Assessment

Implications of Failing to Meet These Requirements

Failure to comply with these module requirements will result in failing the module with no right to reassessment with a grade of 0 (when missing too many tutorials or exercise classes, except where approved by the appropriate level coordinator) and the grade will be capped at 3.9 if your coursework mark is less than 4.

In 2024-25, we have relaxed the implication of achieving less than 4 in the exam component. If your exam mark is less than 4 but your weighted average of coursework and exam is at least 4, your grade will be capped at 6.9 and you will be given another chance to pass the module at Reassessment.

Examples where grades are capped at 3.9 and 6.9 are shown in the table above at Module Grades.

Some modules also specify other compulsory elements including, but not limited to, coursework. It is very important that students check the details for each of their modules, specified on the module pages.

General Requirements

Students may use and are strongly encouraged to come into the School and use any of the School Labs physically where it is easier to talk to and get to know your peers and receive support. It is also the case that you must ensure that code submissions compile and run on School lab machines, unless otherwise instructed in the coursework specification.

Students may use and are strongly encouraged to come into the School and use any of the School Computer Labs physically where it is easier to talk to and get to know your peers and receive support. It is also the case that you must ensure that code submissions compile and run on School lab PCs or teaching servers, unless otherwise instructed in the coursework specification.

The lab PCs provide all of the software required for practical work on CS modules.

The School provides a resilient storage service for files stored in a user’s network home directories.

If you are working on your own computer, you are required to backup your work regularly and at the very least every 24 hours. As a registered student, you have access to OneDrive via Microsoft 365 which may suffice for many smaller projects. CS network home directories are accessible via SSH on the teaching servers, from the University network. Distributed version control is another option for backing-up work.

Coursework Submission

Most coursework is submitted electronically via MMS, the University’s web-based module management system.

It is the student’s responsibility to check that each submission has been successful, indicated by an automated email receipt from MMS, and that the correct piece of coursework has been submitted. Students are strongly advised to re-download their submission and check that it is complete and pertains to the correct assignment. No claims of submission without evidence of a receipt are considered. In the case of a technical problem preventing submission, and only in such cases, a student may email their coursework to the appropriate tutor or lecturer as evidence of timely completion. It is then the student’s responsibility to submit the coursework to MMS when feasible, and to request the coordinator to waive the lateness penalty.

All submitted work should include the student’s ID number, but not their name, to facilitate blind marking.

All coursework marks returned via MMS are provisional until endorsed by the official Module Board, which includes the External Examiner.

Coursework Extensions

Extensions to deadlines are only granted in cases where a student’s ability to complete coursework has been significantly affected by extenuating factors such as:

• failure of necessary software, hardware or services provided by the School.
• significant personal or medical circumstances documented through the absence reporting process
• significant external commitments

Extensions will not normally be granted as a result of failure of personal software, hardware or broadband. Students are strongly encouraged to work in School labs.

An extension should not be assumed until confirmed by the coordinator, who will decide on a case-by-case basis whether the circumstances justify an extension. Extensions requested after the deadline has passed will not normally be granted unless there are serious extenuating circumstances. Individual lecturers and tutors do not have authority to grant extensions.

In order to request an extension, please use the Extension Request Form which is also linked from our main Info Site.

Although the School attempts to schedule coursework deadlines to minimise clashes, it is not always possible to avoid them completely. Students are expected to be able to plan ahead and to manage their time effectively; extensions will not be granted due to deadline clashes.

Lateness Penalties

The normal deadline for coursework submission is 9:00:00pm on the specified date. Except where explicit permission is obtained from the appropriate coordinator, late submission of coursework is automatically penalised by MMS, in line with University policy on coursework penalties. In all cases, including group work, students are individually responsible for timely submission of their work. For team projects, each team member is individually responsible for timely submission of their copy of the report.

Unless explicitly indicated otherwise in coursework specifications, the penalty scheme used for all modules in the School is:

Scheme A: 1 mark per 24-hour period, or part thereof

‘Part thereof’ means one second or more after rounding. For example, work initially given a mark of 15, submitted at 11.55pm with a deadline of 9pm, is penalised by 1 mark, and so earns a mark of 14 instead. Further examples are given in the policy document.

Every day of the week counts towards any late penalty, including weekends and holidays. Coordinators do not waive penalties for hours, minutes or seconds lateness that may result from minor adversities. Relying on the mechanical impartiality of MMS is the only policy that is indisputably fair to all.

