University of Newcastle upon Tyne  Faculty of Science Agriculture and Engineering School of Computing Science For Students
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ExamsWhere modules are examined by written paper you should make sure that you know what the instructions (the "rubric") require. Typically this may be that you should answer two questions from the three on the paper in a 90-minute exam. Some papers have more than one section, and you should check the details of those carefully. An example of an exam answerbook is available on-line with some guidance on how to complete it. Performance affected by illness or other circumstances If you would like the Board of Examiners to take your illness or other circumstances during the year (or an exam period) into account then you must submit an "Personal Circumstances Affecting Performance Form" by the deadline date. The Board of Examiners cannot take your circumstances into account without a copy of this form submitted by you. Personal Circumstances Forms may be obtained from 8th floor Reception or by downloading it here. The deadline date will be notified to students, but is normally at the end of the exam period in June or August. Results
When are exam results available?First the Examiners' Meetings have to take place. Then the results have to be sent to the Examinations Office for the pass lists to be produced. It normally takes up to 2 working days for the pass lists to be produced and posted under the Arches in the Quadrangle. Once your pass list has been posted under the Arches, your results will be released in NESS, and you may discuss them with your tutor. Please do not ask for your results until this official posting has taken place. The Undergraduate Board of Examiners for Semester 1 takes place on the afternoon of Wednesday 8th February 2006. The Undergraduate Board of Examiners for Semester 2 takes place on Wednesday 21st June 2006. The MSc in Computing Science Board of Examiners for Semester 1 takes place on the afternoon of Wednesday 8th February 2006. The MSc SDIA Board of Examiners for Semester 1 takes place on the afternoon of Wednesday 8th February 2006. The MRes Bioinformatics Board of Examiners for Semester 1 takes place on the afternoon of Friday 17th February 2006. What if I'm not going to be here when the results come out?Results will be made available using NESS. Via NESS you should be able to see the individual module results of all of the CSC modules, and the overall final decisions for students on the CS/SE/IS degree programmes. Module results will only be released when examination results are officially available, so for example JH students will not be able to see CSC module results until their Exam Board has met. If you have failed any modules and require a resit, or if you have any other academic queries about your results, you MUST contact your tutor since you will need to register for the resit examinations. As a last resort, if you are not able to collect your results via NESS and assuming you want to know what your results are, you must make arrangements to get your results by post, email or telephone. By PostTo get your results by post, you must leave an A4 stamped self-addressed envelope with your tutor. They will then send you a note of the year's results. Should it be necessary, the transcript will indicate those modules for which a resit is required and include a resit examination entry form. See the section on resit arrangements for further information. If you do not receive your results within a week of the release of exam results, your tutor can also give you your results by telephone, or by email. By EmailTo get results by email, you must send your tutor an email from your @newcastle.ac.uk email address containing the email address you wish them to use. You will also need to check whether your tutor will be here to send you your results. It would be most helpful if you also listed the modules that you are expecting results for, one per line. Note however, that if you have any resits, you will be responsible for obtaining a copy of the resit examination entry form, as described elsewhere. By TelephoneTo get your results over the telephone, you should telephone the School and ask for your tutor. When you ring the School, be ready to give details of your degree programme and stage in case you do not know who to ask for. Who can I get my exam results from in person?Your first port of call should be your personal tutor. Details of examination marks, whether in Computing or in other subjects, will normally be issued through your tutor, who will also be able to give any necessary advice. If (and only if) your tutor is not available a number of other members of staff can help, depending on your degree programme and stage. Consult the contacts lists to see who else can help. Resits
Do I have to take a resit examination?If you have failed modules, you are strongly advised to discuss the situation with your tutor. To progress from one Stage of your degree to the next, normally requires you to satisfy all of the requirements of the current stage. However, new University regulations allow undergraduate students to carry up to 20 credits of failed non-core modules to the next stage (thus increasing the examination load in the next stage). For further information see UG exam conventions (section 43), PG exam conventions (sections 32-33).) If you are
A module mark below 40% (honours) or 35% (ordinary) is normally a fail, although there are some compensation rules that may apply. Your tutor can give you further advice.
