries regarding your specific situation, please contact your Degree Programme Director. I have heard that some Universities are not requiring first year undergraduates to complete any further assessment. Why is Newcastle continuing with assessment for these students? There are a wide range of different approaches being taken by universities across the UK, with many continuing with assessment for all stages. Each university, like our own, is taking difficult decisions, which reflect their particular circumstances and priorities. For Newcastle University, a priority is your engagement with your learning, and assessment and feedback is an important part of this. Although the first year of undergraduate programmes do not usually count towards the final classification of your degree, it plays a crucial role in helping to prepare you to succeed in Stage 2 and subsequent years. What is a take-home exam? A take-home exam is an alternative form of assessment in which you are given the question(s) and information about the assessment (including how long you are expected to spend on completing it) at the beginning of a 24 hour period, and you need to submit before the end of the 24 hours. Questions will be released through the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) and you will submit your work through the VLE when it is complete. How long am I expected to spend answering a take-home exam? Take-home exams must be completed in the specified time period (usually 24 hours). There will be no fixed duration but the expectation is that the paper will take approximately the same length of time for you to complete as the original planned examination. Your School will provide you with information on how long you are expected to spend on completing the assessment. You are not expected to, and it is not advisable to, work on the assessment constantly for the full 24 hour period. 24 hours provides more than sufficient time to complete the assessment set; the assessment itself will be designed to be worked on for a much shorter period in line with the length of a standard exam sitting. The reason for adopting a 24 hour period is to allow all students, regardless of the time-zone in which they are completing the assessments, to have sufficient day-time hours to complete the work and submit it before the deadline. What happens if I usually have extra time and rest breaks? If you usually have adjustments such as extra time and rest breaks as part of a Student Support Plan (SSP), you can build these in to how long you spend completing your assessment within the specified time period (usually 24 hours). Your School will provide you with guidance on how long you are expected to work on the assessment for. You can spend longer than the expected time to complete the assessment to accommodate your individual requirements but you are expected to submit your answers by the specified deadline. Will I be able to use my notes and other materials to complete a take-home exam? The 24 hour take-home exams will not be invigilated and you will have access to information and materials. As such, the design of questions may have been changed to move away from recall-based tasks, to questions that require you to demonstrate how you use and understand information you have learned. You may hear these exams in which you can access information and materials being referred to as ‘open book’. Will take-home exams that are online be timed? Take-home exams must be completed in a specified period (usually 24 hours) in your own time. The exam paper will be released through the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) at a specific time as published in the exam timetable, and the coversheet on the exam paper will tell you the deadline (date and time) by which you need to submit your answer(s). There will be no fixed duration for how long in the 24 hour period you spend working on your answer(s), but the expectation is that the paper will take approximately the same length of time as the original planned exam (including adjustment for Student Support Plans). My assessment is now going to be an online test, what does that mean? Online tests conducted via Blackboard, Canvas or NUMBAS are a type of take-home exam. They allow us to set short knowledge-type questions such as multiple choice questions (MCQs) that can be automatically marked and offers an opportunity to test your understanding and knowledge. Online tests will not be used for long written answer/essay questions. During online tests you will have access to information and materials and these will not be invigilated. Online tests will be available for a specified time period (usually 24 hours), however, like other take-home exams, you will not be expected to work on the assessment constantly for the full time period. Will the Semester 2 exam timetable stay the same? We will endeavour to stick to the original examination timetable wherever possible; however, we may need to make a number of adjustments. We will publish the final exams timetable no later than Monday 27 April 2020. Please continue to access your Newcastle email account. Where can I find the exam timetable for the 24 hour take-home exams? The date, start time and duration of your take-home exams will be detailed in the centrally co-ordinated Timetable published by the Examinations Office. The Summer 2020 assessment period will run from Monday 18 May to Friday 5 June 2020. You will be contacted once the timetable is available so please continue to access your Newcastle email account. Could I have two or more take-home examinations in a single 24 hour period? We will work to ensure that this does not happen as far as possible but some overlap may not be avoidable. We will be informing students of the timing of the release of the assessment and deadline for submission in due course. Please continue to access your Newcastle email account regularly to check for updated information. If you have overlapping take-home assessments remember you are not expected to, and it is not advisable to, work on the assessment constantly for the 24 hour period. 24 hours provides more than sufficient time to complete the assessments that are set; the assessment itself will be designed to be worked on for a much shorter period in line with the length of a standard exam sitting. We have heard some other universities are using 48 hours for take-home exams. Why is Newcastle only giving me a day? The 24 hour window is to give all students time to complete the assessment effectively – the assessment itself is designed to be worked on for a much shorter period in line with the length of a standard exam sitting. You are not expected to, and it is not advisable to, work on the assessment constantly for the 24-hour period. 24 hours provides more than sufficient time to complete the assessments that are set at Newcastle University in this situation. A 24 hour period allows all students, regardless of the time-zone in which they are completing the assessments, to have sufficient day-time hours to complete the work and submit it before the deadline. If you were to be given a longer period, for example 48 hours, this would make it more difficult to avoid overlap with other assessments. I’m in a different time-zone - how will 24 hour take-home exams work for me? Most take-home exams will be offered in a 24 hour period. This will allow you to complete the exams at a suitable time, wherever you may be. The 24 hour period exists to allow all students to engage with the assessment no matter in which time zone you are living. There is no expectation that these assessments should take longer than ‘normal’ exams. Your School will provide you with information as to how long you are expected to spend completing each assessment. My assessment is now an alternative assessment – what does that mean? An alternative assessment replaces the original exam(s) with a piece of coursework. The format of the alternative assessment is likely to vary from the original exam and will depend on the topic being assessed. For my alternative assessment, when will I find out what the assessment involves and what the submission deadline is? Your School will provide you with details of the format of your alternative assessment, along with the submission deadline no later than Monday 27 April 2020. Questions will be released through the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) and you will submit your work through the VLE when it is complete. Could I have more than one alternative assessment to be working on at the same time? If your School has chosen to change the original examination(s) to alternative assessment(s), you may have to complete a number of assessments at that same time, as you would with other coursework tasks. I am a Research Masters student (eg MRes, MLaw, MLitt, MMus) and want to know how you are going to support me to complete my studies? We want to support you to complete your studies in line with your original timetable, as far as that is possible. In terms of any taught elements of your programme, the Safety Net approach explained here will apply. In relation to your research dissertation, this may require adjustments, and we will provide you with appropriate support to consider how this can be achieved. Your Faculties/Schools will be in contact with you to discuss your research dissertation and how adjustments may be possible. We aim to minimise the number of students whose completion of their research dissertation is delayed, however, there may be instances where this not possible and in these cases, we are considering a range of potential options to enable you to complete your programme in order that the quality of your research dissertation and the integrity of your overall qualification, will be maintained. Faculties/programmes will be corresponding with you directly, if they have not already done so, regarding programme-specific requirement.

