socsocpol_handbook - Social Work & Social Policy
Trinity College Dublin
B.A. Moderatorship in Sociology and Social Policy
HANDBOOK
This Course Handbook is a guide to students taking the Sociology and Social Policy programme. It is divided into two sections –
Section One provides general information on the Sociology and Social Policy Programme and regulations
Section Two provides general information on Programme Requirements and Module Information
Section Three provides information about the regulations governing examinations, as well as the conventions determining the award of grades in examinations for the B.A. Moderatorship in
Sociology and Social Policy.
Contents
SECTION TWO - PROGRAMME REQUIREMENTS AND MODULE INFORMATION ............ 12
EXAMINATION REGULATIONS AND CONVENTIONS ........................................................ 17
Welcome Address from the Course Director
Dear Student,
We are delighted to welcome both incoming and returning students to a new year of the Sociology and Social Policy programme, one of the flagship programmes offered by the School of Social Sciences and Philosophy and the School of Social Work and Social Policy, Trinity College. We hope that you are enjoying your Freshers Week.
The four years of the degree programme in Trinity is a challenging and rewarding time for everyone and as always and we look forward to helping you have a worthwhile and beneficial academic experience. Trinity College offers multiple opportunities for extra-curricular activities and we would encourage you to get involved in all sides of student life, and make the most of your time here.
This course handbook gives you all the information you need about your courses, module choices, assessment procedures and the associated college regulations. Your individual timetable, containing both your lecture and tutorial group information, will be available to you via your online student portal at my.tcd.ie
when you complete your programme registration.
University life can be bewildering – and not simply for incoming students. There are always new challenges in every new academic year, and so we would urge you to feel free to ask questions if you have any difficulties or confusion whatsoever. You can contact your individual tutor, the course administrative office or either Judy or David if you’ve any query relating to your time here in Trinity.
Wishing you all the best
____________________________
Ms Judy O’Shea
Course Director / Academic Director Social Policy
School of Social Work and Social Policy
_______________________________
Dr David Landy
Academic Director, Sociology
School of Social Sciences & Philosophy
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SECTION 1 - GENERAL INFORMATION
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Course Administration
The Course Administrative Office is located in Room 3023, Arts Building and the opening hours are:
Monday – Thursdays:
Fridays:
9.00 to 13.00 and 14.00 to 17.30
9.00 to 13.00 and 14.00 to 17.00
Telephone
Web:
Email:
01 896 1840 / 896 1298 www.tcd.ie/ssp/socpol/ courseoffice@tcd.ie
Course Director:
Course Administrator:
Ms Judy O’Shea, 01 8963708, osheaju@tcd.ie
Martina Ní Chochláin, 01 8961298,
School of Social Sciences and Philosophy
Staff Contact Information: www.tcd.ie/ssp/staff/
School of Social Work and Social Policy
Staff Contact Information: http://socialwork-socialpolicy.tcd.ie/staff/ nichoclm@tcd.ie
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2014/15 Academic Year
Michaelmas Term
Monday 25 August 2014 Michaelmas Term Begins
Monday 15 September 2014 Fresher's Week Begins
Monday 22 September 2014 Teaching Begins
Monday 3 November 2014 Study Week Begins
Friday 12 December 2014
Friday 12 December 2014
Teaching Ends
Michaelmas Term End
Hilary Term
Monday 12 January 2015
Monday 12 January 2015
Monday 23 February 2015
Friday 3 April 2015
Friday 3 April 2015
Hilary Term Begins
Teaching Begins
Study week Begins
Teaching ends
Hilary term ends
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Important Dates
01 August 2014 Transfer Deadline for continuing JF and Non JF students – transfer back to JF year of a different course
Deadline for changing Module Choices - No further changes allowed 03 October 2014
1 November 2014 Applications forms available to apply for Foundation Scholarship
15 November 2014 Deadline for applications to sit Foundation Scholarship
10 November 2014 Michaelmas Term Tests
05 January 2015 Foundation Scholarship Examinations
01 February 2015 Deadline for applying to go "off-books"
TBC
TBC
TBC
TBC
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02 March 2015
TBC
Hilary Term Tests
Publication of Foundation Scholarship Examination Results
TBC Return of Module Choice Form
27 April-22 May 2015 Annual Examination Period
Publication of Sophister Annual Examination Results
Publication of Freshman Annual Examination Results
Court of First Appeal
Supplemental Examination Period
Publication of Supplemental Examination Results
Court of First Appeal
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Module Choice Registration
In the Junior Freshman year three out of your six modules are mandatory and the remaining three are elective and you are required to register for these module choices through the
Course Office. This process can be carried out by email or by post, and no later than the date as specified on the form – generally mid-September. The Junior Freshman module choice form is available on the College Orientation web site.