Do I have to resit all of my exams?You only take resits in modules that you have failed, and you have to take all of the resits at the same time. I was absent from an exam. What happens for this module?If you were absent from an examination (in the January or June exam periods) you will be recorded as having an examination mark of zero, and hence will be recorded as having failed. Failing to submit a major project also counts as an absence. You will be counted as having attempted the examination - see the information on how many times you can take an exam. If there were good reasons for your absence, or for your failure to submit a project (e.g. documented illness), then you must discuss the situation with your tutor. You (or your tutor acting on your behalf) may need to apply for a concession - see below. Missing an exam because you misread the final examination timetable, because your alarm clock didn't go off, or other such excuses will not count as a good reason for an absence. Can I get a concession because of my personal circumstances?A concession is an application to waive the normal University rules. If you have been ill, or if there were other personal circumstances that affected your exam performance, you may need to apply for a concession. Your tutor cannot apply for a concession without your agreement. You cannot normally get a concession to exempt you from taking an exam you have missed without good cause. If you were ill, a concession may permit you to take an "extraordinary" exam (and for this exam to count as a first attempt) during the resit period. Such extraordinary exams may or may not be the same examination paper as a resit exam, and you or your tutor should contact the appropriate module leader for advice. However, such examinations are most likely to be at the same date/time as a resit exam. Concessions are required in other circumstances - for example to take an examination for the fourth time. Responsibility for granting these may rest with the Degree Programme Director, the Faculty Progress and Concessions Committee or Senate Matriculation and Concessions Committee. Your tutor will advise, and it is normally important to involve your tutor so that they are aware of your personal circumstances. When do I take resit examinations?The usual examination period for resits is in August (although it is often referred to as the "September" resit period!). The timetable for the resit examinations can only be established AFTER all of the entry forms for resits have been received (see below). If you have completed the resit entry form the University will send the timetable to you in the post. Students normally attempt resits in the August/September resit period so that they can proceed to the next Stage of their degree programme without interruption. You may opt to take an examination "on the next normal occasion" (January or June). Note, however, that if you choose to do this (and the failed modules include core modules or more than 20 credits have been failed), you will have to take a year out of residence - that is, miss a year. You will not be a student during the year out of residence, and will not be allowed to attend lectures for failed modules. You cannot choose to mix resits between August/September and the next normal occasion. Note that Ordinary Degree students taking Stage 3 honours modules may not be able to re-sit these papers in September. How many resit chances do I get?At Stages 1 and 2 you are permitted three attempts to pass a module (in other words you get two attempts at resits). One resit attempt may be permitted for Stage 3 and Masters-level modules. Can I get help from a module leader?Most module leaders are willing to help you prepare for resits. Such help will normally extend to answering questions about module material or going over attempts at past module exam questions. Module leaders, however, are unlikely to be positive towards students who don't appear to be helping themselves, so requests along the lines of "I missed all of your lectures, can you repeat them all please?" are unlikely to receive what a student might regard as a satisfactory answer! If you think you may require assistance from a module leader, you must contact the module leader sufficiently early to determine when they might be available for consultation. It is not reasonable to expect everyone to be available for the whole summer. Can I repeat tuition for failed modules?If you cannot proceed to the next Stage of your degree, you normally have to go out-of-residence (i.e. leave the University temporarily) and return for a further (and possibly final) attempt at passing the failed module(s). If there are mitigating circumstances, Faculty Progress and Concessions Committee may permit you to repeat the tuition of a failed module (i.e. you attend all of the lectures of that module in the following academic year), subject to the payment of the appropriate tuition fees. You will need to discuss applying for this concession with your tutor and the DPD. How do marks for resit exams get aggregated into my overall performance?Whatever mark you obtain in a resit examination, resit marks are capped at 40% (for undergraduates) and 50% (for postgraduates). Do have to I register for resit examinations?YES. You have to complete a resit examinations entry form. The deadline for application for the August 2005 resit period is 1st July 2005. A late fee may be charged for applications received after that date. If you do not complete the entry form, you will not receive the timetable for resit exams - indeed, there may not be an exam prepared for the module(s) you have failed. You can obtain this entry form from the School of Computing Science Reception, or by sending a stamped self-addressed envelope to the Examinations Office, 6 Kensington Terrace, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, or by downloading the form here. If you are going to take a resit examination in the January or June examination periods, you also must register for those examinations by completing an examination entry form. For these periods it is necessary that the form is received by the University by October. Note that if you do not complete the exam entry form, the University will not be expecting you for the exam. Indeed, there may not even be a paper prepared for you. When are resit results available?The Board of Examiners will be meeting on Tuesday 6th September 2005 to consider resit results. Results should be available either late on the Tuesday or at the beginning of the following week, and you should consult the section on getting results to identify the mechanisms by which you can find out your results. What are the resit requirements for CSC modules?Most modules in Computing Science are originally assessed by examination and coursework. Where a student fails a module it may be because of unsatisfactory coursework, or because the examination performance was unsatisfactory, or both. If you have failed a module, you have to take the resit examination for that module. For the majority of CSC modules, there is a single resit examination which covers both coursework and lecture material. No matter whether you failed a module because of coursework or exam performance, you have to comply with the resit arrangements. Normally this takes the form of an examination, which may address issues that were covered in the original coursework, as well as lecture material. The resit examination is timetabled by the Examinations Office. The format of the resit papers for some modules may not have been finalised yet. As a general point, please be aware that the format of a resit exam may be different to that of the normal exam. For example, a resit exam may be longer, and may have compulsory questions that address coursework issues. The following table provides the current information about module resit examinations. If the details are incomplete for a module you have to resit, please contact the module leader for further information. Resit Examinations August 2005
Please NoteThis document is intended to match the University Regulations, and if there are contradictions the Regulations take precedence. |
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