Submission & Feedback Submission & Feedback

Submission & Feedback

I need to adjust to online learning, will my deadlines for assessment be changed to reflect this? This has been a period of change for everybody at the University and we acknowledge that this will have required adjusting to new patterns and forms of learning. As part of the adjustments, staff are looking at where it is possible to reduce the amount of assessment, whilst still ensuring that you can meet the learning outcomes for your modules and programmes. Extending deadlines aren’t always the right answer to a difficult situation, as there is a need to consider where you are in the module, the overall workload across your programme and its distribution and changing these may have a negative overall impact. In consultation with Faculty Deans, Academic Schools may make adjustments to the deadlines for assessed work, as part of the broader changes to teaching, learning and assessment in this situation. Any changes to assessment, including to deadlines, will be communicated to you. You should ensure you are regularly checking your university email and information on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE). Schools will have looked at this and adjusted assessments at the level of the module. If your individual circumstances mean you need to request an adjustment over and above this, you can submit a Personal Extenuating Circumstances form (PEC) through S3P with details of your circumstances and the impact this has had. Have the timescales for me receiving feedback been changed? Recognising the significant pressures resulting from the current emergency situation, the Pro-Vice Chancellor for Education has authorised Faculty Deans to extend feedback turnaround times by five days (from 20 working days to 25 working days) where necessary. This has not been a blanket approach, and has only been implemented where appropriate. Where there have been changes, these will be communicated to you by your School. Where a School have chosen to replace an exam with an alternative assessment, the University’s requirement for the provision of feedback to students will be as for an exam (and not as for a piece of coursework). I am an undergraduate or integrated masters student, when will the marks for my remaining modules be released? The Boards of Examiners for undergraduate and integrated masters programmes will now be held between Monday 6 and Friday 10 July 2020. If you are a final year student completing your degree in the Summer 2020 assessment period, the deadline to release all final year module results and degree classifications will now be Tuesday 14 July 2020. If you are in Stage 1, Stage 2 or Stage 3 of a four-year degree, the deadline to release all non-final year module results and progress decisions will now be Friday 17 July 2020. I am a postgraduate taught student, when will the marks for my remaining modules be released? For postgraduate taught students, you will receive your interim module marks by Friday 17 July 2020. The Boards of Examiners for postgraduate taught programmes will take place as usual from mid-September to mid-November 2020. Your School will be able to confirm the proposed date for the PGT Boards and release of final marks and degree classifications. What happens if I fail a module in the Summer 2020 assessment period? As outlined in section J of the Regulations for Taught Programmes, if you are an undergraduate or integrated masters student, you have the right to one reassessment in some or all failed module(s) that you do not pass at the first attempt. The mark for reassessed undergraduate and integrated masters modules is capped at the module pass mark. If you are a postgraduate taught student, we have changed the reassessment regulations for 2019-20 and you are now permitted, as of right, to one reassessment in any and all taught modules that you do not pass at the first attempt (See FAQ 5m and 9). The mark for reassessed postgraduate taught modules is capped at 50. If you undertook your assessments in the Summer assessment period and need to undertake any reassessments, you will take these during Monday 17 August to Friday 4 September 2020. You will be contacted by your School following the Summer Board of Examiners regarding the format of any reassessments. If I need to be reassessed or undertake my assessments for the first time in August 2020, when will I find out my marks? If you undertake assessment in August 2020 (either as reassessment or as a first attempt), the deadline for entry and release of module results and progress decisions is Thursday 17 September 2020.

