Assessment information and key dates for 2022/23
We wrote to all OCA students to confirm changes that have been made to undergraduate assessment events following the announcement regarding OCA’s partnership and future. This email was sent out at 16:30 BST Thursday 18 August 2022 to all students but does not apply to postgraduate, foundations or personal development students. Typos that have been addressed are denoted by an Asterix.
What has changed about the undergraduate assessment events?
In general, not a lot has changed in the running of the OCA undergraduate assessment events. You will still be expected to select your assessment requirements in line with guidance by a deadline for submission. The majority of students will still be making use of the GDrive service to upload their submission, Music students will continue to use OCA Learn. The three events across the next academic year will broadly be in line with the dates that previous events have run at the OCA for many years.
The most significant change is the change from application for assessment to invitation to assessment. Going forward, based on when you complete your unit will determine which assessment event you will be invited to submit work for. Completion of a unit is defined as submission of all assignments to your tutor and receipt of their feedback. At three points in the year, any student that has a unit marked as complete that has yet to be assessed will be invited to the following assessment event. Therefore, there will be no need going forward for undergraduate students to apply for assessment. Please be advised, however, that this change does not apply to the Autumn 2022 event, as students who wish to submit to this event are still required to submit an application form by the cut off point.
Another change resulting from the move from application to invitation, is that you will not be able to choose either of the two events that follow your completion of a unit. You will be invited to the assessment event that immediately follows your unit completion date. If you’re aiming for a particular assessment event, you will need to consider scheduling your studies to allow you to complete prior to the cut off point for your desired assessment event. If you have any exceptional circumstances preventing you from submitting to the event after your unit completion date, you will need to consult the Extensions and Deferrals Policy and consider making an application to defer to the next assessment event.
Given the short notice for the changes to assessment, we will be making an exception for the Autumn 2022 assessment event to allow any student that wishes to move to the Spring 2023 event the option to do so without applying through the extensions and deferrals policy. However, any student considering this option will need to bear in mind the changes to progression from one unit to another as they would need to await results from the Spring 2023 event before they can make their next unit enrolment.
What are the key dates for the undergraduate assessment events of the next academic year?
Autumn 2022 event
- Cut off point for invitation to the event - 23 September 2022
- Deadline for submission to the event - 14 October 2022
- Confirmation of assessment results - Week commencing 12 December 2022
Spring 2023* event
- Cut off point for invitation to the event - 20 January 2023
- Deadline for submission to the event - 10 February 2023
- Confirmation of assessment results - Week commencing 27 March 2023
Summer 2023* event
- Cut off point for invitation to the event - 12 May 2023
- Deadline for submission to the event - 2 June 2023
- Confirmation of assessment results - Week commencing 17 July 2023
How do the key dates for invitation and submission work?
The cut off points are there to inform which assessment event is applicable to you. For example, if you were to complete your unit on 2 September 2022, you would be invited to submit for the Autumn 2022 assessment event. If you completed your unit on 2 October 2022, then you would be invited to submit for the Spring 2023 assessment event.
After cut off points, we will check for all students that have completed their unit and have not yet been assessed, create the spaces required to upload their submissions, and invite them to do so. You will have until the deadline for submission date to upload your work. For example, if you are invited to the Autumn 2022 event, you will have until 14 October 2022 to upload your submission. If you were invited to the Spring 2023* event, then you would have until 10 February 2023 to upload your submission.
What do I need to do to be invited to an assessment event?
Any student eligible to be invited to an assessment event needs to have completed their unit by the cut off point date for that event.
Completion of a unit is defined as submission of all assignments to the tutor for that unit, and receipt of the tutor’s feedback.
What if I have been invited but cannot submit?
If you have been invited to submit for an assessment event but are unable to submit, we are making an exception for the Autumn 2022 event to allow students to request to be moved to the Spring 2023 event without having to evidence exceptional circumstances.
For the Spring 2023 event and all events thereafter, if you do not believe you can submit to your event, you will need to consult the Extensions and Deferrals Policy and apply for a deferral of the assessment event.
If you are invited/expected for a specific assessment event and fail to submit any work - and do not have an approved deferral - then you will receive a fail mark of 0% for failure to submit. In cases where this is the first failure to submit for a particular unit you will be eligible to resubmit for a maximum capped pass mark of 40%. If you fail to resubmit the unit for a second time then you will be withdrawn from the degree as an academic failure having exhausted assessment opportunities. See paragraph 10.5 of the Terms and Conditions for details.
When will my summative mark and feedback be available?
The undergraduate exam boards are scheduled to take place three times a year to confirm your assessment results. We will look to provide marks and summative feedback by the following dates:
- Autumn 2022 results - 16 December 2022
- Spring 2023 results - 31 March 2023
- Summer 2023 results - 21 July 2023
Where can I find guidance on assessment?
Advice and guidance for undergraduate assessment can be found in the Assessment Guidance resource here on OCA Learn. The resource is broken down into different sections:
- Introduction - This section holds an assessment questions forum where students can pose questions.
- Understanding assessment - This section provides information on how assessment works, along with the assessment criteria document, and a directory of learning outcomes and discipline specific guidance, for all OCA units.
- Applying for assessment - This section confirms the key dates for upcoming assessment events and holds the application form which can be used to apply for the Autumn 2022 assessment event only.
- Preparing your submission - This section provides guidance and structured activities to help students prepare their submission, and holds the OCA Assessment Padlet.
- Submitting your work - This section provides guidance on how to submit for assessment.
- Learning from assessment - This section holds a pre recorded webinar on interpreting assessment results, a survey for providing feedback on assessment, and information to help students understand their marksheets.
No fundamental changes to assessment requirements have been made. Please access the assessment guidance resource to help you understand, prepare, submit, and reflect on assessment.
Please note that we will now work on updating the Assessment Guidance resource on OCA Learn to better reflect these changes to undergraduate assessment events.
What if I have any queries?
If after consulting the guidance you have any queries regarding assessment events, please contact the Assessment Team as soon as possible - assessment@oca.ac.uk - and we will do our best to assist you.
We wish you all the best for your future assessments.
Kind regards
OCA Assessment Team