Before you proceed into Senior Freshman, Junior Sophister or Senior Sophister year, you are required to register your module choices. Completed module choice forms must be returned to the Course Office by the date as specified on the form (see Dates to
Remember). The Lecture Timetables are arranged during the summer months on the basis of the module choices submitted. Students are advised to carefully consider their module choices before submitting them to the Course Office. While provision is made for change of mind in Michaelmas Term, unfortunately it may not be possible to rearrange timetables to accommodate changes to module choices (or late submission of module choice forms).
Module Choices - Change of Mind
Students who wish to change their options may do so up to the end of the second week of
Michaelmas Term. All module choices must be registered with the Course Office by this time so that students will be included on examination lists. Students should note that module changes will be subject to availability of places and timetable constraints.
Module Timetables
Lecture Timetables are published at least one week before the beginning of the academic year. Once a student is registered, they can view their timetable on their own student portal. The onus is on students to check their timetable at regular intervals, most especially at the beginning of each term for any changes to venues or lecture times.
In order to facilitate students who are contemplating a change of module choice, the entire timetable is posted on the BESS website. Students can revert to this document to check for any possible lecture timetabling clashing that might occur against proposed choices they may be considering.
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Course Transfer Procedures
Should you wish to consider a transfer into another course please consult http://www.tcd.ie/Admissions/undergraduate/apply/transferred/within-trinity/
Students may apply, through their tutor, to the Senior Lecturer for permission to transfer to another course. Transfer applications should be submitted to the Admissions Office using a standard form. While every effort will be made to allow adequately qualified students to change course, it will not be possible to permit a transfer into a course which already has a full complement of students. In no case may students register for a course until their application to transfer has been formally approved and they have received notification from the Senior Lecturer.
The categories of transfer applicants are as follows:
Newly entered Junior Freshman students who in their first term seek to transfer into the
Junior Freshman year of a different course – application by the end of the second week of
Michaelmas term or, if that deadline has passed, transfers will be considered up to the eighth week of Michaelmas term, on a first come, first served basis.
In no case can acceptance of late transfer be cited by students as grounds for poor performance at examinations.
Continuing Junior Freshman students and non Junior Freshman students seeking to transfer into the Junior Freshman year of a different course – application before 1 August where assessment will be on the basis of their original entry qualifications. Students who miss this deadline may apply up to the third week of Michaelmas teaching term.
Continuing Junior Freshman students and non Junior Freshman students seeking to transfer into a year other than the Junior Freshman year of a different course. Students in this category should apply no later than the end of the fifth week of Michaelmas teaching term and will be assessed, after consultation with the departments concerned, on the basis of original entry qualifications and results of College examinations.
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Coursework and Attendance at Classes
In many modules grades in assessment and essay work completed during the year are incorporated in varying ways into the overall annual examination mark. In other modules this is not so, but students nonetheless may be required to attend classes and submit assessment work in these modules. A student is deemed non-satisfactory in a term when more than a third of required work/attendance in that term is missed. Any student who is deemed non-satisfactory in each of the two terms may, in accordance with the regulations laid down by the University Council, be refused permission to take examinations in that year.
All email correspondence from the Course Office will be sent to TCD email addresses only.
Students should check their email on a regular basis.
Examination Regulations – General
General Examination Regulations can be found in the College Calendar
Examination Regulations – Sociology and Social Policy
An information booklet containing information about the procedures governing examinations for Sociology and Social Policy is available on the course website . The booklet provides information on grading conventions, the role of the examiner, re-checking of scripts and appeals.
Foundation Scholarship
All Senior Freshman undergraduate students may compete for the Scholarship provided that their previous conduct has been satisfactory and that they have paid the current annual fee for their registered course of study. Candidates must give notice to the Examinations Office of their intention to take the examination. Where a Court of Examiners has agreed to nominate candidates for election to Scholarship, details of the Court's recommendations are sent to the Examinations Officer for the attention of the Foundation Scholarship Committee.