Graduation Graduation

Graduation Award of Degrees and Graduation

How will the University continue to award degree classification and make decisions about progression from stage to stage of study fairly? The assessments that you have in Semester 2, and Semester 3 for postgraduate taught students, may have changed from what was planned, however, these will continue to assess the module and programme learning outcomes. The format may be different but they will test the same knowledge, skills and understanding. Assessments will be marked using the same marking scales, and comparable assessment criteria. Assessment criteria will only be modified if a change to the format of the assessment requires this. The processes for marking and moderation will continue to ensure that the assessment process is fair and equitable. This will be at every stage of study, including final degree award classifications. The University has several ways of ensuring this: Internal Module Moderation - marking on all modules is ‘internally moderated’. This means that another member of staff with relevant expertise looks at a sample of the marking, to check that the marking is fair against the assessment criteria.

External Moderation of Marks - as part of the normal Board of Examiners process, a sample of work from your modules will also be considered by an External Examiner – a respected and experienced member of staff in your field of study, from another Higher Education Institution. They will be familiar with our normal regulations and are there to help confirm that we are following our own regulations, and that the marking on our programmes is fair. The External Examiner(s) will look at a sample of the work from each of the modules that make up your programme, and will be given any information they need from the internal moderation process, and from the Module Moderation Board process. The Module Moderation Board are responsible for the moderation of module marks by reviewing performance across modules to identify any anomalies or data problems. External Examiners either endorse the provisional marks from all semesters during the academic year so that they can be presented to the Board of Examiners, or request that additional work is done to remedy anything that they consider problematic about the marks before they are presented to the Board. The Board of Examiners will take into account the above processes and any PEC or Covid-19 Impact Forms when making decisions on progression and award. The Board has discretion to be able to make judgments about candidates where they do not meet the formal criteria. For example, in many of our programmes, students with just one module that is a ‘near miss’ fail will find that this module is automatically ‘compensated’, i.e. it is considered a pass, and the student is permitted to progress into the next stage. In a different way, the Boards of Examiners are required to consider the case for discretion for all students who finish their studies with an average that is in the borderline area, just below the next classification up (so for example, a final average of 58 or 59, will be considered for promotion to the upper second class band). In academic years where there has been significant disruption, and there are modules where it has not been possible to mitigate the impact on student learning outcomes in full, the Board of Examiners will have that information available in case a student is being considered for use of discretion. Do I have to physically attend a graduation ceremony to graduate? No, you do not need to attend a congregation ceremony to be awarded your qualification and graduate. The qualification from the University is awarded when the agreed by the Board of Examiners, there is no need to physically attended a graduation ceremony. Hard copies of Degree parchments will be posted out whilst secure and verified electronic degree parchments and HEARs will be issued via the Digitary CORE portal. Further information and instructions will be issued in due course.

