AR/2006/397

THE UNIVERSITY OF LANCASTER

Senate

24 May 2006

Agendum ......

Regulations for taught Masters degrees,

postgraduate diplomas and postgraduate certificates

1.These regulations apply to all postgraduate certificates, postgraduate diplomas and taught Masters degrees leading to the awards of LL.M., M.A., MBA., M.Mus., M.Res. and M.Sc.

Definitions

2.Throughout these regulations, the following definitions apply.

  • Assessment: the process by which the outcomes of a student’s learning are measured.
  • Credit: a unit for measuring, in terms of the total number of expected student learning hours, the volume of assessed learning. One credit is equivalent to 10 learning hours.
  • Module: a discrete learning unit of learning that can be completed on its own or as part of a scheme of study. All modules are rated at a specific number of credits, which are awarded to a student on successful completion of the designated assessment.
  • Postgraduate level: where the learning outcomes of a unit of study, either module or scheme of study, are consistent with Masters level as defined in the QAA’s Framework for Higher Education Qualifications.
  • Research preparation Masters: a type of taught Masters degree where the scheme of study gives greater emphasis to training in research methods, and the dissertation takes a greater role in the final assessment.
  • Scheme of study: a coherent collection of modules that have been approved by the Senate as leading to a particular named degree.
  • Taught Masters degree: a scheme of study consistent with Masters level as defined in the QAA’s Framework for Higher Education Qualification, and consisting of modules totalling at least 180 credits.
  • Weighted mean mark: the overall average mark for a students’ scheme of study, calculated by weighting each module mark obtained by the student by the module’s credit value as a proportion of the total credit value of the scheme of study.

Criteria for approval

3.For each degree, a scheme of study and appropriate methods of assessment shall be prescribed. These shall normally be approved on behalf of the Senate by the Graduate School Committee acting on the recommendation of the relevant faculty or equivalent.

4.All taught Masters degrees, postgraduate diplomas and postgraduate Certificates shall conform to the following common credit framework for taught postgraduate awards:

(a)for a taught Masters degree, a total of at least 180 credits, with no more than 30 credits having been defined as being undergraduate in level;

(b)for a postgraduate diploma, a total of at least 120 credits, with no more than 30 credits having been defined as being undergraduate in level;

(c)for a postgraduate certificate, a total of at least 60 credits, with no more than 20 credits having been defined as being undergraduate in level.

5.The normal duration of taught Masters degrees, postgraduate Diplomas and postgraduate certificates shall be as follows:

Full-timePart-time

Taught Masters12 months24 months

Postgraduate diploma9-12 months12-24 months

Postgraduate certificate6-12 months9-24 months

Other periods of study may be prescribed in exceptional circumstances with the approval of the Graduate School Committee acting on the recommendation of the faculty or equivalent concerned.

6.All Masters schemes (except those offered on a part-time only basis or those that end at other times of the year) should finish by the Friday nearest 15 September.

7.All Masters schemes shall include a substantial dissertation or project work, of a form or length that is appropriate for the significant weight that it will carry in final assessment. Schemes of study shall make explicit statements concerning the nature of the dissertation or project required and the weight that it will carry in the final assessment.

Admission

8.The admission requirements for entry to a Masters scheme shall normally be:

eitherat least a second class honours degree of a UK university (or C.N.A.A.);

ora relevant professional qualification at an equivalent level.

Candidates holding other academic qualifications may also be considered for admission, provided that they have substantial relevant professional experience. Individual exceptions may be considered in the normal admission process; approval for systematic exceptions to normal admission requirements must be obtained in advance from the Graduate School Committee.

9.For entry to a postgraduate diploma or postgraduate certificate, candidates must be graduates of a recognised university or comparable institution, or must in other ways be qualified to be regarded by the university as the equivalent of such graduates.

Review of schemes of study

10.The Graduate School Committee shall be required to scrutinise existing schemes and proposals for new schemes of study in order to ensure as far as possible comparability of standards. This scrutiny shall include such matters as admission requirements, contact hours, use of undergraduate courses, assessment, requirements to pass (including compensation and resit provisions), requirements for the award of distinction and merit, the role of external examiners, and any other relevant matters.

Examination and assessment

11.Examiners (including at least one external examiner for each approved course) shall be appointed by the Director of the GraduateSchool on behalf of the Committee of the Senate on the nomination of the faculty or equivalent concerned. The examiners shall conduct all prescribed forms of assessment and may require, at their discretion, a candidate to attend for an oral examination up to two calendar months after the date of the completion of the course. The examiners shall jointly submit recommendations on the work of the candidates.

12.The pass mark for taught Masters degrees, postgraduate diplomas and postgraduate certificates shall be 50%, with credit for a module being awarded when the overall mark for the module is 50% or greater.

13.Where a candidate obtains a mark of less than 50% for a module, they shall be entitled, within the academic year, to one opportunity for reassessment in each failed module/element within the scheme of study, provided that the total number of failed modules/elements is equivalent to no more than 50% of the weighted scheme. Reassessment must normally be completed within 12 months of the first attempt, and the module(s)/element(s) if passed may each be awarded a mark no greater than 50%.

