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Policies and Rules School Undergraduate Policy Re-enrolment and Variation of Enrolment
Attendance Field Trips and Laboratories Written Assignments Assessment Examinations Supplementary Examinations Honours Grading Advice to Students on Course Progression Appeal Procedures Academic Misconduct Procedures Equity Students Responsibilities and Rights School Seminars Further information about policies, procedures and guidelines of the university, please click here.
If you wish to change your enrolment, please ensure that this is done prior to various deadlines outlined in the University student Information.
Students with non-standard programs are expected to give priority to completion of subjects from earlier years in the program; otherwise difficulties may be experienced with missing prerequisites or assumed knowledge for later year subjects. For example, if a student is planning a mixed program involving year 2 and year 3 subjects, priority should be given to completing the year 2 subjects. It is important that students carrying subjects from earlier years do not enroll in an excessively heavy program.
Students with non-standard programs are also expected to restrict their enrolment to subjects taken from no more than two successive years of the course; otherwise difficulties may be experienced with missing prerequisites or assumed knowledge for later year subjects. For example, if a student has completed part of year 1, he or she should enrol in year 1 and year 2 subjects only. Year 3 subjects should not be taken until all of the year 1 subjects are completed.
It is expected that students enrolling in the final year thesis project, design project and seminar will have completed all subjects up to, and including year 3 of their course, and either be taking the other year 4 subjects concurrently, or have completed them previously; i.e., the thesis project, design project and seminar should be the last subjects taken in the course. The reason for this is that in these final year subjects, students are expected to make use of the whole spectrum of previous academic work in order to achieve their best academic performance. If other year 4 subjects or earlier subjects are not completed, it is likely that students will be disadvantaged and thus perform below their potential in the final year subjects.
The rules governing the attendance of classes are described in the University student Information. Students are expected to be regular and punctual in attendance in all classes. If students attend less than eighty percent of the classes they may be refused final assessment in that subject.
For specific requirements applicable to a given subject please refer to the relevant Course Summary.
For specific requirements applicable to a given Field Trip or a Laboratory subject, please refer to the relevant Course Summary.
In most subjects, as advised in individual subject summaries, laboratory work is compulsory because it is an essential part of the subject being taught. In such cases, if laboratory work and reports are incomplete, subject results will be withheld for a limited period specified by the subject examiner to enable the missing work to be completed. Late laboratory reports must then still be submitted within the period, but will not attract any mark. If late work is not submitted within the specified period, a subject grade of unsatisfactory fail UF will be returned regardless of the composite mark, and the student will be required to re-enrol in the subject.
The length and format of a given assignment must conform to the requirements of a given subject. The assignments must be submitted by the relevant deadlines; otherwise a penalty described in the relevant Course Summary will apply. All written assignments should include a copy of the student declaration form available as both a Word.doc file and PDF File (your computer needs Acrobat Reader to view PDF files).
The details of assessment for a given subject are outlined in the given Course Summary.
The details of an examination applicable to a given subject are outlined in the given Course Summary.
Follow-up examinations, or extra examinations granted due to medical considerations will all be held:
The details for supplementary examination policy are given here.
The method of calculating weighted course marks for honours recommendations in the School of Materials Science and Engineering is outlined below. The procedure is applicable to the following degrees:
BE Pass and Honours in Ceramic Engineering
BMatE Pass and Honours in Materials Engineering BMetE Pass and Honours in Metallurgical Engineering Criteria Observed in Grading
Note Factors (5) and (6) become significant in deciding recommendations for awards when the average course marks are within ±1% of the borderline between two grades.
The general policy of the School is to encourage students in developing a positive attitude to their studies and their future careers, taking charge of their lives, and accepting responsibility for their actions (or lack of action). The overall aim should be to "get the job done", despite difficulties that might arise from time to time, rather than continually looking for excuses.
Allowance for Contingencies
The first step in taking charge of your life is to avoid leaving everything to the last minute. Life has its ups and downs. A day or two in bed with the flu, or a similar event, is something that we all have to accommodate from time to time. If you do not make allowance for such possibilities in planning your time, you run the risk of missing the deadline for completion of a course task and you will not necessarily be allowed to submit it late.
Also under this heading, students are responsible for taking reasonable precautions to avoid losing valuable items by theft or accident. For example, the only copy of a thesis or other papers unique to one student should not be left in the boot of a car or outside the toilets; computer disk files should be backed up and kept in a different place from the main copy.
Deadlines
Each session, the University Examination Timetable is distributed. In addition, a Draft Timetable is placed on various noticeboards a few weeks earlier. This is to enable students, especially those who are enrolled in subjects from more than one year of the course, to check for any clashes that have been overlooked. Obviously, the time set for an examination, including those held by the School during session, is the time when all students sit. Except in cases of serious illness (see below under Special Consideration), there is no question of an extension of time so that you can sit later.
