33. Academic outcomes in taught postgraduate programmes

Award of Credit and Reassessment

A flow diagram for progress within taught postgraduate programmes is available.

The assessment of units in the taught component of a doctoral degree is governed by the Taught Code. The requirements for students to progress to the research component are set out in the relevant programme specification.

33.1. Schools will make suitable arrangements to implement the regulations for the award of credit for students who are studying a programme on a part-time basis such that the students are aware of the arrangements (e.g. the timing and status of any re-sits) and are not disadvantaged by the point in their studies in which their progression is formally considered.

In taught units

33.2. Students must achieve the pass mark for a unit (normally a mark of 40 out of 100 at levels 4-6 and 50 out of 100 at level 7) and meet any designated criteria (see section 18), if applicable, to be awarded the associated credit, as set out in the relevant unit specification.

33.3. Where taught postgraduate programmes include units at level 6 (H) or lower the pass mark for those units remains 40 out of 100. Marks for these units must be taken into account in the calculation of the final programme mark and cannot be adjusted.

33.4. A student who is not awarded the credit for a taught unit at the first attempt will be permitted to undertake reassessment either as:

a second attempt (a ‘re-sit’) where the unit has been failed. The unit mark will be capped at the pass mark. A re-sit should test those assessments in the unit that have been failed and need not be in the same form as the original assessment, as long as it: tests the same learning outcomes and does not compromise any competence standards
a supplementary assessment where the student has not met the criteria for the award of credit in a unit but is permitted to take outstanding assessment again because of validated exceptional circumstances, a deferral or self-certified absence from the original assessment for the full range of marks. A supplementary assessment should test those assessments in the unit that have not been passed, normally in the same format.

33.5. As an exception to 33.4, credit will be awarded for a narrowly failed taught unit where specified conditions are met (i.e. ‘compensation’). Compensation may be applied by any exam board following completion of the taught units on the programme by a student. Students will be awarded the actual unit mark they achieved at the point of applying compensation.

Compensation will be awarded:

For a single unit, up to a maximum of:
- 30 credit points in a Masters degree or Postgraduate Diploma (no compensation is permitted in a Postgraduate Certificate), except where the credit value of each and every taught unit exceeds 30 credit points
- 20 credit points in a Masters degree or Postgraduate Diploma in programmes in Engineering
Where all other taught units in the programme have been passed; and
Where the student has a mark of between 45-49 in the failed unit and an overall weighted average of 50 or more in the taught units; and
The failed unit is not must-pass (i.e. the student will be able to meet the relevant programme learning outcomes) nor a pre-requisite onto the research unit.

33.6. A student is permitted no more than two attempts to meet the criteria for the award of credit for a taught unit.

33.7. Students cannot take reassessment where they have already passed the unit, unless in exceptional cases where both the following apply:

as mitigation made by an exam board in accordance with section 20 on student circumstances where their performance in assessment has been impacted by exceptional circumstances, and
the exam board judges the student is reasonably likely to improve their overall unit mark.

If an exception is granted, the original mark for the affected unit is voided.

Reassessment

33.8. A student who is permitted to undertake reassessment by the Summer Assessment exam board in units that exceed 80 credit points (e.g. where assessment has been affected by exceptional circumstances) will be required to take all reassessment as part of a supplementary year in the next academic year. i.e. the amount of credit that can be assessed in the reassessment period should not exceed 80 credit points.

33.9. Otherwise where a student has not passed a unit at the first attempt, they will be permitted to take the reassessment in the reassessment period.

33.10. Reassessment should only test those assessments in the unit that have not been passed.

33.11. For any unit which is passed by reassessment (i.e. at the second attempt), the student will receive the awarded mark for the assessment, however the unit mark will be capped at the minimum pass mark (40 out of 100 for units at levels 4, 5 and 6, and 50 out of 100 for units at level 7).

Reassessment in a Supplementary Year

33.12. Students who have not achieved the credit points for a taught unit following the reassessment period but have not exceeded two attempts will be permitted to take any outstanding units in a Supplementary Year (subject to the requirements for a Supplementary Year in section 35), and an extension to the submission deadline and an extension to studies enacted (see section 34).

33.13. Reassessment should only test those assessments in the unit that have not been passed except where the assessment or unit has changed or is no longer running in the Supplementary Year, in which case the Exam Board may permit the student to take an alternative assessment or unit.

