Exam and assessment FAQs

If you have questions about anything to do with your teaching or assessment, then in the first instance you should contact your Module Leader. If your Module Leader is unavailable (for example, due to illness), then please contact your Course Leader.

If you have questions concerning any other aspect of the University’s services, then please consult the Student Hub in the first instance. If the answer you need is not there, you will find details of how to contact the relevant service team.

You may be able to apply for individual exam arrangements.

Your Module Leader is responsible for keeping you informed, via Blackboard and/or email, of all the specific arrangements for your module assessments. Your Module Leader will be in regular contact with you.

If you are unclear about any aspect of the arrangements, you should contact your Module Leader in the first instance.

If your Module Leader is unavailable (for example, due to illness), then please contact your Course Leader.

If you are unable to complete your assessment due to circumstances beyond your control, you should submit a mitigating circumstances claim, and request either an extension (available for coursework only) or a deferral (available for both coursework and exams).

There are three main exam periods each academic year when the University runs on-site exams and online timed assessments.

• January: Semester 1 exams
• May: Semester 2 exams
• Summer reassessment period

For all the key academic dates, please view our term dates.

Exam timetables and their publication dates are provided on our Exam timetables page.

The timetable for exams taking place in January will be published to students in November.

The exam timetable for exams taking place in May will be published to students in March.

The exam timetable for the reassessment period will be available after publication of results in June.

Exams are held Monday-Friday and there are no exams on weekends or on public holidays.

Both on-site exams and online timed assessments normally start as follows, but check your exam timetable carefully in case of changes:

• Monday-Thursday: 10am, 2pm and 6pm
• Friday: 10am and 2pm

Note that you may have an exam scheduled in any of the available slots, including the evening, even if you only study during the day.

Information about exam clashes is provided on our Exam clashes page.

If you have a long-term disability or condition, make sure you register with Disability Learning Support so that your needs can be assessed and appropriate arrangements made in plenty of time.  Please refer to further information on the Individual Exam Arrangements page.

If you are entitled to additional time for an on-site exam, this is already accounted for within online assessments which have a 24-hour submission window – no further time will be allowed or required.

If your exam is a much shorter time-limited assessment, you will be advised about any additional time allowed.

If you would expect to have a scribe/amanuensis, the Disability Learning Services (DLS) team will ensure that appropriate assistive technology is available to support you in your assessments.

If you’ve had an accident that may affect your ability to sit exams, check our Individual exam arrangements for temporary conditions page for details of what to do next.

If you feel you're too ill to sit the exam, you should follow the mitigating circumstances procedure.

If you feel that you're able to sit the exam, you may do so, but please note that the University operates a ‘fit to sit’ policy, which means that if you attend the exam, you have deemed yourself fit to do so and are not eligible to submit a mitigating circumstances claim for that assessment.

Because of the large number of exams that need to be scheduled in a short timeframe, sometimes students will have two exams in one day. You wouldn't normally be expected to sit any more than two exams in one day.

Sometimes it's impossible to avoid students having exams on consecutive days, because of the number of exams that need to be scheduled in a short timeframe and the different module choices that students make.

Exams will be undertaken either on-site or as online timed assessments. You should check the assessment requirements for your module(s). Further guidance is provided below.

These assessments will happen during normal class time, your Module Leader will tell you when the assessment will be, the arrangements for it and how long you will have to complete the test. 

The Module Leader will let you know how Individual Examination Arrangements will be administered.  

Where the University believes that academic misconduct has taken place the University will investigate the case and apply academic penalties as published in Section 10 Academic Misconduct regulations.

On-site exams are conducted on Campus under strict examination conditions (silence, and no consultation of unauthorised materials), monitored by invigilators.

The majority of on-site exams are scheduled to take place at our Marylebone Campus (though some will be scheduled elsewhere depending on the availability of specialist resources required for the exam). This means that your exams may take place on a different Campus to the one you usually attend. If you have a long term health condition or disability that will make travelling or attending an exam at another location difficult, you may be able to ask for reasonable adjustments to be made – please see our Individual Exam Arrangements page for further information.

When taking on-site exams there are some important rules and regulations to follow which can be found in Section 7 of the Academic Regulations. Failing to follow these rules could mean you’re in breach of the Academic Regulations.

