Exam Procedures

Comprehensive information about exam procedures for current undergraduate students

Years 1-3

1. You choose your courses and complete your course registration/examination entry on-line via Portico at the start of the academic year.
2. At the start of term 2 you receive confirmation of your course choices from the Examination Section of the College via Portico.  If you wish to change any of your term two course choices at the start of term two you must inform the departmental office before the end of the second week of term.
3. You submit coursework as necessary throughout the year, as detailed in sections above.
4. At the end of term 2 you will be able to view your individual examination timetable via Portico.
5. To aid your revision you may consult past examination papers, which are held in the Reading Room and are also available on the web from the UCL Library site.
6. Examinations for geography courses will be held sometime between the end of April and the end of May.  Please note that if you are ill on the day of an exam and are unable to attend the exam you MUST see a Doctor and get medical evidence confirming that you were not well enough to take the exam.  When you are feeling better bring the medical evidence into the Departmental office to make an application for deferred assessment, to sit the exam during August. Only applications supported by medical evidence will be considered.
7. Between the first two weeks in June, External Examiners will work in the Department.  Their function is to ensure that there is parity and fairness in the marking of coursework and examination scripts.
8. Single Honours students. The final Examination Board will be held in June. This meeting decides the final grades that students are given for each course and the class of degree for final year students. The top students in each year are eligible for prizes. On the day of the Exam Board, a notice will be posted on the notice board in the North-West Wing foyer listing the candidate identifier numbers of students who are eligible to proceed to the following year and a pdf containing the list will also be sent by email to students by the end of the following Monday. Those who have not passed sufficient units to proceed into the second and third years will be notified in the week after the final Examination Board meeting by a letter which will outline their options.
9. Joint Degree students. The Board of Examiners for the Joint Degree is held a day before the main Undergraduate Board of Examiners. This meeting decides the final grades that students are given for each course. The top students in each year are eligible for prizes.
10. At no point is the Department able to give out final marks for your courses.

From the end of July, you will be able to check your official numerical grading for each course via the Registry web-based Portico system.

Year 3 Additional Information

In addition to the above procedure, third-year students need to note the following:

1. You will also receive an application form for your graduation ceremony early in term 2.
2. External Examiners working in the department may conduct Vivas with a small number of students. You may be asked to attend a viva, though these are very rare. However it is your responsibility to ensure that you are available during the week of the exam board to attend the viva. The viva will be conducted by one or two external examiners, with a staff member from the department sitting in as an observer. The questions asked by the external examiners will normally be on your academic Geography work and will typically cover your dissertation, your course work and your examination answers.
3. Finalists who have an average mark of 70 or above, with 75% of their marks in the first class range, will additionally be considered for inclusion on the Dean's List for Academic Excellence. This honour is awarded to around 20 students in the Social and Historical Sciences Faculty each year.  Students who are cited on the Dean's List receive a certificate and announcements in the UCL newsletter and Graduation Ceremonies in September.  The top finalist in the Faculty each year will be additionally awarded the Faculty Medal.
4. On the day of the Exam Board, a notice will be posted on the notice board in the North-West Wing foyer listing the candidate identifier numbers of all final-year students who are eligible to graduate and a pdf containing the list will also be sent by email to students by the end of the day. Those who have not passed sufficient units to graduate will be notified in the week after the final Examination Board meeting by a letter, which will outline their options.
5. In mid-August, the College will send you your official numerical grading for each course.
6. You will receive your Degree certificate in late September/early October directly from the Registry
7. Graduation - Your graduation ceremony will be held sometime in September 2015.  You will receive detailed information and an application form early in the second term.  You must apply for tickets by the end of May; late applicants will not be accepted (i.e. you and your family will not be allowed to attend the graduation ceremony).