14.If the dissertation/project of a scheme of study constitutes more than 50% of the weighted schemes of study a student shall, notwithstanding regulation 13 above, have the right to be reassessed in their dissertation/project should their first submission obtain a mark of less than 50%.

15.Departments shall assign each module/element which is assessed for which they are responsible, to one of the following methods of moderating marks which shall be applied to all examinations and all coursework assessment accounting for 50% or more of the total module/element assessment:

(a)unseen double marking, where student work is independently assessed by a second marker without the knowledge of marks assigned by the first marker;

(b)second marking, where student work is assessed by more than one marker, but the second marker knows the mark allocated by the first marker;

(c)sampling, where second markers review a representative sample of work first-marked by other colleagues for the purposes of checking the consistent application of marking criteria and moderating marks awarded (a sample is taken to mean square root n where n in the number of scripts for the course and at least five for small courses);

(d)analyses of marking trends, where work is marked by only one marker, undertaking a comparative analysis of marking trends to compare individual students’ marks on an individual course with their average mark on all their other courses. This method shall normally only be used when there are model answers or assessment criteria for individual questions.

16.Departments shall assign to each of the schemes of study for which they are responsible and publish in their scheme/course handbooks, one of the following provisions to govern the late submission of coursework:

(a)there are no deadlines for the submission of coursework, prior to the permitted maximum period of registration as specified in the regulations governing the scheme of study; or

(b)prior to the permitted maximum date, there are published deadlines for the submission of coursework but there are no penalties attaching to late submission; or

(c)prior to the permitted maximum date, there are published deadlines for the submission of coursework; there are published procedures for the granting of extensions; work submitted after a deadline but within the time limit of an approved extension shall not be subject to penalty; work submitted late without an approved extension shall normally be penalised, as follows: work submitted 1-7 days late will have 10 marks deducted and material submitted more than 7 days late will be awarded a mark of 0; or

(d)work submitted late without an approved extension shall normally be penalised, as follows: for each week (or part thereof) following the deadline date that a piece of coursework was not submitted, five marks shall be removed from the agreed final mark; students who fail modules as a result of penalties shall be subject to the regulations on failed modules.

Award

17.To qualify for an award, candidates should pass all the assessments required by their scheme of study and be awarded credits as defined in paragraph 4 above.

18.Notwithstanding this requirement, candidates shall be eligible for an award by compensation/
condonement in respect of up to and including 40 credits of a taught Masters programme, 30 credits of a postgraduate diploma, and 20 credits of a postgraduate certificate provided that:

(a)no single module mark falls below 40%;

(b)the candidate’s weighted mean or modal mark is 50% or greater;

(c)the module(s) failed have not been designated by the department as essential to achievement of the scheme of study’s learning outcomes, and therefore not eligible for the exercise of compensation (departments shall publish details of any such modules in scheme handbooks and programme specifications).

Award of Masters degrees with distinction or merit

19.Taught Masters may be awarded with distinction. The university’s minimum threshold for the award of distinction shall be an overall average mark of 70%, attained either by the weighted mean mark, or by marks of 70% or greater in modules whose credit values total at least 50% of the scheme of study’s total credit rating. Additionally, a Distinction may be awarded only to a candidate demonstrating a consistently high level of attainment across all assessed elements within a scheme and particularly such elements, e.g. the dissertation, as are specified within the regulations governing the scheme of study. A minimum threshold of attainment for individual modules/elements (including the dissertation or project) at a level appropriate to the nature of the discipline shall be specified within the regulations governing the scheme of study.

20.Taught Masters may be awarded with merit, provided that this has been specified in the regulations governing the scheme of study. The university’s threshold for the award of merit shall be an overall average mark of 60% or greater, with marks of 65% or greater in modules whose credit values total at least 50% of the scheme of study’s total credit rating.

Award of postgraduate diplomas or postgraduate certificates with merit

21.Postgraduate diplomas and postgraduate certificates may be awarded with merit, provided that this has been specified in the regulations for the scheme of study. The university’s threshold for the award of merit shall be an overall average mark of 60% or greater, with marks of 65% or greater in modules whose credit values total at least 50% of the scheme of study’s total credit rating.

Alternative awards

22.Candidates for a taught Masters degree who fail to meet the requirements for the award of such a degree may be awarded either a postgraduate diploma or postgraduate certificate, provided that:

(a)such an award has been defined in the scheme of study regulations;

(b)and the student has been awarded sufficient credit for these lower awards as defined in paragraph 3 above.

23.Candidates for a postgraduate diploma who fail to meet the requirements for such an award may be awarded a postgraduate certificate, provided that:

(a)such an award has been defined in the scheme of study regulations;

(b)and the student has been awarded sufficient credit for these lower awards as defined in paragraph 3 above.

Award of graduate diploma

24.Where candidates do not meet the criteria specified above (paragraphs 4, 17, 18, 22-23) for the award of a Masters degree, postgraduate diploma or postgraduate certificate, they shall be eligible for consideration for the award of a graduate diploma. In order to qualify for the award of a graduate diploma, candidate must have gained marks of 40% or greater in modules to the value of 120 credits.

May 2006