Conditions for entry onto the research unit

33.14. A student will be permitted to continue on a programme including onto the research unit, even if they have failed a taught unit twice, except where a programme has designated a single taught unit as a pre-requisite for entry onto the research unit (i.e. a student cannot start the research unit until they have achieved the credit points for the designated taught unit).

33.15. A programme may only designate a single taught unit as a pre-requisite to the research unit, subject to approval by the relevant Faculty Associate Pro Vice-Chancellor (Education and Students) or delegate, where:

i. the taught unit provides essential health and safety training for students to practically conduct their research safely (i.e. it would be deemed unsafe for a student to undertake the research without having demonstrated the necessary skills),

ii. the taught unit teaches critical knowledge and skills that is essential for a student to demonstrate in order to undertake research in the discipline as required by a PSRB,

AND

iii. given the nature of research in the discipline of the programme, it is not possible for a student to pivot to an alternative project by amending the form of research or the means of collecting and analysing data/information.

33.16. If a student does not achieve the credit points for the designated taught unit after two attempts, they will be required to withdraw from the programme with an exit award, if appropriate.

33.17. Schools, with faculty oversight, will have in place a process for reviewing the academic progress of student outside of exam boards. Schools should arrange a discussion with a student about their academic prospects where they have failed a taught unit that is not a pre-requisite to the research unit twice (i.e. they are permitted to continue on the programme but will not be able to achieve a Master’s degree).

In the research unit

33.18. Students must achieve the pass mark for the research unit to be awarded the associated credit.

33.19. Where a student has achieved a near-pass mark (between 45-49 out of 100) for the research unit, the relevant exam board will permit the student to re-submit the dissertation, or equivalent. In these cases, the research unit mark will be capped at the minimum pass mark (50 out of 100).

33.20. Re-submission of the dissertation for a full range of marks may also be permitted where failure is due to validated exceptional circumstances.

Awards

33.21. A student will be eligible for their intended award where they achieve the necessary credit points as set out in the University’s credit framework (see section 5) and fulfil any other requirements for award as set out in the programme specification.

Exit Awards

33.22. If a student does not obtain the necessary credit points for progression or award following application of the academic regulations or chooses to withdraw from the University, the student may receive a lower exit award according to the credit points they have obtained, as set out below.

	Credit points achieved
Award	Taught units	Research unit	Overall
PG Diploma (in the programme)	120	0	120
PG Certificate (in the programme)	60-100	0	60-100
PG Diploma in [discipline] (research)	60-100	60*	120-160
PG Certificate in [discipline] (research)	0-50	60*	60-110

* Or higher credit point value in MRes programmes

Classification

33.23. A classification will only be awarded in the following qualifications:

Taught postgraduate Masters degree, including a Master of Research (MRes)

Postgraduate Diplomas and Certificates where these are specifically named entry-level qualifications (except the Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice, which is unclassified)

Exit awards of Postgraduate Diplomas and Certificates in designated programmes (as set out in the programme specification) where students achieve the necessary credit points for the exit award but:

- choose to withdraw from the programme, or
- cannot continue on their programme due to the impact of exceptional circumstances, and
- have achieved the credit points for all taken units on their registered programme.

33.24. A classification is not awarded for exit awards where students are required to withdraw from the programme on academic grounds.

Calculating the final programme mark

33.25. The overall final programme mark is calculated as the average of all unit marks in the programme, weighted by credit point value, and rounding the result to the nearest integer.

33.26. The weighting given to the unit mark will correspond to the credit point value of the unit, e.g. the mark for a 20-credit point unit would be 1/9 of the final programme mark, if the student must achieve 180 credit points. See guidance for an example of this calculation.

33.27. Units that solely contain assessments marked on a pass/fail marking scheme will not contribute towards the calculation of the final programme mark,. In such cases, the weighting of other units will increase accordingly.

Determining the classification

33.28. The classification of the award in relation to the overall programme mark is as follows:

Distinction = final programme mark of 70+
Merit = final programme mark of 60-69
Pass = final programme mark of 50-59
Fail = final programme mark of 49 or less

Note: the classification for a student who registered on a programme of study before 2024/25 will be calculated using the classification set out above and the methodology set out in the 2023/24 regulations, with the student receiving the higher classification, if any.

Exceptions

See the specific regulations for the classification of degrees in the MA in Law