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Assessment planning: supporting your students through exams and assignments

25 February 2020

The Exams team has compiled advice for students on the upcoming publication of the 2020 Main Exam timetable.

image of students sitting exams

The publication of UCL’s 2020 Main Exam timetable always prompts a significant volume of student queries to departments and the exams team.

Building on best practice from departments, the Exams team has put together guidance for students for the Current Students exams webpages. The guidance is reproduced here, with tips for staff to help respond to student queries.

What assessment is like at UCL

At UCL you will experience a high volume of assessment, as coursework, in-class tests, exams and other forms of assessment relevant to your programme.

Your course work deadlines and exam dates may be close together.

And you may have two exams on the same day.

So good planning is essential.

Scheduling coursework deadlines and exam dates

  • Create a schedule of coursework deadlines and in class assessments, formative and summative, so you can plan your workload. 

You will be able to get the information from Module/Programme Handbooks and your department.

Find useful planning tools in our Exam Success Guide.

Work through our Personal Productivity playlist on getting things done, time management, improving your focus and overcoming procrastination.

Staff tip: direct your students to any study management materials that are discipline specific and tailored to your students’ needs.

  • Check your exam timetable as soon as you receive your email from Portico notifying you that it is available. 

Add your exam dates to your study schedule. This will help you identify opportunities to complete some of your coursework early, for example, so that you have time to study for your exams. Build in some contingency time for unexpected events.

  • Stick to your schedule.

Make sure it reflects all the different due dates – coursework and exams - that you have.  

Staff tip:  When the Exam Timetable is published, departments may alter the deadline dates for the submission of coursework.  However, examination dates cannot be moved to accommodate coursework. As assignment deadlines are set by departments, you may wish to notify students of clustering exam and assignment deadline dates once the examination timetable has been published.  

Two exams on one day

Producing the exam timetable is a very complex task, coordinating over 2,700 different exam papers for 87,000 exam sittings for individual students. 

Staff tip: it may be useful to make students aware of the complex nature of examination timetable production.  It may not alleviate their concerns about their own timetable, but explains why the timetable may not always be optimal for every student.

  • Plan for multiple exams in a short period, perhaps even two exams on one day.

If you have two exams scheduled on the same day, it’s really important to plan it into your study schedule. If you are being examined at ExCel London and you have two exams on the same day, you will be given priority when leaving the exam hall at the end of your first exam to maximize the time between exams.

Watch our video about exams at ExCel London.

Staff tip: remind students that having two exams in one day is linked to the flexibility in the system, which enables them to choose modules from across multiple different departments. 
Note: priority exit is only at the ExCel centre due to the size of the hall and the number of students present. 

Exams outside the main exam period

  • Make sure you’re available for exams outside the Main Exam Period in Term 3.

Most UCL exams are centrally organised and take place during the Main Examination Period but you may also have exams during the Late Summer Assessment Period or exams that are arranged by departments which could take place at any time during the academic year. Late Summer Assessment (LSA) takes place in late August and early September. Wait for your exam results from the Main Exam Period before you book late summer travels, in case you need to be available for LSA. 

Exam adjustments

  • Request any reasonable adjustments needed.

If you have a disability or other ongoing medical or mental health condition, make sure UCL knows about it, so we can make reasonable adjustments to support your assessment.  

Find out more about exam adjustments.

Staff tip: remind students who may need exam adjustments to approach Student Wellbeing Services earlier in the term rather than later . The deadline for the receipt of applications is three weeks before the examination period.

Staff tip: overseas exams – there are strict eligibility criteria and deadlines for overseas exams and deadlines – make sure that students engage with the application process and eligibility criteria.

Unexpected events

  • Make sure you know what to do if things do not go to plan.

Sometimes, things happen that might affect your performance in assessments (exams or assignments). 

Use UCL’s Extenuating Circumstances process to request a deferral.

Industrial action

  • UCL will make sure that you are not disadvantaged in your assessment by industrial or strike action.

UCL knows about the classes that have not taken place due to the industrial action and will take this into account either in the exam paper that we set for you or when we consider your marks. Our examination boards have procedures that they can use to make these decisions.

Read the FAQs for students about 2019-20 industrial action.

More information

  • Find answers to many frequently asked questions like “What should I do if I have lost my UCL ID card?” 

Read the Examinations Candidates Guide for Candidates

Read the ‘Exams and assessments’ website

Our comprehensive Exam Success Guide provides advice and resources to help you make the most of your revision and perform at your best in exams.

Staff tip: please familiarise yourselves with the information at the links above.

Further questions

  • Don't forget you can AskUCL

If you still have questions related to your exams after reading the information online, we recommend that you visit the AskUCL student enquiry system to read the FAQ’s and submit an enquiry.