Extract from General Regulations for Taught Programmes

5.

2011/12

Examination Regulations

The following regulations apply to all examinations.

Registration for Examinations
5.1 Students are required to register for examinations as part of the module registration process by the
published deadlines.
Examination Timetable
5.2 Examinations will be held in accordance with the published timetable which will be available at
least 4 weeks before the commencement of the examination period and will include the date, time
and venue of each examination.
5.3 Examinations are held on six days a week from Monday to Saturday and are normally scheduled
for two sessions a day starting at 9.30 am and 2.30 pm.
5.4 Students should read the Examination Timetable carefully to ensure that they have been correctly
entered for their examinations and know the time, date and location of the examinations they are
required to take.
5.5 Misreading the Examination Timetable will not be accepted as a satisfactory explanation for
absence from an examination.
5.6 Special arrangements cannot be made to accommodate students personal preferences, unless these
arise from specific religious requirements identified by the student at the beginning of the academic
year, or are associated with support measures identified by the AccessAbility Centre.
5.6 The extent to which the timetabling of examinations can be adapted to meet specific religious
requirements will vary from case to case but the University will make such special arrangements as
are in its power, subject to the overriding requirements that the examinations must be scheduled
within the published examination periods and that special arrangements for individual students
must not disadvantage the majority. Students making requests for special arrangements on religious
grounds should recognise that, where it is possible, special measures designed to meet their needs
may involve an unavoidable element of inconvenience, for example the requirement to remain
incommunicado for a period of time.
5.7 Students are required to be available throughout all formal examination and marking periods (i.e.
until the end of term) to answer any queries from the examiners or the Examinations Office or to
attend for a viva voce examination if required. Students who cannot be contacted will be subject to
such academic penalties as the examiners see fit (including in relation to the illegibility of a script
the award of a mark of zero).
Setting Examination Papers
5.8 The Academic Registrar will publish annually deadlines for the submission of examination
question papers.
5.9 All examination papers must be produced on standard University question paper proformas which
can be obtained from the Examinations Office.
Security of Examination Papers and Stationery
5.10 Examination papers and examination stationery will be held in a secure environment until the time
for their release to students.
Invigilation
5.11 There will be a prescribed number of invigilators in each examination room.
5.12 Heads of Department are responsible for appointing the required number of invigilators from their
Department. Such staff will act as Chief Invigilators and Invigilators. Additional Assistant
Invigilators will be recruited by the Examinations Office.
5.13 Invigilation arrangements for examinations are set out in the guidance notes issued by the
Examinations Office.
5.14 Training for invigilators will be provided on an annual basis by the Examinations Office.

Examination Regulations

5.15 Invigilators are required to comply with instructions issued by the Examinations Office and to
ensure that they are aware of their obligations as specified in the Guidance Notes for Invigilators.
5.16 Chief Invigilators must collect examination papers from the Examinations Office at least 30
minutes prior to the start of the examination. Other invigilators must report to the examination
room at least 20 minutes before the examination is due to commence.
5.17 Chief Invigilators are required to start and finish examinations in accordance with the instructions
issued by the Examinations Office
5.18 Chief Invigilators will be required to complete a report form on the conduct of each examination
for submission to the Examinations Office.
5.19 If the author of an examination paper is not an invigilator for the relevant examination he/she
should normally be in attendance 10 minutes before and for the first fifteen minutes of an
examination. Where it is not possible for the author to be present he/she should ensure that their
contact details are available or another member of the department is present in their place in order
that any issues relating to the examination paper can be addressed.
Conduct during Examinations
5.20 Invigilators are present at all examinations and are responsible for their proper conduct. Students
are required to comply with all instructions issued by an invigilator.
5.21 Students will be admitted to the examination room by an invigilator shortly before an examination
is due to start. Once admitted to the room examination conditions apply so no talking is permitted.
5.22 Students should sit at a desk allocated for the paper they are sitting in accordance with the notices
posted outside the examination room.
5.23 Students should only bring essential items to examinations as there is limited storage for personal
items within examination rooms.
5.24 Students are not permitted to wear coats, scarves, hats or outdoor wear, except where
exemption applies for religious reasons, during examinations. Invigilators will request
students to remove any clothing of this type and to place it in the area reserved for storage of
personal items for the duration of the examination.
5.25 Students must bring their own pens, pencils, rulers and any other required equipment to each
examination. These should be kept in a clear plastic pencil case. Cases and other containers are not
permitted on examination desks. Additional material may only be used if issued by an invigilator or
where it is specifically allowed in the examination paper rubric.
5.26 Food and drink are not permitted in the examination room with the exception of water which, if
required, should be in a clear plastic bottle with no label.
5.27 Students should bring their University ID card to all examinations and display it on their desk
throughout the examination. ID cards will be checked by an invigilator once the examination has
started.
5.28 Students should complete an attendance slip and place it on their desk for collection by the
invigilator once the examination has started.
5.29 Students should enter their student number, not their name, on the examination booklet. The
student number is the nine digit number on the students University ID card.
5.30 Examinations will start and finish on the instruction of the invigilator. Students must not open
examination papers or start writing until instructed to do so.
5.31 Valuable items such as keys, purses and mobile telephones may be placed in the clear plastic bags
provided on each desk and placed under the students chair. Mobile telephones must be turned off
and no items should be touched during the examination.
5.32 The use of mobile telephones or other electronic devices is not permitted. If a mobile telephone or
other electronic device is not placed in the plastic bag provided and is found on a student during the
course of an examination it will be regarded as a disciplinary offence.
5.33 Students must write legibly. Students submitting illegible scripts will be required to report to their
department so that arrangements can be made to have their work legibly transcribed, under
examination conditions. All costs associated with this process will be paid by the student.