Online Learning & Student Support Online Learning & Student Support

Online Learning & Student Support

Covid-19: Impact on my learning How can I register the way in which my learning on a module or across my programme has been impacted by the changes to teaching and assessment due to Covid-19? From Wednesday 18 March 2020, the University moved to remote delivery and assessment of all its programmes, in response to the Covid-19 situation. The delivery of the teaching for all modules and programmes has had to change significantly to adapt to this situation. This is also the case for much of the assessment that was planned for the rest of the 2019-20 academic year. We recognise though that there may have been circumstances that have limited the way in which we have been able to provide you with alternative teaching and learning opportunities, within the new remote delivery we (along with all other UK universities) have had to adopt. The move to remote teaching happened very quickly, and it was not possible to put all the things in place to support remote learning that we might have preferred. For example, e-book availability might not have been possible to scale up in such a short time period. The University has a strategy for collecting information from staff about these situations, but if you wish to make us aware of disruption on one or more of your modules, you can let us know using the Covid-19 Impact Form. This online form is not intended to gather information on where your teaching and learning opportunities are different from what you would experience in normal circumstances, because we already have other ways of collating that sort of information. It is for recording things that have happened to your module and programme, rather than to you as an individual. We will launch the new Covid-19 Impact Form, along with some short guidance on its use, during the week commencing Monday 27 April 2020.