Elections are made by the Board of the College and are publicly announced on the Monday of Trinity Week.
For further information on Foundation and Non-foundation Scholarships please revert to the Examinations section of the Sociology and Social Policy website . Here you will find in depth information on the composition of Sociology and Social Policy papers, past
Foundation Scholarship papers etc.
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Examination Timetables
Annual, Supplemental and Foundation Examination Timetables are available on the Exams office website . Students are notified by the Examinations Office as to their availability.
Students must ensure that they are available for examinations for the duration of the examination session (see dates to remember). The onus lies on each student to establish the dates, times and venues of examinations by consulting the Exams Office website.
Medical Certificates
Students who consider that illness may prevent them from attending an examination (or any part thereof) should consult their medical adviser and request a medical certificate for an appropriate period. If a certificate is granted, it must be presented to the student's tutor and the relevant departmental office within three days of the beginning of the period of absence from the examination. The tutor must immediately forward the certificate to the
Senior Lecturer's Office. Medical certificates must state that the student is unfit to sit examinations. Medical certificates will not be accepted in explanation for poor performance.
If you fall ill whilst taking an examination, seek assistance from the invigilator. If it is deemed necessary for you to attend the Medical Centre, and you receive medical certification as a result, your attempt at the examination will not be counted. In this way your tutor will be able to apply for a deferral of the examination in question to another examination session. Your examination will not be incremented and when next you take the examination it will be considered your first attempt at the examination.
Students who are granted an excused absence for mid-year tests on the basis of a medical certificate will not be penalised in terms of their annual examination result. However, as no marks can be carried forward to the annual examination, students will have their final exam count for a larger percentage of their mark.
Prize Award -
Anthony Coughlan Prize
This prize was founded in 1999 by a gift from Anthony Coughlan. It is awarded annually, on the recommendation of the court of examiners, to the Senior Sophister student who obtains the highest academic grade or marks in the Moderatorship examination in sociology and social policy provided sufficient merit is shown. Value €127.
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Plagiarism
Plagiarism is interpreted by the University as the act of presenting the work of others as one's own work without acknowledgement, and as such, is considered to be academically fraudulent. The University considers plagiarism to be a major offence and it is subject to the disciplinary procedures of the University. The University's full statement is set out in the
University Calendar, Part I , 'General regulations and Information' .
Off-Books Regulations
The Senior Lecturer may permit students who are in good standing to go ‘off-books’. This may be for personal reasons or on medical grounds where to do so would be in the best interests of the student. ‘Off-Books’ students can be re-admitted to the College in a subsequent year only at the discretion of the Senior Lecturer. ‘Off-Books’ students suffering from ill-health who have allowed their names to go off the books can only be readmitted, even in the current academic year, at the discretion of the Senior Lecturer who may require a satisfactory certificate from a nominated medical referee. For further information please revert to the College Calendar .
My.Tcd.ie - checking your personal student record
My.Tcd.ie allows students to view their own central student record and the modules for which they are registered. To access the system you will need your College username and network password. To access My.Tcd.ie go to the College local home page
(www.tcd.ie/Local) and click on My.Tcd.ie.
If your personal student information is incorrect you should contact the Academic Registry
(via email – academic.registry@tcd.ie) stating your full name and student ID number. If your timetable module list is incorrect then you should notify the Course Office.
Noticeboards
Tutorial lists for Junior Freshman students are posted on the Junior Freshman Course noticeboard located near the School of Social Work and Social Policy, third floor of the Arts
Building.
Transcript of Record
Transcript requests may be made applying on-line on the Sociology and Social Policy website . Due to the large volume of requests for transcripts, you are advised that
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transcripts can take up to one week for completion, somewhat longer in May, June and
July.
Transcripts are never issued to a third party, such as a parent or prospective employer without the consent of the person named on the transcript.
Tutors
All undergraduate students are assigned a tutor when they are admitted to College. Your tutor, who is a member of the teaching staff, will represent you before the College authorities, and will give confidential advice on courses, discipline, examinations, fees and other matters. The tutor is not a supervisor of studies. Students may change their tutor with the approval of the Senior Tutor.
Student 2 Student
Student 2 Student is peer mentoring is a service run in conjunction with the Student
Counselling Service.
Disability Office
Further information on the College Disability Service can be found on their website .
Careers Advisory Service
The College Careers Advisory Service is available to offer advice on internships, career prospects etc.
