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Section 2: Module Selection

Published for 2023-24


2.1 Module Selection and Approval Process2.4 Deadlines for Module Selection
2.2 Number of Modules to be Selected2.5 Late Module Selection
2.3 Modules from Outside UCL 

2.1 Module Selection and Approval Process

1.For new students, as soon as pre-enrolment has been completed students should select the modules which they wish to take in that Academic or Calendar Year, by the published deadlines. For continuing students, module selection takes place at the beginning of term three each year and timelines will be published in advance.
2.All steps are completed through Portico, UCL’s Student Record System.
3.

Students must meet the module requirements defined in the Programme Diet, including the credit value and academic level of each module, and any rules for compulsory, optional or elective modules, pre-requisites or co-requisites:

  • Compulsory: Modules which students must take to successfully complete a particular Programme or Route.
  • Option: Specific, limited collections of Modules from which students may choose within their Programme of Study.
  • Elective: Broad collections of Modules which may be thematically grouped, from which students may choose, and which may be from outside their main Programme of Study.
  • Prerequisite: A specified preparatory Module which must have been successfully completed for a student to enrol on a subsequent Module. 
  • Co-requisite: A specified Module which must be taken at the same time as another Module.
4.All Optional and Elective module selections are provisional until they have been confirmed by both the Parent and Teaching Departments/Divisions:
 a) The Parent Department/Division is responsible for the programme on which a student is registered.
 b)The Teaching Department/Division is responsible for the delivery of a module to students and is responsible for the assessment of students enrolled on the module.
 c)In many cases the Teaching and Parent Department/Division are the same, and only one approval is needed.
5.If approval is not given, students should seek academic advice from their Personal Tutor or other staff in the Parent Department/Division.
6.Students must satisfy the assessment requirements for each module on which they are registered. If a student is unable to meet these requirements due to illness or other Extenuating Circumstances, they should follow the procedures in Chapter 2, Section 2:  Short-term Illness and other Extenuating Circumstances. Students who absent themselves from any module assessment without approval must be recorded as absent and deemed to have made an attempt. Any further attempt, of the original module or another module, must be treated as a second attempt.

2.2 Number of Modules to be Selected 

1.

Students must register on the following numbers of credits in each Academic or Calendar Year unless they are registered as a Flexible student, or they are undertaking Resits, Repeats or Deferrals (see below). The Programme Diet may include more detailed requirements:

Undergraduate Programmes

  • Full-time: 120 credits per year
  • Part-time: 60 credits per year

Graduate Certificate

  • Full-time: 60 credits per year
  • Part-time: 30 credits per year

Graduate Diploma

  • Full-time: 120 credits per year
  • Part-time: 60 – 90 credits per year

Postgraduate Certificate

  • Full-time: 60 credits per year
  • Part-time: 30 credits per year

Postgraduate Diploma

  • Full-time: 120 credits per year
  • Part-time: 60 – 90 credits per year

Taught Masters

  • Full-time: 180 credits per year
  • Part-time: 60 - 120 credits per year

Extended Taught Masters (>180 credits)    

  • Full-time: Up to 180 credits per year
  • Part-time: 60 - 120 credits per year

Research Masters

  • Full-time: 180 credits per year
  • Part-time: 60 - 150 credits per year

Extended Research Masters (>180 credits)

  • Full-time: Up to 180 credits per year
  • Part-time: 60 - 150 credits per year
2.Students must register on the exact number of credits required for their programme; they must not register on too many or too few credits.
3.Students must register on the number of credits at each Level of Study (e.g. Level 6, Level 7) required by their Programme Diet. Students are permitted to exceed the minimum but must not take too few credits at any Level.
4.Where a student undertakes a module during the long summer vacation, the credits of that module must be assigned to either the previous or next year as appropriate, but the total number of credits in each year should not exceed the parameters defined above.
 Flexible Programmes
5.On Flexible programmes, students may choose the number of credits which they wish to study in each year. Individual programmes may specify a minimum or maximum for each year, or may stipulate the order in which modules should be taken, in the Programme Diet.
 Reassessment and Deferrals
6.Students undertaking a Deferral with Tuition should select only the modules being deferred. Students may select the original module or a substitute module, as long as the requirements of their Programme Diet are met.
7.Students who are Repeating a failed module should select only the modules being repeated. Students may select the original module or a substitute module, as long as the requirements of their Programme Diet are met.
8.Subject to the regulations in Chapter 4, Part A: Assessment Regulations for Taught Programmes, a student may be permitted to undertake a Deferral with or without Tuition or, exceptionally, a Resit or Repeat, in up to 30 credits in tandem with the next year’s modules. For Resits students must select the same module. For Repeats and Deferrals with Tuition students may select the original module or a substitute module, as long as the requirements of their Programme Diet are met.
 Overlapping Content
9.Students must not register on a module where the academic assessment is deemed to overlap with any module which they have already taken and passed.
10.Students must not re-register on a module if they have exhausted all permitted attempts.