Regulations relating to exams and other forms of assessment can be found in Part 3 of our academic regulations and you can find information about misconduct on our Academic misconduct page.

Some key things to note include:

• Bring your Westminster ID card to all on-site exams and make sure you display it on your desk during the exam
• If you are late, you can be admitted up to 30 minutes after the start of the exam
• You cannot leave the exam during the first 30 minutes and the last 15 minutes
• Always follow the exam invigilator’s instructions
• Do not enter the exam room until the invigilator says you may do so
• Be silent and stay in your seat during the exam
• Do not write or make any notes until the invigilator says you may do so
• If you have any questions or need help during the exam, raise your hand and the invigilator will come to see you
• At the end of the exam, stay silent and seated until the invigilator says you may leave the room

You should avoid bringing personal or valuable belongings with you to the examination room. The University cannot accept any responsibility for the loss, theft or damage to any private property left in examination rooms or other designated areas.

If you are found in possession of any unauthorised material or items it is against the rules, even if you do not intend to use them, and therefore you will be subject to investigation for academic misconduct.

Equipment

Only electronic devices permitted within the rubric of the paper are allowed into the examination room. 

You will be notified by your Module Leader if you are permitted to use a calculator or any other equipment as part of the examination, and only approved models will be permitted in the examination room. You must not take into the examination room any calculator or equipment cases or instruction leaflets.

Personal TVs/stereos, laptops, tablets, electronic or radio communication devices, including mobile telephones, are not permitted. Due to the availability of smart and cheat watches all watches must be removed, switched off and placed in bags in the designated area.

You must supply your own permitted devices such as calculators or headphones as the University does not provide these. 

Personal belongings

You must follow the instructions of the invigilators and leave all hats, bags, coats and other personal belongings in the designated area, usually at the back of the examination room. Coats, hats and bags may not be hung on the back of your seat. Watch alarms or other devices which could create noise should be deactivated.

Stationery items

You must not have any revision notes or papers that are not allowed during the examination on your person or in close proximity to your desk.

If a dictionary or statute book is permitted within the rubric of the paper, this must be supplied by you.

Only bring to your desk the black or blue pens, pencils, or any other materials or equipment that are permitted in the rubric of the paper. You may store these in a transparent pencil case or clear plastic bag.

If you are unsure what is permitted, check with your Module Leader BEFORE the examination day.

Food and drink

You may bring unwrapped sweets and water in a clear, unlabelled plastic bottle into the examination room.

You may NOT bring any other food or drink items into the examination room unless this is agreed in the Reasonable Adjustment Form approved by Disability Learning Support. Only students who can provide a letter from Student Disability Services, that grants them permission to eat, will be allowed to do so.

Online assessments will be released to students via Blackboard at the time and date that the assessment is scheduled on the exam timetable. For example, if your assessment is scheduled for 10am on 26 April, that is when it will be released to you on Blackboard. 

For most online timed assessments you will have 24 hours in which to complete and upload your work, using the Blackboard submission link. For some modules, where the nature of the assessment requires it, you will have less than 24 hours in which to complete and submit your work. Full details will be provided to you by your Module Leader. You should note that your online timed assessment is not expected to take longer to complete than the originally planned time (2 or 3hrs for example). The 24 hours provides a window of time for you to complete and upload as required.

Your Module Leader will be available on Blackboard during the first hour of the online assessment to answer any questions you might have and will check in periodically throughout the submission period to address any other issues that have been raised.

How to open and submit your online timed assessments on Blackboard

There are three main steps that you need to follow:

Step 1:

Login to Blackboard and go to the relevant Blackboard module site where you will find a dedicated menu area for the Timed Assessment for that module.

Step 2:

Inside this area, you will find the online timed assessment paper which includes the questions and any instructions. This will become available to you at the time that the online timed assessment is set to start and remain available for 24-hours. Some online timed assessments will need to be completed in less than 24 hours, your Module Leader will confirm if this applies to your assessment.

You can download the online timed assessment paper to open it offline on your computer.

Please remember, however, that you can remain online and use the Discussion Board with the Timed Assessment area in the Blackboard site if you have any queries for the module leader about the assessment.

