No Detriment

What is this campaign about?

With the pandemic having lasted throughout the academic year so far and with it getting worse in the UK particularly over December 2020/January 2021, many students are facing situations that significantly impact their ability to learn. We are lobbying the University to implement a ‘No Detriment’ policy, where the University takes appropriate measures that limit the negative impact that the pandemic has on your final grades.

What is the purpose of this campaign?

The campaign should result in ‘No Detriment’ measures being put in place, looking at best practice examples at other Universities and ensuring that measures are the best outcome for City students. 

Here are some examples of what other Universities have put in place as part of their ‘No Detriment’ policy:

• No Detriment policy using the ‘best of’ approach e.g. if your year is made up of 120 credits, taking your highest 60 credits only
• Further changes to the Extenuating Circumstances policy, so low/no evidence is accepted for uncapped resits  
• Moving from timed, high staked formal exams to coursework where possible (and where this hasn’t been done already)
• All online exams to be 24 hour and open book where possible.

What progress has been made so far?

• A working group has been set up to discuss No Detriment, which the VP Education attends along with representatives from each of the Schools. The working group had their first meeting early January.
  • As part of No Detriment, we discussed the current Extenuating Circumstances (EC) policy.
  • We also discussed the possibility of reimplementing the ‘SYAS’ (Supporting Your Academic Success) policy where students are entitled to a resit without evidence if they feel that their ability to complete an assessment has been impacted by their circumstances relating to the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • It was clear that this is wanted by both the SU and the majority of academics, who are struggling with processing a large volume of Extenuating Circumstances (EC) applications. However, an important disclaimer is that SYAS is not guaranteed yet, it is only being discussed.
  • It was explained that the University understands that obtaining evidence for EC’s at the moment can be difficult with the ongoing pandemic. Therefore, students are encouraged to submit an ‘EC without evidence’ under the existing EC policy if you are unable to complete an assessment to the best of your ability due to unforeseen circumstances.
  • If you are struggling with an EC application, please visit our website for support.
• The SU also conducted a student survey with over 1000 students participating and 97% of those students called for a No Detriment/Safety Net policy to be implemented. This report was presented to the University with specific comments from students, to highlight how important it is that a No Detriment policy is implemented.
  • The report can be found here.

Get in touch

If you are interested in hearing more about this work, or want to get involved you can email Ruqaiyah Javaid, VP Education.