MDXSU warmly welcomes the University’s ‘No Detriment’ Policy and would like to thank the University and its Staff for the hard work that has gone into developing this policy and the additional safety net measures that have been put in place.  The University and Students’ Union’s partnership continues to bring great strength to the university community and ensures that we can continue to work together to develop and produce a great academic and student experience for all our students.  

Last week, all final year undergraduate students will have received an email outlining the University’s No Detriment policy and how it will work in practice if you’ve missed the email you can find the full text at the bottom of this article. Previously you would have seen our article and the University’s own emails committing to a ‘No Detriment’ Policy, but now we have the details.  

The MDXSU Student Officers have been working closely with members of the academic board and the University’s Registry team to ensure that this policy and its calculation ensures that all students are able to achieve their best irrespective of the potential effects of Covid-19. The University and your Student Officers remain committed to ensuring you are supported throughout these uncertain times. 

In regards to the details, the University has agreed to an amended degree classification for those due to finish their undergraduate studies this year. This amended classification will be determined by taking into account your best combined 120 credits achieved across years two and three (i.e. levels 5 and 6 of your studies) as long as you have passed 240 credits across both years. If you have any questions regarding the specific application for you or your course please do get in touch with your programme team.   

“Dear Student,  
 
I wrote to you in partnership with your elected Students’ Union officers on 30th April about our commitment to a No Detriment policy and a range of other measures that we have put in place to support you. We are committed to ensuring that you are supported during these challenging times. Fairness, equity and inclusion in assessments are at the heart of our approach during this unprecedented and difficult situation. For those of you who are due to graduate this year, we have undertaken more work to ensure that the difficulties you may have faced during this pandemic are considered as part of your final degree classification. I am pleased to tell you that Academic Board has agreed to base your degree classification on the best 120 credits you have achieved during years two and three (i.e. levels 5 and 6) of your degree, provided you have passed 240 credits across both levels. This will ensure that you will not be wholly reliant on assessment undertaken during the lockdown period. Although, if you have performed well in your final year, this approach will still allow that achievement to be recognised.  In agreeing to this provision, Academic Board members were mindful of balancing our commitment to you during this unprecedented time with the requirement to safeguard and uphold the quality of our degrees. This approach will be applied this year only, and the impact will be evaluated to inform any further action which may be necessary to ensure consistency between cohorts. I would like to thank all of you for the proactive way you have approached your assignments and assessments this year. I am very proud of the way our whole #TeamMDX community has responded in these challenges times. 

 
Professor Nic Beech 

Vice-Chancellor”