Examination Regulations

5.34 Talking or communicating in any other way with other students in the examination room before,
during or after an examination is forbidden. Failure to observe this requirement will be treated as a
disciplinary offence.
5.35 If a student wishes to speak to an invigilator they should raise their hand and stay in their seat.
5.36 The University operates a zero tolerance policy in relation to cheating in examinations. Invigilators
will announce at the beginning of each examination that it is an offence for students to be in
possession of any notes or other documents or to have any information written on their body or
clothing. The invigilators will ask anyone with such material to raise their hand. The documentary
material will then be collected and the opportunity provided for information on the body or
clothing to be removed. After this point, if any student is discovered with such material or with any
information written on any part of their body or clothing in the examination room it will be
automatically assumed that cheating has taken place and the consequence will be the award of a
mark of zero to the module.
5.37 Any student wishing to leave the examination room temporarily should raise their hand to request
permission from an invigilator. Students permitted to leave the room will be escorted by an
invigilator. Any student who leaves the room without an invigilators permission will be deemed to
have withdrawn from the examination and will not be allowed to return. The Chief Invigilator will
provide a report to the Examinations Office in such cases.
5.38 Any student who causes a disturbance in an examination room will be reprimanded by an
invigilator. If the conduct persists the student may be required to withdraw from the examination
room and a report will be made to the Academic Registrar.
5.39 Students who arrive late may be admitted to an examination room during the first 30 minutes of an
examination. No additional time will be given.
5.40 Students are not permitted to leave an examination during the first 30 minutes or the last 20
minutes. In examination rooms where papers of mixed duration are being taken students are only
permitted to leave at the invigilators discretion.
5.40 Students wishing to leave an examination early must inform the invigilator and must remain in
their seat until their script has been collected. They must leave the examination room quietly with
minimum disturbance both inside and immediately outside the examination room.
5.41 At the end of an examination the invigilator will instruct students to stop writing. Students must
remain seated at their desks until all scripts have been collected by an invigilator and they are
instructed that they may leave.
5.42 No answer book or part of an answer book, whether used or not, may be removed from the
examination room.
Alternative Examination Arrangements
5.43 Alternative examination arrangements may be made for students with long or short term medical
conditions, specific learning difficulties or disabilities, subject to the overall requirement that
academic standards should be maintained.
5.44 Requests for alternative examination arrangements on the grounds of specific learning difficulties
must be notified to the Examinations Office by the AccessAbility Centre. Only recommendations
supported by the AccessAbility Centre will be considered. Requests for alternative examination
arrangements on the grounds of either short or long term medical conditions must be made to the
Examinations Office with the support of a doctor from the Freemens Common Health Centre.
5.45 Alternative arrangements for students may include the following:
(a) Additional time usually a provision of up to an additional 15 minutes per hour for each
examination taken
(b) Amanuensis
(c) Word processors supplied by the University
(d) Special location
Use of Calculators and Dictionaries
5.46 Except where special arrangements apply the use of programmable calculators is forbidden. Where
the use of such calculators is permitted only specified models may be used and any unauthorised

Examination Regulations

calculators will be confiscated. Any suspected misuse of calculators will be reported to the
Academic Registrar as a possible disciplinary offence.
5.47 English Language dictionaries are available in examination rooms and may be consulted through
the invigilator who, upon request, will bring the dictionary to the students desk. No assistance with
the use of the dictionary is permitted. Students are not permitted to bring their own dictionaries or
electronic translators into the examination room.
Action in the Event of a Fire Alarm
5.48 In the event of a fire alarm during an examination students will be instructed by the invigilator to
stop what they are doing, leave all materials on their desk and make their way to the nearest fire
exit. Students must not communicate with each other and examination conditions will be
maintained.