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SECTION TWO -
PROGRAMME REQUIREMENTS AND MODULE
INFORMATION
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Junior Freshman (First) Year
Students must take modules equivalent to 60 ECTS credits and meet programme requirements. Students must take the following modules: PO1603, SO1311, SS1765. One of
EC1010 or EC1040, and a further two modules - EC1030, LA1240, SS1730, RUF603 or one of the language options.
Code Module
EC1010 Introduction to Economics
EC1030 Mathematical and Statistical Methods
EC1040 Introduction to Economic Policy
SO1311 Introduction to Sociology
PO1603 Politics and Irish Society
SS1765 Social Policy Concepts/The Irish Welfare State
LA1240 Introduction to Law
*FR1040 French
*GR1004 German
RUF100 Russian
PLF100 Polish
RUF603 Introduction to Central, East European and Russian Area Studies
SS1730 Introduction to Psychology
*Minimum entry requirement C2 Honors Leaving Certificate C at A-Level
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Senior Freshman (second) Year
Students must take modules equivalent to 60 ECTS credits and meet programme requirements. Students must take modules SS2767 and SS2785, two of SO2310, SO2330,
SO2342, SO2350 and two of EC2020, EC2030, SS2139, SO2310, SO2330, SO2342, SO2350,
PO2610, PO2640, PO2650, FR2040, GR2004, RUF200*, PLF200* or a cross-faculty Broad
Curriculum module. Module SS2139 and The Broad Curriculum modules have 5 ECTS credits. All other modules have 10 ECTS credits. Students may continue to pursue a module in French, German, Russian*, Polish* as one of their six choices if they have satisfactorily completed it in Junior Freshman year.
Code Module
EC2020 Economy of Ireland
EC2030 Economics of Public Policy
SO2310 Introduction to Social Research
SO2330 European Societies
SO2342 Gender, Culture and Society
SO2350 Power, State and Social Movements
PO2610 History of Political Thought
PO2640 International Relations
PO2650 Comparative Politics
SS2767 Irish Social Policy I
SS2785 Irish Social Policy II
FR2040 French 2
RUF200* Russian 2
PLF200* Polish 2
SS2139 Introduction to Irish Family Law
BC Broad Curriculum
*Subject to Availability
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Junior Sophister (third) Year
Students must take modules equivalent to 60 ECTS credits and meet programme requirements. Students must take two of SO3200, SO3230, SO3240, SO3250, SO3260, two
of SS3380, SS3390, SS3401, two of EC3040, EC3060, LA3435, LA3439, PO3630, PO3670,
PO3680, SO3200, SO3230, SO3240, SO3250, SO3260, SS3380, SS3390, SS3401. Each module has 10 ECTS credits.
Code Module
EC3040 Economics of Less Developed Countries
EC3060 Economics of Policy Issues
LA3435 Public Interest Law
LA3439 International Law
SO3200 Social Theory
SO3230 Globalisation and Development
SO3240 Researching Society
SO3250 Race, Ethnicity and Identity
SO3260 Social Inequality
PO3630 Irish Politics
PO3670 Democracy and Development
PO3680 European Union Politics
SS3380 Comparative Welfare States
SS3390 Crime and Social Policy
SS3401 Families, Youth and Society: Contemporary Issues
Students are required to submit a dissertation at the end of the Senior Sophister year. Both the topic and approach of the dissertation should reflect the interdisciplinary nature of the degree. The dissertation work is begun in the Junior Sophister year. Students should meet with their supervisor on at least three occasions (i) before submission of the dissertation proposal, (ii) before commencement of the actual fieldwork research, and (iii) before writing up final dissertation.
Pre-requisites
LA1240
LA1240
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Senior Sophister (fourth and final) Year
Students must take four modules equivalent to 60 ECTS credits: SO4200, and three further modules taken from SO4230, SO4253, SO4291, SO4292, SS4722, SS4830. Each module has 15
ECTS credits.
Code
SO4200
SO4230
SO4253
SO4291
SO4292
Module
Sociology / Social Policy Dissertation
Economic Sociology of Europe
Conflict Studies
Migration
Popular Culture and Digital Lives
SS4722 Poverty, Inequality and Redistribution
SS4830 Ageing Societies
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SECTION THREE –
SOCIOLOGY AND SOCIAL POLICY
EXAMINATION REGULATIONS AND CONVENTIONS
This section contains information about the regulations governing examinations, as well as the conventions determining the award of grades in examinations for the B.A. Moderatorship in Sociology and Social Policy.