Personal Circumstances and Student Support including Student Support Plans (SSP) What if I have individual circumstances that affect my ability to study remotely over and above the general changes? We know that many of you face individual challenges in continuing to study and undertake your assessment during the Covid-19 situation. For example you may fall ill, or you may have increased and demanding caring responsibilities (these are just some examples – it is not intended to be a comprehensive list). We recognise that it is important that where you experience such specific individual challenges, these may not be fully addressed by our Safety Net. The University already has a Personal Extenuating Circumstances (PEC) process that allows you to bring to our attention such individual circumstances, so that these can be considered when decisions on your progression, degree award or classification are made. We will continue to give you the opportunity to submit PEC requests. Recognising the extraordinary circumstances of the Covid-19 situation, we will revise our PEC process to make it simpler and more straightforward. This will include not requiring additional supporting evidence for PEC claims that relate to Covid-19, or PEC claims relating to any health-related issue. We recognise that in this emergency situation the types of people/bodies who typically provide such evidence (for example medical evidence) will rightly be focusing all their efforts on fighting Covid-19. We also do not want to increase the pressure on you, our students, by placing additional demands of gathering together supporting evidence. I have a Student Support Plan. Will this be affected by the Covid-19 situation and the changes to assessments? Our intention is that all of our arrangements for assessment in the current Covid-19 situation, including the Safety Net, are inclusive and take account of the diversity of students at the University. We know though that they may introduce environmental or technological difficulties that are not there under usual University exam conditions. If you have exam adjustments already in place due to disabilities, please speak to your Disability Adviser directly if you have any concerns about how the new arrangements apply to you. Your School will release further information on assessment no later than Monday 27 April 2020. I am expecting and/or I need an exam adjustment as the result of a disability. What should I do? The University continues to do all it can to support students with disabilities. Contact your Disability Adviser if you already have exam adjustments agreed and have questions about whether they will still be necessary/still be in place. If you have recently submitted evidence of a disability, please contact Disability Team for further advice via email: Disability.advisor@newcastle.ac.uk I have an intermittent internet connection. Can I download the exam, work offline and then submit the assessment when I have completed it? Take-home exams will be available via the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE). It is possible for you to download the question paper, complete it offline and upload your submission to VLE once finished. Accessing the exam and uploading your submission will require an internet connection. Further guidance on how to submit your assignment can be found at: https://www.ncl.ac.uk/ltds/assets/documents/guides/Turnitin-How-to-submit-your-assignment.pdf If you experience difficulties, please use the contact details provided on your assessment instructions for further guidance. If I lose my internet connection, will I lose my work? Where possible, you are advised to download the exam paper, complete the questions offline, and upload the completed questions. For some exams, for example Blackboard tests, you may need to work online. If you experience difficulties, please use the contact details provided on your assessment instructions for further guidance. How can I alter the appearance of a take-home exam (e.g. screen resolution, colours, font type, font size, brightness)? Resources are available for staff to provide guidance on making assessments accessible for all students. Students with current Student Support Plans will be able to use their own pre-installed assistive technology when preparing assessment submissions and completing Blackboard tests delivered through the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE). For students with visual impairments, Windows Magnifier is available and you can modify, and save custom display settings. For all students, including those with visual impairments and dyslexia, Microsoft has a range of Learning Tools built into Office 365 apps. There is a range of software that you can access as students to support your studies, including full access to the Microsoft Office 365 suite of tools (which all students can download for free). For advice on the software provision that is available to you as a student, visit http://go.ncl.ac.uk/itservice/softwareforstudents If your request is for software which is essential for you to be able to complete an assessment but you are unable to download and install it or it won’t run on your device, please log a request via https://nuservice.ncl.ac.uk/ Can I handwrite my answers and then enter them electronically when I am ready? If you wish to use some of this time to handwrite your answers and then enter them electronically, you can do this. I prefer or need to handwrite my answers and find the glare from a computer screen affects my disability/medical condition. Is there an alternative to online assessment? Our intention is that all of our arrangements for assessment in the current Covid-19 situation, including our Safety Net, are inclusive and take account of the diversity of students at the University. We know though that they may introduce environmental or technological difficulties that are not there under usual University exam conditions. If you need to or would prefer to handwrite your answers, you can do so. Microsoft Office Lens allows you capture information and upload images to a range of packages including Microsoft OneNote, Word and PowerPoint, and you can also save them as PDF files. You have access to Lens as part of the Office 365 package. If you have exam adjustments already in place due to disabilities, please speak to your Disability Adviser directly if you have any concerns about how the new arrangements apply to you. Your School will release further information on assessment no later than Monday 27 April 2020. What should I do if things go wrong during the assessment and I think I have been disadvantaged? Is there someone I can contact for advice? Information on who to contact in the case of something going wrong during an assessment will be clearly stated on the take-home exam instructions. We will do what we can to support you in addressing these types of problems. If you still feel that you have been disadvantaged despite this support, then you can submit a Personal Extenuating Circumstances (PEC) to tell us how you think you were disadvantaged and what effect you think this had on your performance in the assessment. Will I have the option of resitting the online assessment if I feel I have been disadvantaged? As outlined in section J of the Regulations for Taught Programmes, if you are an undergraduate or integrated masters student, you have the right to one reassessment in some or all failed module(s) that you do not pass at the first attempt. The mark for reassessed undergraduate and integrated masters modules is capped at the module pass mark. If you are a postgraduate taught student, we have changed the reassessment regulations for 2019-20 and you are now permitted, as of right, to one reassessment in any and all taught modules that you do not pass at the first attempt. The mark for reassessed postgraduate taught modules is capped at 50. As part of the University’s existing Personal Extenuating Circumstances (PEC) process, students can request to set aside previous attempt(s) of a module. For example, due to their circumstances, following completing an assessment, a student may request to take their assessment(s) as a first attempt at the next normal or future occasion i.e. your mark will not be capped. We are revising our PEC process to make it simpler and more straightforward, including not requiring additional supporting evidence for PEC claims that relate to Covid-19, or PEC claims relating to any health-related issue, although retrospective PECs after marks are released will not be accepted. I cannot sit the assessment at home (for example because of the study environment or because of caring responsibilities). What can I do? We know that many of you face individual challenges in continuing to study and undertake your assessments during the Covid-19 situation. We recognise that it is important that where you experience such specific individual challenges, these may not be fully addressed by our Safety Net. The University already has a Personal Extenuating Circumstances (PEC) process that allows you to bring to our attention such individual circumstances, so that these can be considered when decisions on your progression, degree award or classification are made. We will continue to give you the opportunity to submit PEC claims. Recognising the extraordinary circumstances of the Covid-19 situation, we will revise our PEC process to make it simpler and more straightforward. This will include not requiring additional supporting evidence for PEC claims that relate to Covid-19, or PEC claims relating to any health-related issue. We recognise that in this emergency situation the types of people/bodies who typically provide such evidence (for example medical evidence) will rightly be focusing all their efforts on fighting Covid-19. We also do not want to increase the pressure on you, our students by placing additional demands of gathering together supporting evidence. Can I take a leave of absence/interruption of studies because of the impact that Covid-19 is having on my studies and learning opportunities? As the University has moved all teaching and assessment online for the remainder of academic year of 2019-20, you will be able to continue your learning and teaching remotely and progress with your academic studies without requiring to take longer t\o complete this year, or to complete your degree programme overall. As part of the Safety Net, you can opt to defer all of your outstanding Semester 2 assessments to the August 2020 assessment period. However, in light of the current situation and changes to the delivery of teaching and learning opportunities, you may wish to interrupt your studies, and take a formal period of leave. If this is the case, please firstly discuss your options with your Degree Programme Director to ensure that this is the most appropriate course of action for you. If, after consideration of your options, you feel that you would prefer to take a break from your studies, you can choose to take a leave of absence/interruption of studies for a set period, and return next year, for example, at the start of the second semester in January 2021. It will not be possible for you to return in Semester 1 (September 2020) to undertake and complete Semester 2 modules. We are releasing information as quickly as we can on the revised arrangements for assessments in 2019-20. Some of this information will not be available until early into the new term (for example your baseline average). We would encourage you wherever possible to wait until you have all this information before submitting a request to interrupt your studies, so that you can make a fully informed decision on whether to request an interruption. Should I consider deferring my remaining 2019-20 assessments? We have put in place a large number of measures that are intended to support you to continue to learn and be assessed in the Summer Term. These include: Reviewing our Summer Term assessments, halting face-to-face examinations and where necessary putting in place appropriate alternative assessments.