2.3 Modules from Outside UCL 

1.Students should only select modules offered by UCL unless otherwise specified in the Programme Diet.
2.Exceptionally, the Faculty Tutor may permit a student to register on a module at another Higher Education institution which is not specified in the Programme Diet:
 a) Applications should be made in writing to the Faculty Office.
 b)Decisions will be made on a case-by-case basis.
 c)Approval is usually restricted to another institution within the University of London. However, in some cases, agreements between UCL and other institutions are in place.
 d)The module must have an appropriate credit-weighting, be at an appropriate Academic Level, and enable the student to successfully complete their programme of study at UCL.
 e)Evidence must be provided from the institution offering the module that they are willing to accept the student.
 f)Requests must be supported by the student’s Parent Department/ Division. 
 g)Registration on external modules must not be considered as grounds for Extenuating Circumstances or appeal at a later date.
3.Where a student is permitted to select modules from outside UCL, the other Higher Education provider is responsible for the management of the student experience for that module. This includes:
 a) Running the assessment and any reassessments for that module
 b)Working with the relevant UCL Extenuating Circumstances Panel to consider requests for mitigation (some forms of mitigation will need to be applied by the host, some by UCL)
 c)Reasonable Adjustments and Examination Adjustments for the modules concerned, in consultation with the student’s UCL Department/ Division and with the Disability, Mental Health and Wellbeing team in Student Support and Wellbeing (SSW).
 d)Institutional disciplinary and complaints procedures relating to the module
 e)Notifying UCL of students’ academic achievement for the module
 f)Quality assurance of the teaching and learning experience on that module.
4.The student will fall under UCL’s regulations in all other respects, including those for Progression and Award, Classification and the Consequences of Failure (see Chapter 4, Part A: Assessment Regulations for Taught Programmes).
5.Students must note that other institutions may operate different marking systems and regulations. Term dates at other institutions may be different and examinations may not necessarily take place during the normal UCL examination periods. 
6.If a student experiences a timetabling clash due to an external module, they must contact their Parent Department/ Division for advice as soon as possible.

2.4 Deadlines for Module Selection

1.Module selections must be made by the following deadlines; if a student wishes to change a module selection after these dates, they may be able to do so at the discretion of their Parent Department/ Division and in accordance with 2.5 Late Module Selection.

September New Starters

Student selects modules for the year ahead:Term 1, Week 3Week 7 in the UCL administrative calendar
Departments approve selections for the year ahead:Term 1, Week 5Week 9 in the UCL administrative calendar

September Start Continuing Students

Student selects modules for the year ahead by:Term 3, Week 3
Departments approve selections for the year ahead by:14 July 2023 (visible to students from 17 July)

Re-selection window for students who were not successful in getting a place on their preferred modules:

 

 

 

17 July 2023 – 31 July 2023 

A limited number of re-selection requests after this date may be approved at your department's discretion up until term 1, week 3

Any requests after term 1, week 3 should be made in line with 2.5 Late Module Selection

January Starters

Student selects modules for the year ahead:Term 2, Week 2Week 21 in the UCL administrative calendar
Departments approve selections for the year ahead:Term 2, Week 3Week 22 in the UCL administrative calendar

January Start Continuing Students

Student selects modules for the year ahead:Term 2, Week 2Week 21 in the UCL administrative calendar
Departments approve selections for the year ahead:Term 2, Week 3Week 22 in the UCL administrative calendar

Online Programmes

 Students must make their initial module selections as part of the initial pre-enrolment task. For all subsequent Teaching Periods (term, quarter), students must make their module selections before the relevant Teaching Period commences.
  
2.Exact deadlines will be published each year in the Student and Registry Services calendar and on student and staff module selection webpages.
 a) On Online Programmes, exact deadlines will be set, managed and communicated by the Department.
3.If a student wishes to change a module selection, they must do so by the deadlines in 2.5 Late Module Selection.
4.For September-starters, Student and Registry Services will ask students to formally confirm their module selections in Portico by the end of Term 1, Week 11 (Week 15 in the UCL administrative calendar). The Examination Timetable will be based upon the module selection information that is recorded on Portico at the end of Term 1, Week 12 (Week 16 in the UCL administrative calendar).
5.For January-starters, the Examination Timetable will be based upon the module selection information that is recorded in Portico at the end of Term 2, Week 3 (Week 22 in the UCL administrative calendar).

2.5 Late Module Selection 

1.Exceptionally, a student may be permitted to change a module selection after term 1, week 3. Changes cannot be guaranteed, particularly if the student will miss a substantial amount of teaching.
2.Late module changes must satisfy the following criteria:
 a) There must be places available on the module.
 b)The changes must be consistent with the student’s Programme Diet.
 c)The student must be able to satisfy their faculty’s attendance requirements.
 d)The student must continue to meet the requirements of any visa under which they are studying.
3.All requests must be submitted to the Parent Department/ Division in the first instance. The Parent Department/ Division will consider the request and, where applicable, liaise with the Teaching Department/Division to assess whether the late module change is possible.
4.If the Parent and Teaching Departments/ Divisions support the request, they will seek Parent Faculty approval.
5.If a late change affects central examinations, it may not be possible to include the student in the Examination Timetable and the Department/ Division may be required to run the examination in the Department.
6.Unless requested otherwise, the change of module selection will be backdated to the start of the academic session.
7.Students must continue to meet the requirements of the original module until the change is formally approved. Students who absent themselves from the assessment of the original module before they have formally transferred to the replacement module will be recorded as absent and deemed to have made an attempt. Any further attempt, of the original module or replacement module, must be treated as a second attempt.