MMS records the time that an upload is completed, not when it is initiated. Students need to allow for this when uploading coursework with large files. They should also be aware that if a revised version of an earlier submission is initiated just before the deadline, and completes after the deadline, the lateness penalty will be applied despite the earlier version. This cannot be reversed, as the earlier version has by then been erased from the system. Caution should therefore be exercised in submitting minor corrections near the deadline. After a deadline has passed, MMS does not allow uploaded coursework to be replaced by the submitter.

MMS has a maximum file size limit of 600MB. Where it is necessary to submit larger files, students should make prior arrangements with the relevant coordinator for an alternative submission mechanism.

As noted above, it is the student’s responsibility to verify that they have submitted the correct piece of work to the correct MMS slot. In cases where an error only comes to light some days after submission, a lateness penalty will normally be applied corresponding to the time/date that the correct version was eventually submitted. Nonetheless, cases where there exists strong evidence that the work was actually completed on time will be considered by the relevant coordinator.

Normally the level of evidence required would be a not-easily-forgeable record of the work’s existence on a School storage server at the claimed time. File timestamps would not meet this standard, while presence in a storage server snapshot would. For this reason, even apart from the other obvious benefits of version control, students are strongly encouraged to use School’s lab PCs, network home directories and adopt the use of version control for routine coursework development. Although version control histories themselves can be easily tampered with, a repository located in a network home directory will automatically be captured in the regular file system snapshots.

In cases where such evidence is accepted by the coordinator, a minimum lateness penalty of 3 marks will nonetheless be applied.

Word Limits

The specification for an essay, report or dissertation may include:

• no word limit, or
• an advisory word limit, or
• a compulsory word limit

A word limit indicates the level of detail required. If you write too much in an attempt to make your point, then you have not focussed your argument sufficiently. This might mean you are giving too much detail, too many examples or trying to cover too many points. You may be able to get across the same content in fewer words by careful editing. Conversely, if your document is well below the word limit then consider whether you have given enough detail. Writing a coherent argument within the limit specified is an important academic skill.

Where an advisory word limit is specified, the grade awarded may be affected by significant deviations from the limit. Where a compulsory word limit is specified, failure to adhere to the limit is penalised according to the University policy on coursework penalties.

Writing Guidance

See the guidance on essay and report writing.

Mapping Tables

The School publishes two default mappings from percentage marks to the 20-point scale, one for Sub-Honours and one for Honours and Masters. The marks from the mapping process are reviewed at the module board, where any unusual distributions of marks are discussed. If considered appropriate by the board, and agreed by the External Examiner, the mapping used for a particular assessment may be adjusted. In such cases the revised mappings are published after results have been reported:

• 2013-14 Semester 1
• 2013-14 Semester 2
• 2014-15 Semester 1
• 2014-15 Semester 2
• 2015-16 Semester 1
• 2015-16 Semester 2
• 2018-19 Semester 1
• 2021-22 Semester 1
• 2022-23 Semester 1

Feedback on Assessment Performance

Students have the right to feedback on assessment performance. Feedback can be given to a class as a whole or if you wish you may request to view your submission under staff supervision (consult the relevant lecturer), or obtain a photocopy for a fee (ask at the School office). The time limit for such requests is the end of Week 3 of the semester that follows the examination diet.

The purpose of viewing your script with a member of staff is to see where you made mistakes and to learn from them so that you gain insight into how you may improve your technique or specific knowledge for a module. It is not an opportunity for negotiation on the marks awarded. If a student notices that marks have been added up incorrectly, or that marks have been transferred incorrectly , or that some portion of the work has not been marked, they can bring this to the attention of the member of staff who is monitoring the viewing. There is a well-defined appeals policy, but this specifically excludes appeals on the grounds of disagreement with an academic judgement.

Absence From Exam Assessments

See under Absence.

Illegible Exam Scripts

It is your responsibility to ensure that your handwritten answers provided in examination scripts are legible and can be read by the markers. If a script cannot be read by the marker then this could result in a delay in confirming your module grade. See further details.

Extensions

An extension is a straightforward adjustment to a practical coursework deadline for an affected student.

Deferred Assessments

See University policy on deferred assessments.

Waived Assessments

In rare cases the requirement to complete a particular assessment may be waived entirely. The maximum proportion of the overall credit for a module that can be waived is 25%.

S-coding

S-coding is the method the University uses to recognise that special circumstances have affected most or all of the work of a module. It provides a mechanism for some adversely affected grades to be excluded from degree classification. More information can be found here.