The ongoing marking and assessment boycott has caused unavoidable delays in awarding a small number of students.
As you will be aware, some members of the University and College Union (UCU) participated in a marking and assessment boycott as part of their ongoing industrial action. Unfortunately, because of this action we have experienced unavoidable delays for some students in receiving marks for their assessments.
Of more than 11,400 students due to graduate this summer, less than 3% have been identified as having insufficient marks for an exam board to consider an award.
Before the end of tomorrow (Wednesday 5 July), we will have emailed every student due to graduate to confirm the status of their award. Except for those identified as having insufficient marks, all students due to graduate will receive confirmation of their award by the end of the week.
Support
We are putting in place as much support as possible for those impacted by the boycott and will continue to do all we can to award degree classifications as quickly as possible.
Any student who experiences a delay in receiving their degree award beyond the date of their graduation ceremony will be paid £500. If the delay is resolved before ceremonies begin on 11 July, students will receive a payment of £150.
If a student is unsure of how to explain the situation to a prospective employer, our Careers Service is available now and for up to two years after they finish their course. We will also be providing students with a letter which they can share with prospective employers or further education institutions, to explain the context and assure them of the quality and standards of our awards, and help explain the situation.
As ever, if any student is struggling and needs more support, they can visit our student support website which outlines a range of mental health and wellbeing support we have at the university. If they have an existing care plan with our Counselling Service, they will continue to have access to our services until they receive their final award.
FAQs and next steps
We are holding additional exam boards to minimise the delay in students’ awards as far as possible and will continue to update both students and staff as necessary. You can also find further information on the Strike action: information for students page, which is reviewed daily. If students have questions beyond what is covered here, they can email us on studentnews@manchester.ac.uk.
Professor April McMahon
Vice-President for Teaching, Learning and Students