Philosophy
Division Handbook
Section F. Regulations for Philosophy Modules
[Attendance] [Absence] [Submission of Coursework] [Extensions] [Late Submission] [Dissertations] [Appeals Against Grades] [Plagiarism]
Students taking Philosophy modules are subject to the following regulations.
In many cases these regulations implement formal Univerity policy on assessment. This policy is available through the Portal at: http://www.quality.stir.ac.uk/ac-policy/assessment1.php.
Attendance
Attendance at Philosophy classes is governed by University Regulation 14. This distinguishes between prescribed and compulsory classes. Part of the regulation is reproduced below. (The full text may be found in the First Degree Regulations. These are set out in the University Calendar.)
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Where a student cannot attend a compulsory class with good cause, they should apply to the department to be given an alternative opportunity to complete the requirements. Where there is no good cause for non-attendance at a compulsory class this will lead to the award of a no grade (X) for the module.
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Attendance at prescribed classes is required. Students who are absent from more than a third of prescribed classes without good cause will have their grade capped at a maximum of 3C for that module.
Philosophy applies this regulation as follows:
- On modules at levels 8 and 9 (semesters 1-4) seminars are prescribed classes. Only classes at which a class test is scheduled are designated as compulsory.
- On modules at level 10 (semesters 5-8) seminars are prescribed. However, class tests held at scheduled seminar times are compulsory (such compulsory classes will be specified in module handouts). Furthermore, any seminar at which a student has been assigned a formal role, such as making a presentation or leading the discussion, will count as compulsory for that student.
- When seminars are prescribed students who are absent from more than one third of the seminars without good cause will have their grade capped at a maximum of 3C for that module.
- It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that attendance regulations are met.
- Students should attend all classes for modules whether they are prescribed, compulsory or neither of these.
Seminar classes are prescribed because they are essential to the achievement of the stated learning outcomes. The discussion opportunities that seminars afford are essential for gaining a sense of how to engage in critical discussion.
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Absence from Classes
Students should be registered with a medical practice in the locality of their semester accommodation. Current regulations require all students to submit a medical certificate when continuously absent due to illness for seven days or longer, and in all cases of absence from compulsory examinations and tests. If you miss a compulsory class for any reason you should self-certify. If the missed class falls within an absence of less than seven days, a medical certificate is not required.
Students should submit an electronic self-certification form, which can be found via the Student Portal.
If an absence through illness is prolonged and threatens to jeopardise work, students should consult with their Module Coordinator in the first instance.
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Submission of Coursework
In compliance with University policy, all examinations and coursework, with the exception of final year dissertations, will be marked anonymously. To facilitate the anonymous marking of coursework, the following procedures apply:
(1) Coursework assignments should not be submitted with the student’s name on it. Work will be identified by means of the student’s registration number. Assignments will not be marked unless they are anonymous.
(2) Essays should be submitted in both hard copy and electronically. (See below on electronic submission.) The hard copies should include a standard cover sheet appropriately filled in. These cover sheets are obtainable from outside the Divisional Office (A73) and online via the link from module Succeed sites.
(3) Essays should never be submitted directly to staff. The hard copy should be placed in the Divisional Essay Box, access to which is by the slot in the wall next to the door of the Divisional Office. Coursework is deemed to have been submitted on a given date only if both electronic and hard copies have been received in time for them to be logged by Office Staff on that date. This is why you must submit both copies by 12: 00 on the date specified in the appropriate module booklet: if your essay is submitted later than 12:00, it is liable to be logged as having been submitted on the following day, and to be therefore treated as late. Essays are not logged on weekends. Essays deposited in the Essay Box and electronically on a Friday, but too late to be logged on that day, or which are submitted on a Saturday or Sunday, shall be deemed to have been submitted on the Saturday. No essay will be so deemed unless it is available to Office staff by 9am on the following Monday.
(4) Students who do not submit both an electronic and hard copy of each required essay shall receive no grade for the module.
(5) Students who wish to submit optional essays for their courses are eligible to do so if the grade for the compulsory essay is 4C or higher (after lateness).
Guidance on electronic submission
Electronic copies must be submitted through Succeed and the Division will make use of the plagiarism detection service, TurnitinUK. Please follow the guidance on how to do this, available at:
http://www.is.stir.ac.uk/docs/succeed/students/turnitin-student.pdf <http://www.is.stir.ac.uk/docs/succeed/students/turnitin-student.pdf>
Here is a briefer set of instructions that works for most computers:
Go to your module homepage on Succeed.
- Click on the link 'Turnitin Submissions ’.
- Click on Essay 1 or Essay 2 as appropriate. After a few moments, the Turnitin Assignment Inbox will display.