Introducing our Safety Net.

Revising the Personal Extenuating Circumstances (PEC) process to make it easier you to tell us about specific individual circumstances that have affected your assessment (and your preparation for assessment).

Introducing a Covid-19 Impact Form to allow you to tell us when there have been circumstances where your modules have been affected. We recognise though that you may feel that your specific individual circumstances will mean that you are still not in a position to undertake your remaining 2019-20 assessments and so we have changed the deferral process. How have the processes for deferring my assessment changed? We are giving you the opportunity to defer your first attempt at ALL assessments within the Summer 2020 assessment period to the August 2020 assessment period (which starts on Monday 17 August 2020). You will be asked to submit these requests through an online form rather than the PEC process. There will be no requirement for supporting evidence, and all requests will be approved. The online deferral form will be available from Monday 4 May 2020, so that you can make an informed decision on whether to defer your assessments, taking into account the information that will be made available to you the week commencing Monday 27 April 2020 (including your provisional baseline average). The deferral form will remain open up to and including Friday 15 May 2020. Will there be any consequences if I request to defer all of my Summer 2020 assessments? Deferring your assessments is a big decision, with important consequences. In considering such a decision, you will need to think about your individual circumstances. You will also need to think about the following when making your decision: These ‘pre-approved’ deferral requests are only available if you are seeking to defer your first attempt for ALL your remaining assessments . If you wish to request to defer some but not all assessments, you will need to submit a PEC form setting out your reason for making the request and each form will be considered on a case-by-case basis by the PEC committee.

. If you wish to request to defer some but not all assessments, you will need to submit a PEC form setting out your reason for making the request and each form will be considered on a case-by-case basis by the PEC committee. If you defer your first attempt to the August 2020 assessment period, you will undertake the same form of assessment as other students on your modules did in the Summer Term . In order to ensure fairness for all students across a module we will not be reverting to the ‘normal’ type of assessment in the August assessment period. In particular, you should note that the University will not be conducting face-to-face invigilated examinations in the August 2020 assessment period.

. In order to ensure fairness for all students across a module we will not be reverting to the ‘normal’ type of assessment in the August assessment period. In particular, you should note that the University will not be conducting face-to-face invigilated examinations in the August 2020 assessment period. If you defer all your assessments to the August 2020 assessment period, you will still be entitled to one reassessment for any failed modules in line with the University’s regulations and subject to any additional normal regulations for your specific programme. If you are an undergraduate or integrated masters student and fail more than 20 credits you will be entitled to reassessment in all failed modules, but you may be required to take a year out of your studies and undertake your reassessment as an external student during the 2020-21 academic year – this is in line with University regulations 2019-20. You need to think very carefully about whether to request to defer all your assessments, taking all these issues and your own personal circumstances into account. If you have any queries as to whether you should defer your Summer 2020 assessments, speak to your Degree Programme Director. If I choose to defer all my assessments, will I still be working on the same coursework assessments but to a different deadline for submission? No, if you defer your assessment a new coursework assessment will normally be set for you to complete by the new deadline. If I decide to defer my Summer 2020 assessments, when in August will I take these and receive my marks? The August assessment period runs from Monday 17 August to Friday 4 September 2020. If you undertake assessment as a first attempt in August 2020, the deadline for entry and release of module results, progress decisions and degree classifications is Thursday 17 September 2020.