This is an outline/template text for a Handbook for students on collaborative courses which are neither pure franchises or pure validations. Departments with such courses are invited to use the material here as a base for preparing a Handbook for the students on these courses.
Handbook for Students on Collaborative Courses
This handbook introduces you to the University of Warwick and outlines some procedures you should be aware of.
Table of Contents
Introduction to the University of Warwick
What are “Validated” and “Franchised” courses?
Fees
The University’s Commitment and the Role of the
Partner Institution
University Processes for Students on Collaborative Courses
Enrolment
University Cards and Library Access
Temporary Withdrawals and Extensions
Completion of Study
Staff-Student Liaison Committees (SSLCs)
Student Academic Complaints Procedure
Student Academic Appeals Procedure
Page
2
2
3
3
3
4
4
4
5
5
6
7

Welcome!
Welcome to the University of Warwick! Although you are studying a course taught at another institution, it is a course leading to a qualification of the University of Warwick, so on behalf of the University, I would like to welcome you. You may not come into contact with
Warwick or its staff at all during your course, or you may visit our campus in Coventry.
Some of your modules may be taught by Warwick staff, most are not. Most of your day-today contact will be with your home institution, and they will be able to provide you with the information you need to make the most of your course. However, whatever the arrangements for your course, the University of Warwick pays close attention to the quality of the teaching and learning on it – and you will hopefully end up with a University of
1.
Warwick award at the end of it, because we are happy that the standards on your course match up to ours.
I hope you enjoy your course, and learn a lot from it!
Dr David Lamburn
Chair, Collaborative, Flexible and Distributed Learning Sub-Committee
University of Warwick
Introduction to the University
The University of Warwick, which is situated on the southern outskirts of Coventry, was established in 1965 and, in the succeeding 40 years, has become one of the most successful universities in the country, highly rated for both research and teaching quality. The University has links with many local, national and international industries which have helped to earn it a reputation as an entrepreneurial institution.
It has 26 academic departments in four faculties; Arts, Medicine, Science, and Social
2.
Studies, and in 2003-04 had a total student population of around 15,536 full-time equivalent students, of which some 18% are international students. The campus offers many amenities including Warwick Arts Centre, the largest arts centre outside
London, a well-stocked bookshop and a recently refurbished sports centre. Further information about the University can be found on its website at www.warwick.ac.uk
The purpose of this booklet is to clarify the nature of your relationship with the
University, your rights, and the services to which you are entitled.
What are “Validated” and “Franchised” Courses?
The type of collaborative arrangement for your course will to some extent affect the role of the University as it applies to your course. Two common types of collaborative arrangement are validation and franchise. Your course is <like this>.
Validation means the University endorses a course taught at another institution (for example a college of further education) as being of an appropriate standard for the students on it to receive their qualification from the University.
The validation process involves close scrutiny by the University of the course in question and the facilities available at the institution at which it is being offered. A
University Course Coordinator is appointed to liaise with the partner institution, a validation group consisting of members of staff from the University and from the partner institution is formed to oversee the course, act as its Boards of Examiners and produce an Annual Course Review report, and the University formally appoints the course’s External Examiner. Students on validated programmes are registered students of the institution at which the course is taught, but are not fully enrolled
2

3.
4.
5. students of the University of Warwick. Students on validated courses receive a certificate and transcript from the University upon successful completion of their period of study and student details are held with the University as a record of study.
Franchising involves the University deeming that another institution has the appropriate staff expertise and resources to teach a course designed by the
University, and would otherwise offer at its own campus. The procedures for the consideration and approval of franchised courses are similar to those outlined above for validated courses. Students enrolled on franchised courses are full members of the University and are thus eligible to receive University cards.
The University’s Commitment and the Role of the Partner Institution
Partner institutions should be able to provide you with a student handbook or other documentation setting out:

The intended aims and learning outcomes of your course

Information on any admissions requirements, including relevant work experience

Information on assessment methods

Information on fees

Information on guidance and support services available to you at the partner institution

Details of student feedback mechanisms, the operation of the Staff-Student
Liaison Committee, or equivalent, and the complaint procedures relevant to your course.
The University’s role in your degree course will vary depending on the partnership arrangement with the partner institution, as described above. As with all types of collaborative provision, the key role of University staff is to ensure that the academic standards of your course are, and continue to be, of the highest possible level, and that they justify the conferral of a University award.
University Processes for Students on Collaborative Courses
At the University of Warwick, responsibility for dealing with the student administration for collaborative undergraduate courses rests with the appropriate academic department. The Graduate School oversees all matters relating to postgraduate courses. Responsibility for monitoring the quality and standards of all University of
Warwick courses, including collaborative courses, lies with the Teaching Quality team. You should not normally need to contact any of these offices yourself but should you encounter a problem which can only be dealt with by the University and your institution is unable to assist you, please contact the University Course
Coordinator, in the first instance.
Enrolment
In order for you to be enrolled as a student with the University, the Academic Office needs you to complete an enrolment form with all the relevant academic and personal details relating to your course of study. For most students this will entail completing an online enrolment form. Full details will be provided prior to the form becoming available. You will be asked to complete and submit the form within a certain time.
3

