Penalties for over-length coursework

Assignment briefs will include clear instructions about word counts, footnotes, diagrams, images, tables, figures and bibliographies etc. and you are expected to adhere to the requirements.

If you exceed these parameters you may receive a reduction in marks.

When writing essays, you must clarify the rules on word count and referencing style with the lecturer who set the assignment, as there are different rules and guidelines for each department / subject. You can usually find this information on the course Moodle page.

For example, it is common practice across the Faculty of Arts and Humanities that footnotes are included in the word count, but the bibliography is not. Some science departments specify the length they require in terms of pages (and may also specify font and margins) rather than words, because equations, graphs etc. are difficult to count.

The length of coursework for a BASC-coded module will be specified in terms of a word count or number of pages. Assessed work should not exceed the prescribed length. For submitted coursework that has a maximum length specified, the following procedures will apply:

  • For work that exceeds a specified maximum length by any amount: the mark will be reduced by ten percentage points (i.e. 10 marks), but the penalised mark will not be reduced below the pass mark: marks already at or below the pass mark will not be reduced. For example, if you are taking a module between Levels 4 and 6 and your word limit is 2,000 words and you submit work that exceeds 2,200 words, you will lose 10 marks so a mark of 71% would be reduced to 61%, a mark of 43% would be reduced to 40% but a mark of 39% would not be reduced. If you were taking a Level 7 module, and you submit work that exceeds 2,200 words for a 2,000 word assessment, you would lose 10 marks so a mark of 71% would be reduced to 61%, a mark of 53% would be reduced to 50% but a mark of 49% would not be reduced.
  • Where the maximum word count is exceeded by a small amount, likely to fall within the margin of error of conflicting word counts generated by different software, the BASc Examination Board will exercise academic judgement in determining whether the word limit has been exceeded. In all such cases an independent count will be made by the Department and in no case will discretion be exercised where the count exceeds the maximum set for the assignment by more than 2%. Work that is deliberately submitted over-length will be subject to the over-length penalties outlined above.
  • In the case of coursework that is submitted late and is also over length, the greater of the two penalties will apply.

Please note: there is no longer a UCL-wide policy on over-length submissions and so the penalties above relate to BASC-coded modules and modules taught by departments (including the School of Slavonic and East European Studies (SSEES) within the Faculties of Arts and Humanities and Social and Historical Sciences only. It is your responsibility to check with each of your teaching departments to determine the over-length penalties for each of the other modules you are taking.

Minimum Length

Please note there is no automatic penalty for under-length essays providing there is sufficient suitable content.

Further information:

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