Near the top of the first page of the University Examination Timetable is the statement: MISREADING THE TIMETABLE WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED AS A REASON FOR FAILING TO ATTEND AN EXAMINATION.
Examinations should be treated seriously. You should check, and double check with your friends, that you have the correct date and time in your diary.
In addition to the examinations, there are also deadlines for submitting other work. In this School, a deadline set for submitting some part of the coursework is a real one - the same as the date set for an examination. The lecturer in charge of each subject will specify the requirements in writing. In some cases, a lateness penalty will apply. In other cases, work will not be accepted after the deadline; whatever you have completed by the deadline should be handed in. Whatever is specified in each case will apply. Genuine cases of illness or other special circumstances will be considered (see below). However, missed buses, unreliable friends, family gatherings, etc. are not acceptable reasons for late submissions (see Allowance for Contingencies above).
Requests for Special Consideration
Every session, a number of requests for special consideration are received in relation to examinations and other assessments because of illness or for other reasons. The number is so large that the University is sometimes rather sceptical and demands proof.
If you really are sick, unable to get out of bed, in the operating theatre, etc., do not force yourself to complete the assignment or attend the examination. (In the case of an assignment, see the comments above about allowing for contingencies. Note also that a medical certificate or other appropriate documentation must be lodged through the Student Centre in the Chancellery not later than seven days after the final assessment for the subject). However, if you have only a minor ailment, real or imagined, you are expected to treat this as a normal part of life, to be overcome as it occurs rather than using it as an excuse. In particular, no allowance can be made for exam nerves. Examinations are something that everyone has to face, in addition to other testing situations, such as being interviewed for a job.
Long-Term Constraints
Some students are unable to devote as much time to their studies as normally needed due to having to work to support themselves, because of long-term health problems, or for other reasons. Clearly, such students should not enrol in a full-time program but should match their enrolment to their circumstances.
A capable student should normally expect to spend one hour in private study for each hour of scheduled classes.
The procedures for appealing against exclusion from the University or restriction on re-enrolment (show cause) are mentioned in the University student Information. Advice on the procedures may be obtained from the Counselling and Careers Service in the Quadrangle Building , and advice and forms may be obtained from the
Student Office at the Student Centre in the Chancellery adjacent to the Library lawn.
At School level, students who are dissatisfied with their results in a particular subject should first consult with the subject co-ordinator, lecturer or demonstrator to find out why their assessment is lower than expected. If this does not resolve the difficulty, advice may be sought in turn from Senior Academic Staff from the relevant department, Course Co-ordinators, School Grievance Officer, or Head of School.
Academic misconduct procedures are outlined in the University student Information and the Student Guide.
The School is committed to providing an educational environment that is free from discrimination and harassment, in accordance with University policies on Student Equity and Equal Opportunity in Education, which are stated in the University student Information.
Students can seek assistance to get disputes resolved from the following sources: Senior Academic Staff, Course Co-ordinators, School Grievance Officer, Head of School, Student Equity Unit, Student Guild Advocacy Service, and Equal Opportunity Employment Unit.
Each student is a valued member of the School, and the principles below concerning the responsibilities and rights of students within the School are based on this premise.
The responsibility of each student to himself or herself is to strive to do his or her best in all academic endeavours. This does not mean achieving perfection but optimising a whole-hearted and honest effort across many different activities to achieve the best overall performance. It is the collective desire of School staff that student achieve their full potential in academic performance.
The responsibility of each student to others may be summarised by the principle: treat others as you would like to be treated yourself. This means treating other students and staff with respect at all times. It also means that property belonging to other students, staff and the University must be treated with respect. If in doubt about any course of action, don't proceed, but ask someone who knows or someone (usually a staff member) who is responsible in that area. If you are still unsure after this, seek another opinion from a more senior or experienced person. Keep staff such as subject examiners and course co-ordinators informed if your circumstances change. Sometimes they will be able to offer counsel, advice or help of which you may not be aware.
The rights of students may be summarised by the corollary to the above principle: each student has a right to be treated with respect at all times by student and staff colleagues. They also have a right to be treated fairly in all academic matters and to know the basis on which they are being assessed. A more complete statement of rights is given in the University policies on Student Equity and Equal Opportunity in Education, which are stated in the University student Information.
All students of the School are welcome to attend School Seminars which are given from time to time by research students, School staff and visiting speakers. Notices giving the date, time and location of each talk are usually displayed within the School 1-2 weeks before the seminar. Senior undergraduate students are particularly encouraged to attend these seminars when possible.
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AUTHORISED BY Head, School of Materials Science and Engineering Page last updated: 22nd April, 2009 |
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