6.
7.
8.
The data you provide enables the University to keep track of you throughout your academic career and to ensure that you are correctly issued with a certificate upon successful completion of your course. For these reasons it is helpful if you inform your home institution of any changes in your name or address so that these details can be passed on to the Academic Office at the University via the University Course
Coordinator. You may also send such information directly to the University Course
Coordinator if you are concerned that the University’s records may not have been updated. As the registration form makes clear, data about you will be held on computer on the University’s central student record system in accordance with the
Data Protection Act 1998.
Fees
If you are studying on a validated course you will be required to pay a fee to the
University which will be levied by your home institution, possibly as a part of your other fees payments.
Fee arrangements for franchised programmes are different for each programme and you are advised to contact your home institution in the first instance should you have any concerns about your situation.
If you are eligible for a grant and need assistance from the University in this area please contact the Student Funding Team in the Academic Office
(studentfunding@warwick.ac.uk, tel: 024 7652 2788).
University Cards and Library Access
Students registered on a franchised or other collaborative course (other than validated) are eligible to receive a University card which entitles the holder to access the University’s Library, IT facilities and Sports Centre for the duration of your course of study, excluding any periods of temporary withdrawal. Cards can only be issued after a student’s enrolment details are entered on the University’s student record system. It is normally the case that partner institutions will arrange for cards to be issued to each new cohort of students either as a part of a visit by the cohort to the
University or by having the cards dispatched to the institution itself. Replacement cards cost £15 each and may be obtained by sending your name, address and card number in writing to:
Academic Office
University House
University of Warwick
Coventry CV4 8UW
Temporary Withdrawals and Extensions
If you are enrolled on a course of study but are unable to do any academic work for a significant period of time you may be able to take temporary withdrawal from your remaining period of enrolment for up to a year. All requests for temporary withdrawal must be made to the University via your home institution as soon as it becomes apparent that you will be/are unable to continue with your academic work. Your case for temporary withdrawal should be supported by evidence indicating why this is necessary, e.g. medical certificates. If your temporary withdrawal is granted on medical grounds, you will be asked to provide the University with adequate medical certification of your fitness to return to your course of study six weeks before you are
4

9. due to restart . This will be forwarded confidentially for approval of certification by the
U niversity’s Occupational Health Physician.
If you expect to reach the end of your enrolment period without having completed the course, you may be able to request an extension of up to six months. All extension requests must be made to the University via your home institution and should be supported by evidence indicating why you are unable to complete on time. Where reasons include medical problems, a doctor’s certificate is normally required.
Please note that students should have good grounds for requesting temporary withdrawal and extensions, and that the University does not generally grant more than two extensions at the end of a student’s period of enrolment. If you wish to speak to someone at the University about a withdrawal or an extension, you can contact the undergraduate Student Records team in the Academic Office
(ugoffice@warwick.ac.uk, tel: 024 7652 4335).
Completion of Study
When you successfully complete your course of study you will be eligible to receive a certificate and transcript from the University of Warwick.
If you are following a course leading to a degree at either undergraduate or postgraduate level, you will be presented with your certificate during your graduation ceremony. The University’s Degree Congregation Team will contact you if you fall into the latter category to invite you to attend one of the graduation ceremonies that take place in January and July each year. Partnership institutions or University academic departments may arrange their own presentation ceremonies for students completing certificate or diploma courses, and will contact you directly if this is the case. In all other cases your certificate will normally be sent to you by post. For this reason it is important that the University has your up-to-date address.
Note to editors: This paragraph does not apply to all collaborative provision in the same way.
Your certificate may bear the University name, crest, and the title and classification (where relevant) of your award. It will be signed by the Univ ersity’s
Vice-Chancellor and Registrar. You will also receive a transcript that will detail the marks that you were awarded on each of the modules followed during your course, which will normally be sent to you by post within three months of receipt of your certificate. You may request additional transcripts from the University’s Academic
Office for a fee of £25 for up to 10 transcripts.
10. Staff-Student Liaison Committees
It is expected that any student enrolled on a Warwick course will have the opportunity to be involved in a Staff-Student Liaison Committee or equivalent. SSLCs provide a forum for staff and students to discuss issues relating to a course, a department or centre. They are important to the University and Students’ Union because they provide a unique forum for staff and students to discuss new ideas and solve problems. Issues that arise will vary from year to year, but the following broad themes should be addressed at least once each year:

Curriculum and teaching

Assessment and examination

Library

Computing and e-Learning issues
5


Careers and skills development issues

Student support and guidance
The University has set out the following Principles to underpin SSLC arrangements at the University of Warwick and in partner institutions:
(a) Staff-Student Liaison Committees constitute an important formal channel through which the views of students on academic matters may be communicated. Discussion should focus on teaching, learning and student support issues. An SSLC should be informed of any major changes to the curriculum and syllabus. The Staff-Student Liaison Committee shall not consider matters relating to individual named member of staff or a student’s personal grievances.
(b) The Chair of the SSLC should be a student representative; the Chair in collaboration with the Academic Convenor is responsible for establishing an agenda for meetings.
(c) SSLCs should meet regularly; ideally no less than four times a year.
Divergence from this practice should only occur when justification in terms of the structure and delivery of the course may be provided and alternate arrangements for on-going feedback from students are demonstrably in place.
(d) Departments should report back to SSLCs on action being taken as a result of feedback. This includes disseminating information obtained from student feedback, discussing issues raised by the feedback and publicising the action resulting from student feedback. It is important that a positive culture exists in which the department makes explicit its commitment to listening to and responding to students’ views. Students in turn have a responsibility to treat the process seriously and thoughtfully.
(e) The SSLC system constitutes the mechanism for evaluating student feedback and for identifying trends across courses offered by the University. Progress on issues identified throughout the year and in previous years should be summarised in an Annual Report and considered by the appropriate
Board/Committee and the University’s SSLC Coordinators.
Your SSLC is not an appropriate forum for raising personal grievances or complaints that involve specific named members of staff or students. Discussions of matters of this nature are often highly subjective and emotive and require alternative channels of communication. Problems that concern another individual should be directed to a
Personal Tutor or other member of staff at your home institution, or at Warwick, the
Head of Department, the University Senior Tutor, Students’ Union Advice and
Welfare Service or the Education Officer.
More information about SSLCs and the SSLC Handbook can be found at www.warwick.ac.uk/go/quality/sslc.
11. Student Academic Complaints Procedure
Students on validated courses should raise any complaints about any aspect of the teaching and learning process through the procedure of the teaching institution, as specified in the validation agreement between the teaching institution and the
University.
6

12. Student Academic Appeals Procedure
(a) For students on validated courses:
‘Appeals against the decisions of the Board of Examiners for a validated course shall be considered either in accordance with the appeals procedure of the teaching institution or in accordance with those set out below and the procedure to be used for each validated course shall be specified in the validation agreement between the University and the teaching institution’.
(University Calendar, Regulations Governing Courses of Study Validated or
Franchised by the University )
(b) For students on franchised or other collaborative courses:
A student required by a Board of Examiners to withdraw from his/her course of study prior to the final-year examination may in most cases appeal against this decision to the Appeals Committee of the relevant Faculty Board if he/she is in possession of evidence which was not available to the Board of
Examiners when its decision was reached. Appeals will not be considered where both the Chair of the Board of Examiners and the Chair of the Appeals
Committee consider that no such relevant evidence has been produced.
Appeals must be submitted within ten days of the publication of the examination results. Further details are given in the relevant section of in the
University Calendar.
Students of the University registered on franchised or other collaborative courses should raise a complaint about any aspect of the teaching and learning process, and the provision made by the University to support that process, using the University’s
Academic Complaints Procedure which can be found at http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/academicoffice/feedback/complain/ . In the first instance, you should raise the complaint in writing with the person responsible for the action which has given rise to the complaint, and if this cannot be resolved satisfactorily the complaint may be raised with the Course Coordinator of the teaching institution or
Warwick department.
If the complaint remains unresolved, you may be able to take it further through the independent student complaints scheme run by the Office of the Independent
Adjudicator for Higher Education (OIA). Further information is available from your
Students’ Union, or from the OIA website at www.oiahe.org.uk
Where a final-year Board of Examiners awards a particular degree classification (including Pass degree), or resolves that a candidate be not awarded a qualification (with no further right of resit), a student may appeal against the Board’s decision within ten days of its publication or notification to a preliminary review panel, on the grounds that:
(i) The candidate is in possession of evidence relevant to his/her examination performance which was not available to the Board of
Examiners when its decision was reached and can provide good reason for not having made the Board of Examiners aware of this evidence; or
(ii) There appears to have been procedural irregularities in the conduct of the examination process; or
7

(iii) There appears to be evidence of prejudice or bias on the part of one or more of the examiners.
Students may only make representations on the grounds set out above and may not use this procedure to dispute the academic judgement of a Board of
Examiners. Appeals will not be considered where the preliminary review panel considers that the evidence provided by a student does not constitute grounds for appeal. Further details are given in the University Calendar,
Regulations Governing Appeals Relating to Decisions of Final-year undergraduate Board of Examiners, which may be found at www.warwick.ac.uk/insite/info/gov/calendar or obtained in hard copy from the
Communications Office, University of Warwick.
8