Step 3:

In the Timed Assessment area of the Blackboard site you will also find an assignment submission link. This will be available to you for 24-hours from the time that the online timed assessment starts. Some online timed assessments will need to be completed in less than 24 hours, your module leader will confirm if this applies to your assessment.

To submit your response to the assessment, login to Blackboard and go back to the Blackboard site for the module and click to enter the Timed Assessment area in the site. Click on the submission link and follow the instructions you will see on-screen to submit your exam.

You must submit within the 24-hour period given to you (or alternative time period allowed as advised by your module leader). Please ensure you follow all the steps to get a digital receipt of your submission. Only one attempt at this assessment will be graded. However, if you accidentally attach the wrong file, you have one further opportunity to submit the correct file before the deadline. Only the last file submitted will be accepted for grading and you cannot amend the file after the deadline has passed.

We advise that you use either Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox browsers to submit your work. Please avoid using the Safari browser or Microsoft Edge.

Further detailed guidance:

• Accessing and navigating Blackboard 
• Online assignment submission

You can also download a Word Doc version of how to open and submit your online timed assessments on Blackboard below:

Your assessment will be available in the 'Content' area of the relevant module Blackboard site in a folder named 'Timed Assessment'.

If you have a disability and are registered with the Disability Learning Support Team, and you have concerns about your upcoming timed assessment, please get in touch with DLS: [email protected].

Further information can be found on the Disability Learning Support page.

You should upload your submission in a Microsoft Word format (.doc or .docx) using the assignment submission link in the Timed Assessment area of the relevant Blackboard site. Your module leader will provide specific instructions if you have to embed pictures or diagrams or use a different file format.

Your Module Leader will be available via the Discussion Board in the Timed Assessment area of the relevant Blackboard site during the first hour of the timed assessment period to answer any queries about the assessment. Staff will also check the discussion board at periodic intervals during the 24-hour period in order to support students in different time zones.

You should use the mitigating circumstances procedure to request a deferral for the assessments that you are not able to complete.

Your Module Leader will provide information on the amount of time you should spend on the assessment within the 24-hour window. You should not leave submitting your answers until the very last minute. We recommend that you start the submission process at least one hour before the end of the 24-hour period.

Your module leader will provide an indicative word count for each question to give you a guide on how much you should be writing.

Another way we are ensuring that the work you complete during the online assessments is your own is that we do not undertake anonymous marking of these assessments. If your course team do not think that you have produced the work yourself, they may ask you to undertake a viva to help them to assess whether the work is your own.

Yes, plagiarism detection software will be in use. As you will have access to resources to complete your assessment, any content you use from external source materials will need to be referenced correctly. Whenever you directly quote, paraphrase, or summarise someone else’s ideas, you have a responsibility to give due credit to that person for their work. Support can be found on the Referencing your work page.

Where the University believes that academic misconduct has taken place the University will investigate the case in line with its academic misconduct policy if required and apply academic penalties as published in Section 10 Academic Misconduct regulations.

This is an individual piece of work so do not collude with others on your answers as this is an academic offence.

Where the University believes that academic misconduct has taken place the University will investigate the case in line with its academic misconduct policy if required and apply academic penalties as published in Section 10 Academic Misconduct regulations.

Work submitted after the deadline will not be marked and will automatically be given a mark of zero.

If you are normally entitled to additional time in an exam, this additional time is already accounted for within those online assessments which have a 24-hour submission window – no further time will be allowed or required.

If your assessment is a much shorter time-limited assessment, your Module Leader will advise on these arrangements. However, please be reassured that you will not be disadvantaged.

If you would expect to have a scribe/amanuensis, the Disability Learning Services (DLS) team is currently working with the Learning Innovation team to ensure that appropriate assistive technology is available to support you in undertaking your assessments. The DLS team will be in touch with you about this in due course.

If your assessments have been unexpectedly affected by a failure in device functioning or internet connection, you should use the mitigating circumstances procedure to request a deferral for the assessments that you are not able to complete.

If you do not have a suitable digital device at home, you can contact your tutor so that you can be advised on arrangements for accessing equipment from the University.
 

Please check our Online learning page to see if the software you need is available.
If the software you need is not available, you can use the mitigating circumstances procedure to request a deferral for any assessments that you are not able to complete.