2.8 Assessment and Mitigation

The learning that you do while a student at Exeter is about much more than the assessments. We design our modules to engage you in a subject, and we hope that your experience studying here is positive and rewarding. The skills that you develop throughout your course will allow you to explore and reassess your place in the world, and to help shape the choices you make in the future in your working and personal lives. 

Our diverse international community of staff and students means that you’ll experience a wide range of teaching and learning styles, opinions and resources. Although we have clear policies and guidance (set out in our Teaching Quality Assurance Manual) we encourage staff to develop innovative approaches to teaching, learning and assessment that draw on the latest research, and that make the best use of new technologies and individual expertise. This means that you will need to be ready to be flexible and adaptable in your approach to study and assessment. It’s no coincidence that these skills are highly sought-after by your future employers. 

Formal assessments in EES check whether you have met all of the ‘Intended Learning Outcomes’ (ILOs) of a module. You can find these in module descriptions and they are specific to each module that you take. Your tutor and module leads will explain these clearly to you throughout their teaching, and you will receive careful guidance on exactly what is expected of you in each assessment. If you are ever not sure about something, please just ask! 

Coursework submission 

Your module leads will advise you on how to submit coursework assignments, as this can vary between different types of assessment. Always leave plenty of time to submit your work – computer or printer issues are not usually accepted as reasons for late submission (except in the case of remote exams).  

If you haven’t already been granted mitigation, a late assignment (and even one second after the deadline means late) will be capped. You’ll receive an email when your assignment feedback is available. 

Exams 

On most of our programmes, exams usually take place during two main periods: 

• January 2025 

• May 2025 

Referred and deferred exams take place in August. 

You will receive a notification from the Exams Office when your timetable is ready to access via MyTimetable or MyExeter. It sounds obvious, but please make sure that your device is set to the correct UK time (GMT or BST depending on the time of year) when you view the timings in order for them to be accurate. 

Further information about exams can be found here. 

If you require any specific exam provisions due to disability (including welfare issues and dyslexia, for example), you must arrange a meeting with the Accessibility team. There will be deadlines by which you should have this meeting (4th November for January exams, 10th February for May exams, and 27th June for deferred/referred exams in the summer). 

If you are unable to take exams on certain dates due to religious observances, you need to let the Penryn Information Point know by 18th October for January exams, and 24th January for May exams. 

Please don’t assume that any provisions you had at school or college will automatically be put in place at University. 

Mitigation 

If you feel illness or other adverse personal circumstances may affect your ability to undertake an assessment, you may be able to apply for mitigation. This does not usually include IT issues (e.g. lost work or late printing for assignments), so please back up your work at all times. Mitigation requests must usually be supported by evidence (e.g. doctor’s note, hospital appointment letter, etc). Individual lecturers or tutors are not able to grant mitigation or extensions. Usually you must submit mitigation requests within one working day of the deadline or examination date. 

It is very important that you are familiar with the mitigation process from the beginning of your time with us, so that if you find yourself in a position to need it, you are able to comply with the tight restrictions around when you can apply. 

Find out more about Mitigation here. 

You can also get advice on mitigation via email or speak with your tutor. 

Attendance and timetabling 

Once you’ve registered, you’ll find your timetable in MyExeter (or go to http://mytimetable.exeter.ac.uk). Again, remember to ensure that your device is set to the correct timezone! This year, teaching on all undergraduate and postgraduate taught programmes starts on Monday 23rd September. You will not be able to see your timetable until you have completed your University registration, so please ensure that you check your email for information on how to do this. 

Academic engagement levels are recorded to ensure that any student welfare concerns are picked up, that Tier 4 international students meet their visa obligations, and that students are progressing academically. 

Evidence of engagement with your degree programme is captured via three main points: assessment submissions, attendance at teaching sessions, and ELE usage. Students registered on University of Exeter programmes are required to: 

• be in attendance* during academic terms and present at all scheduled learning and teaching activities required by the module and/or programme 

• engage with and participate in all guided independent and group study, assessment and feedback, and any other activities required by the module and/or programme 

• attend examinations, submit work when required, and otherwise fulfil the academic requirements of their modules and programme. 

*Attendance encompasses the activity of being present at scheduled learning, teaching and other activities required by the module and/or programme.