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The Sociology and Social Policy Programme is governed by the Sociology and Social Policy
Course Committee which includes representatives from the Department of Sociology and the
School of Social Work and Social Policy, under the SSP Course Coordinator.
The Sociology and Social Policy Court of Examiners meets twice a year for the purpose of confirming marks and awarding examination grades in the four degree programmes. It comprises all those teaching on the four degree programmes, including staff members from outside the immediate Schools/Departments. In addition, the external examiners attend in the case of degree examinations in the third and fourth years. The role of the Court of
Examiners in awarding examination grades is described in more detail below.
Section 3(a) gives an overview of the rules regarding students’ right to rise with their class, regarding students’ responsibilities to inform themselves about the dates and locations of exams, and regarding the circumstances in which an absence from an exam can be excused.
Section 3(b) contains the conventions used by Sociology and Social Policy Court of Examiners when awarding grades to SSP students on the basis of their run of marks across modules. The main purpose of devising these conventions is to ensure that cases that are fundamentally similar are treated similarly, thus avoiding inconsistent treatment across different Courts of
Examiners or even in the same Court of Examiners. In addition, the existence of a set of guidelines is designed to facilitate fair and efficient Courts of Examiners meetings by minimising the need for discussion of relatively straightforward cases. As is emphasised at the start of Section 3(a), the guidelines are conventions that codify the normal practice of the
Court of Examiners, but the ultimate decision in each case rests with the Court of Examiners.
Section 3(c) outlines the procedures for publishing exam results, for rechecking the marks, and for appealing against a decision of the Court of Examiners.
Section 3(d) outlines some additional responsibilities of examiners.
While every attempt has been made to ensure that the information presented in this section is accurate, the final word on all matters herein is the official College Calendar which takes precedence should a contradiction emerge.
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Section 3(a) General
Satisfactory completion of year
The right to take examinations
In many modules, grades in assessment and essay work done during the year are incorporated in varying ways into the annual examination mark. In other modules this is not so, but students nonetheless may be required to attend classes and submit assessment work in these modules. A student is deemed non-satisfactory in a term when more than a third of required work/attendance in that term is missed. Any student who is deemed non-
satisfactory in each of the first two terms may be reported to the Senior Lecturer. In accordance with the regulations laid down by the University Council such students may be refused permission to take examinations in that year.
To be allowed to sit the ordinary examinations a student must have paid the relevant
College annual fees and must not have been excluded by the Senior Lecturer on the basis of non-satisfactory reports from the relevant department. There is no examination fee payable and no notice is required of intention to take an examination (the Scholarship examination is an exception to this).
Freshman and Junior Sophister years
To rise with their class students must pass the Junior Freshman examination, the Senior
Freshman examination and obtain an overall II.2 grade or higher in the Junior Sophister examination. Each successful candidate is, according to merit, awarded one of three grades: first class honors, second class honors (with two divisions, first and second) and pass. Where relevant, Junior Sophister results contain the information MP (meaning the candidate may proceed to SS year) or P (meaning the candidate is entitled to a Pass degree, but must take one or more supplemental examinations in order to reach the required standard to proceed to the SS year).
Candidates who are unsuccessful at the annual examinations may, at the discretion of the
Sociology and Social Policy Court of Examiners, be permitted to present themselves at the supplemental examinations (see section 3(a) Excused Absences). Candidates who are unsuccessful at the supplemental examinations may, at the discretion of the Sociology and
Social Policy Court of Examiners, be permitted to repeat the year.
Candidates who have passed the Junior Sophister examination normally may have the ordinary degree of BA (pass) conferred if they do not choose, or have not qualified, to proceed to the Senior Sophister year.
Students are not permitted to repeat a year more than once or repeat more than two separate years.
Senior Sophister year
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Candidates who proceed to the Senior Sophister year sit their degree examinations in the
Trinity term. A student can sit these examinations only once and there are no supplemental examinations.
Students unavoidably absent from these examinations may apply to the Senior Lecturer to present themselves for the equivalent examinations in the following year. If they are permitted to do so, without having to repeat lectures or course work, they must give notice of their intention of taking the examinations at least three weeks before the end of Hilary teaching term and pay the relevant examination fee.