- Click on ‘Submit’ to start the upload process. The submission page displays.
- Select ‘Browse’ and locate your essay from wherever you have it saved (H: drive, pen drive etc.).
- Select essay and click the ‘submit’ button at the top right of the window.
This will bring up a copy of the document and will ask you to confirm it is the correct document. A digital receipt will then appear that you may print if you wish. If you encounter problems while uploading, please contact the Information Services Help Desk in the library in the first instance. NB: If the digital receipt does not appear and, even after consulting the helpdesk, you have not been able to complete the upload, please inform the Divisional Office.
The deadline for submitting the electronic copy of each essay is the same (noon on the deadline day) as the deadline for submitting the hard copy. So both copies (hardand electronic) must be submitted by the deadline.
When you submit work to us for assessment it may be necessary for us to make or allow third parties to make copies. This may be the case when external examiners are involved, when a piece of work is to be assessed by more than one examiner orif the examiner needs to mark the work and we need to keep a clean copy. In addition, the databases that allow us to check that plagiarised works are notbeing submitted only function well if those databases are well-maintained and current. We may provide a copy of your work to the third party providers who maintain such databases.
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Extensions to Deadlines for Coursework
Extension request forms are available from the Divisional Office A73 and should be submitted there with supporting documentation (where necessary and available). Your extension request form will be retained by the Divisional Office for administrative purposes but will not be forwarded with your essay for marking to preserve anonymity. All requests will be considered by the module coordinator or other designated person.
Philosophy is guided by a University policy specifying acceptable grounds for extensions and how requests will be dealt with. This policy is available at:http://www.quality.stir.ac.uk/ac-policy/assessment1.php , paragraph 6.2.6.
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Late Submission of Coursework
The Divisional will apply the University policy on late submission, available at http://www.quality.stir.ac.uk/ac-policy/assessment1.php, paragraph 6.2.7. In line with this policy coursework at undergraduate level will be accepted up to five days after the submission date (or expiry of any agreed extension) but the grade will be lowered by one grade point per day or part thereof. After five days the piece of work will be deemed a non-submission and will receive an X (no grade).
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Dissertations
Two dissertation modules are offered to students in the final year of Honours Programmes: PHI9YY (44 credits) is equivalent to two ordinary modules and is taken over Autumn and Spring semsesters; PHI9ZZ (22 credits) is equivalent to one ordinary module and is taken in Spring semester.
Proposals for dissertations must be approved by the department towards the end of the semester before the dissertation is begun: proposal deadlines and advice are posted on the Department's registration pages (Dissertations), from where a proposal form may be downloaded.
Dissertations must be word-processed and printed double-spaced (or 1.5x spacing) on one side of the page only, and should use a standard, easily legible font (e.g. Times Roman). Pages should be numbered. The dissertation must include a full bibliography, and a word-count. It must be appropriately presented and fully referenced: see the advice on these matters given in Section E of the Handbook.
Dissertations must be no longer than 12,000 words for PHI9YY, and 8,000 words for PHI9ZZ, these limits to include all notes and references.
Two copies of the dissertation must be submitted, in a loose binding, to the Chief Examiner through the Division Office. (Staff in the Philosophy Office can advise on appropriate bindings.) The due date for submission is 14 days before the start of the examination period. (This date is published by the University on the Portal: Semester Dates.)
Regulations given above relating to extensions and late submission of coursework apply equally to dissertations.
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Appeals Against Coursework Grades
Students who believe that they have grounds for being dissatisfied with the grade they have received for an essay should first discuss the matter with the marker.
- If the essay has already been read by a member of staff as part of the essay monitoring process (see Section D), the grade awarded will stand (but see (4) below).
- If the essay has not been read as part of the monitoring process the student may apply to the Module Coordinator to have the essay reviewed. The Module Coordinator will arrange to have the essay grade monitored by someone appointed to monitor essays on the module. If the monitor and the first marker agree a grade, that grade will stand, even if it is lower than the grade originally awarded (but see (4) below).
- If no grade is agreed between the monitor and the marker then the Chief Examiner will arrange for a final adjudication of the matter to be made by another member of staff.
- If the student remains dissatisfied, he or she may appeal to the Head of Division, who will decide whether any further review of the grade is appropriate. A student who is dissatisfied with a grade, but who does not feel able to discuss the matter with the marker or the Module Coordinator, should approach the Head of Division.
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Plagiarism
Plagiarism is a serious matter, and all cases will be dealt with through procedures set down in the University policy governing it. This policy is available through the Portal at http://www.quality.stir.ac.uk/ac-policy/PlagiarismUG.php.
Advice on the use of literature and appropriate referencing is given in Section E of the Handbook.