Registering modules and sitting the examinations
Full time TCD students must register their final module choices with the Course Office before the end of week 2 of Michaelmas term as otherwise their names will not appear on any examination lists. Students are required to take the annual examinations of all modules for which they are registered unless specially exempted by permission from the Senior
Lecturer.
It is the responsibility of each student to ensure that they take sufficient modules to amount to 60 ECTS during an academic year, that their selected modules meet the programme requirements of the particular year of the degree course for which he or she is registered, and that he or she has included any prerequisites for modules he or she wishes to take in subsequent years.
The onus lies on each student to find out the dates of examinations by consulting the relevant website(s). Examination timetables will be arranged by the Examinations Office and will normally be published about three weeks before the commencement of examinations. Students are advised to check on-line (Exams Office website) the week before examinations commence to ensure that no changes have been made to the timetable. No timetable or reminder will be sent to individual students by any office.
Excused absences
A student who through illness, or some other unforeseen and exceptional circumstance, has cause to miss an examination must contact his/her tutor, as well as the relevant departmental office, at the earliest possible opportunity but in any case not later than
three days after the beginning of the period of absence from the examination in order to have that absence considered as 'excused'. In the case of illness, a medical certificate will be required. Medical certificates must state that the student is unfit to sit the examinations. Students may leave an examination if they are ill provided they go directly to the Student Medical Centre, and if a medical certificate is granted absence from that examination will be excused. Where an examination has been completed, subsequent withdrawal is not permitted and the mark awarded will stand. Medical certificates or other extenuating circumstances will not be accepted in explanation of poor performance.
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Inclusion/Exclusion of course work
Where a student is permitted to present for supplemental examination(s) or to repeat a year off-books (i.e. fail followed subsequently by off-books – exams only), course work in general is not incorporated in the determination of the student’s subsequent result(s).
Students must be notified of any exception to this general principle.
Where inclusion of course work in a student’s result for the year is the normal procedure for a given module, this will also apply to (i) Senior Sophister students who have been given permission to defer examinations for a year (i.e. defer exams); and (ii) Freshman and Junior
Sophister students who have been given permission to withdraw from all, or part, of the annual examination and to sit, as a first attempt, a supplemental examination in that year.
Exclusion
Those who fail to appear at an examination and who fail to provide medical or other evidence which can justify an excused absence (see section 3(a) Excused Absences above) will normally be excluded from the Sociology and Social Policy Programme (see section 3(b)
Overall Grade: General for other grounds for exclusion).
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Section 3(b) Grading Conventions
The Sociology and Social Policy Court of Examiners determines the overall grade awarded to a particular student taking into account whatever other evidence of an academic nature is deemed appropriate. These conventions codify the normal decisions of the Court as to a student’s overall grade, given certain combinations of individual paper grades, and will be departed from only in exceptional circumstances. Should the Court of Examiners, in exceptional circumstances, decide to depart from the Sociology and Social Policy programme conventions, all students who are deemed to be in equivalent positions will be treated equivalently.
In this section, a mark of 30+ means a mark in the range 30–39 inclusive, 35+ means a mark in the range 35-39 inclusive, 40+ means 40–49 inclusive, 50+ means 50–59 inclusive, 60+ means 60–69 inclusive, and 70+ means 70-100 inclusive.
Individual Papers
Individual examination papers are graded using the following classifications.
I 70 - 100 F1 30 - 39
II.1 60 - 69
II.2 50 - 59
F2 < 30
III 40 - 49
It is important to realise that the marks in individual papers are essentially useful symbols for grading and ranking students in a module in a consistent and equitable manner. For example, a mark of 40 means that the examiner is definite that this student should pass and a mark of 38 or lower that the student should fail: if the examiner considers the paper to be marginal, a mark of 39 (which should be regarded as provisional) would be returned and it is then left to the discretion of the Court of Examiners, based on the overall examination performance of the student, to decide whether to raise the mark to 40 or leave it as it is (see section 3(b) Overall Grade (ii) below). Examiners and students alike must accept that these marks, close though they may be in an arithmetic sense, symbolise very different things and will normally have very different consequences for an individual student’s overall examination result.
Overall grade: General
The following conventions apply to all years.
(i) The overall mark (and associated grade) for a year is the weighted average of all module results, using the ECTS credit rating for the weighting of each module.
(ii) Students are excluded from the SSP programme if they pass in two papers or fewer and receive a mark less than 20 in two or more papers. (For example, the following set of marks would lead to exclusion in any of the first three years: 54, 48, 36, 37,
15, 10).
(iii) A mark of 69/59/49/39/34/29 is raised only when it is crucial and when the arithmetic average (which can be rounded up from 69.5 etc) before the change is
70+/60+/50+/40+/35+/30+. No more than one mark shall be raised in this way.
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(iv) Where a student sits an extra examination paper (i.e. an examination in a module for which the student is not registered), the Court of Examiners will determine the student’s grade on the basis of the marks in the modules for which the student was registered.
Overall grade: Freshman years and Junior Sophister
(i) In order to pass, a student must pass all modules worth in total 60 credits or pass by compensation. In order to pass by compensation, a student must have an overall arithmetic mean of 40+ and [(pass modules totalling 55 credits and get a mark of 30+ in the failed module) or (pass modules totalling 50 credits and get a mark (or marks) of 35+ in the failed module(s))]. Note that some modules are non-compensatable as below
(ii) Only students in the Freshman years and Junior Sophister year (subject to (vi) and (vii) below) who do not pass are allowed/required to repeat modules they have failed.
(iii) The marks of the papers passed in the summer examinations in the Freshman years are considered together with those obtained in the autumn examinations. The standard compensation and exclusion rules apply to this combined set of results.
(iv) In the case of students who have been given permission to withdraw from or defer all or part of the annual examinations and to sit a supplemental examination in that year, the
(v) overall result in the autumn will be graded.
The overall end of year result for students who pass on the basis of marks achieved at a supplemental exam or exams will be recorded as ‘Pass at Supplemental’.
Junior Sophister- Specific Rules
(vi) In the Junior Sophister year, students must obtain an overall II.2 grade to be allowed to proceed to the Senior Sophister year. This includes those who are doing all or a part of the year abroad.
(vii) Students in the Junior Sophister year need repeat only one paper in the autumn examinations in order to attain an overall II.2, provided they only require a mark of
40+ in the paper in question to do so. Otherwise, students must repeat all papers in which they did not achieve at least a mark of 50+ in order to attain an overall II.2
(i.e. May Proceed).
Overall grade: Senior Sophister
Only one attempt at the Senior Sophister examination is permitted.
Sociology & Social Policy
In order to pass Senior Sophister, a student must pass all modules worth in total 60 credits or pass by compensation. In order to pass by compensation, a student must have an overall arithmetic mean of 40+ and (pass modules totalling 45 credits and get a mark of 30+ in the failed module)].
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Scholarship Examination
Candidates are examined in four papers drawn from the modules of their course up to the end of Michaelmas term of the Senior Freshman year. The scope of each paper is described in the examination section of the relevant Course website. The general structure of the
Scholarship examination in the Sociology and Social Policy programme is described below.
From the academic year 2013-14 onwards, recommendations for scholarship will be based on the arithmetic average achieved across all four papers, subject to all four papers being passed.
A necessary but not sufficient condition for recommendation for scholarship will be achieving a mark of 70+ in at least half of the four papers.
Sociology and Social Policy
The examination consists of four 2¼ hour papers as follows:
Sociology I and II
Social Policy I and II
All papers carry equal weight.
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3(c) Recheck, Appeal and Transcript of Results
Retention of Scripts
Examination scripts shall be held by examiners, or departmental offices for a period of 13 months. This period of 13 months begins on the day of publication of the relevant examination results. Scripts cannot be released to students, but students may read their own scripts in the presence of the relevant examiner.
Re-checks and Re-marks
Students are entitled to discuss their performance with examiners after examination results have been published. If a mark is revised, the Director/Coordinator of the Sociology and Social Policy programme should be notified of the mark change. The Director/Coordinator will, by reference to the SSP Programme conventions, amend the overall grade as appropriate and, where necessary, inform the tutor, Head(s) of Department, Director of
Undergraduate Teaching and Learning of the School, and the Senior Lecturer.
Having discussed their performance with the examiner(s) and ascertained that the mark in question was correctly calculated, students may ask that their results be re-considered if they have reason to believe
(a) that the examination paper contained questions on modules which were not part of the module prescribed for the examination, or
(b) that bias was shown by an examiner in marking the script.
Through their tutor, students may appeal to the Senior Lecturer. In submitting their case, students should state under which of (a) or (b) above the request is being made.
Appeals
Students may appeal a decision of the Court of Examiners. The grounds for appeal must fall under one or more of the following categories: (i) the case of the appellant is not adequately covered by the ordinary regulations of the College, (ii) the regulations of the
College were not properly applied in the appellant's case, or (iii) the appeal is ad
misericordiam.
Appeals in the first instance must be made to the Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Humanity &
Social Sciences.
As the Appeal Committee meets to hear these appeals within one week of the publication of results, it is imperative that students, or authorised and adequately briefed deputies, are present to obtain and consider results as soon as they become available.
Appeals should be made via electronic form by a student’s tutor or, if the tutor is unavailable to act, by the Senior Tutor. (See Calendar for further details regarding the
College’s Academic Appeals procedures.)
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Transcripts
Transcripts of grades received, both by individual module and overall, can be obtained from the Course Office, either during a student’s time in College and/or on completion of the degree.
Transcripts will include the set of grades that permit students to rise with their year and the set of grades that form the basis of the award of the degree. The transcript will make explicit whether or not one or two sittings were required (supplemental in a paper for which there was an excused absence is not a separate sitting) and whether or not a year is repeated. The grades achieved on the second sitting will be indicated clearly. Where more than one sitting was required the overall grade will always be recorded as a pass/fail.
The Scholarship Examination is an exception to the above. This examination will not be reflected on the student transcript unless the student has obtained Scholarship, in which case such information, if requested, shall appear (by way of asterisk and explanation) below the grades for Senior Freshman year.
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3(d) Role of Examiners
Apart from the duties described above, examiners have a number of other important responsibilities in relation to examination procedures. The main ones are as follows.
(i) Where a test/essay/project counts towards the final mark, this fact must be made known to students before the end of the second week of the teaching module in question. The extent to which it is taken into account, the arrangements should students have legitimate reasons to be excused from doing the relevant work at the appropriate time, and the penalties that attach to non-submission or unexcused late submission of such work should all be made clear to the students as early as possible, and not later than the end of the second week of the teaching module in question. Students required to submit essays, assignments or other projects counting towards their final or end-of -year result must be given advance notice of how (e.g. the appropriateness, or otherwise, of electronic submission), where and to whom the work is to be submitted. Following the due submission date, and as soon as practicably possible, a list of names of students from whom work has been received should be published on the departmental noticeboard and/or emailed to all students registered as taking the relevant module. Beyond these requirements, it is not the examiner’s responsibility to follow up on missing (i.e. nonsubmitted) coursework.
(ii) Tests/essays/projects should be handed back to students as quickly as the marking process will allow, and only in very exceptional circumstances should the gap between submission and return of work ever exceed six weeks.
(iii) The examination paper must be a fair and reasonable reflection of the module content.
Guidelines concerning the broad format of the paper and the type of question to be set must be provided to students, as early as possible and certainly not later than the end of the second week in the Trinity teaching term.
(iv) Examiners or competent deputies must be present at examinations during the first fifteen minutes of an examination so that difficulties arising from examination papers may be resolved expeditiously. If examiners are unable to be present at the examination, they must be readily contactable by telephone.
(v) Where more than one internal examiner is involved in a paper, the mark recorded must be agreed by all examiners concerned. In the case of a paper being graded by an external examiner (applies normally only in Sophister years), the judgement of the latter is communicated to the relevant examiner(s) and is normally accepted as final.
(vi)A second opinion on scripts for which a borderline fail is being proposed is, where practicable, advised. In the case of the Sophister years this would normally be provided by the external examiner.
(vii)Examiners must return numerical results to the relevant Department and these are then available to the Course Office, usually to reach that office at least four working days before the meeting of the Court of Examiners. Marks agreed with the external
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examiner must where possible be submitted not later than the morning prior to the relevant Court of Examiners’ meeting.
(viii)Marks of 69/59/49/39/34/29 returned by examiners are taken to indicate that the examiners are willing to have the mark adjusted by the Court of Examiners in the light of the candidate's performance in all papers, in particular the arithmetic average achieved (see sections 3(b) Individual Papers and 3(b) Overall Grade: General above).
(ix) Where practicable, all cases where a student is likely to be excluded from the
Programme are drawn to the attention of tutors by the Course Office prior to the meeting of the Court of Examiners.
(x) Examiners or adequately briefed deputies must attend examiners' meetings.
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