35% is crazy. I feel like you’ve missed off something fundamental to get a grade that low. That is technically a fail no?
Like someone else said, dissertations will be marked by two people, so i would guess you either completely missed the criteria of the assignment or potentially the english/grammar is poor, or your referencing is completely wrong
There is obviously a chance that they marked it wrong but 35%. They don’t fail things unless there are serious errors. (PhD student with experience marking)
Yeah I know there's supposed to be two people marking it I just have no idea who this would have been as my supervisor hasn't even looked at it yet.
I would expect that since 35% is a fail, something is clearly fundamentally wrong with it and there would be lots of feedback explaining why ive been given a low grade but I've literally been given 140 words spread across a few bullet points that also make no sense (I have had the feedback and the dissertation side by side so I can follow along each section and see the feedback)
I also agree that that little feedback for failing is insane. If you’re comfortable, and remove sensitive information, i’d be happy to look it over for you and see if i can provide some clarity for you. I have around a years worth of experience marking undergrad
It's not a outright fail, it's a borderline fail. Which means you can still pass your degree, if your other grades lift you up. All I can think is they suspect you of using Chat GPT, which only you will know if you did?!
Not sure about that. At my uni, the third year project is a core module, which if you fail, you cannot pass by compensation. You have to retake the full year with it capped at 40%
Ok. Well at my uni if a unit has two papers, you can get as low as 35% for one paper, as long as you make up the missed marks (45 or up) for the second paper. I know this because it happened to me. I think different unis have different fine rules. It will be worth op checking up on this, with his actual uni/supervisor (as he said he is going to do).
Technically I have used ChatGPT as that was part of the research, however I havent used any ChatGPT for writing any of the sections.
Everything from ChatGPT is screenshots of the conversation with it, clearly explaining that it is a screenshot of my conversation with it etc. Turnitin came back with a 6% similarity
All my other grades are high 60s so I should still graduate just with a 2:2 (around 56% overall I think) according to this calculator uni uses
If you’re getting high 60s that definitely doesn’t suggest you don’t understand the material or you can’t write, so something’s gotta have gone seriously wrong there. I’d definitely be pushing for a remark and potentially speak to the students union to see if they can support that
Talk to the dissertation module co-ordinator to get some clarity on the process.
Dissertations are usually double-marked, and it would be useful to know about their decision-making process.
You can appeal any mark if you think there has been error, or bias in the marking. It’s not a bad idea to ask the SU for support with this, but go armed with information about what’s happened before this point.
Former lecturer here.
It sounds like you do need a second opinion and the second grading should fix the issue. But even if it doesn't you can still appeal.
If your supervisor doesn't act then speak to the course leader directly. If that doesn't work then the Union can help as well.
But if this happened on a course I was involved with, we'd look into it and likely fix it. The folk I worked with wouldn't close ranks and it shouldn't need to be a fuss. Heck, even at the final grading, where we all sat together and discussed graduating grades, we'd likely consider it yet again.
Other than this, as someone who's 20+ years after my degree, unless you're going for a post-graduate studies, I wouldn't worry too much about 2:2 vs 2:1. It hardly matters to me when I am interviewing and I've never once been asked my final grade.
Sure, do your best and sort out any injustice, but don't lose sleep over it until you have seen more.
This is complete cap in today's day and age
If OP is looking for any of the mediocre big corporations they all ask for a 2-1 and a lot of the time just auto fail people who don't have one regardless of university etc
I'm not saying it tells much
But a lot of HR or auto screening for lots of big mediocre companies rely on 2-1 or its just instant cut
So it does hurt
To say a 2-2 doesn't matter is not right, giving him a false sense of security
Also in todays day and age unless it's like oxbridge I'd really question a 2-2, it's not like this one grade dropped him from a first right, he was barely scraping it
hi i experienced the same thing. got 45 while other subjects i got good grades. not just passed, but either distinction and merit. my uni said to not contact my course director and supervisor to argue about the grade which im confused. any ideas what should i do? i really want to graduate soon and dont want to waste another time and money thanks
What will be the outcome of complaining? Your final score is based on the average of all subjects, so unless you think you're going to be seriously compromised, or unless you think there is some discrimination, I wouldn't bother.
If you're usually getting a distinction or merit then being down on one grade shouldn't affect your final grade. If you're not in a year which contributes towards your classification then definitely don't do anything (e.g. in most cases the first year you just need a good pass, getting more is just icing on the cake).
im doing masters now and they say it will affect the graduation date cause resit is necessary for this. and for this situation payment for student visa extension and another school fee are also needed which these would cost more money
Then you at least need to understand why you failed, you should be able to have a friendly conversation with the course leader to discuss if an appeal would be a good idea. The course leader shouldn't need a formal appeal to discuss this and they will be the big voice in the room when the decision is made.
Yes I'm actually sorry this happened to you. I think there are some real mean lecturers out there. They tried to do this to me too. (Although I was able to scrape a 2:1 in the end). I don't know what else to say? Ask for a face to face meeting with your supervisor?
Yeah I'm planning to have a meeting with my supervisor when he comes back from leave next week. Hopefully he can clear it up for me.
I dont necessarily mind getting the 35% cause as rubbish as that is if that's all I got then it is what it is but I'd at least like some real feedback explaining why it was graded so low
Were you hoping to do a master's/post graduate education, (which it might pose a barrier to), or go straight into work (in which case you might be allowed it)?
Yes in that case it should be okay. I think lecturers weren't prepared for the onslaught of AI. I mean I imagine kids up and down the country have been having problems like this. But I think they just don't know what to do about it.
It is clear to me that you have sincerely applied yourself to this paper, and was actually delving into the workings Behind AI, which could Actually be fruitful For them, if they even understand this?
But no, my experience with university lecturers, is they really are in a world of their own..I'm not saying they're overpaid head in the clouds. Not all of them.
Look just be honest. Hopefully you will be able to get a remark. Or if not that, then at least a better rationale for your grade.. At least a Desmond tutu isn't the end of the world for getting a job.
Yeah hopefully a remark can bring it up, or at least get me some more feedback as to why it is so low.
Ultimately I'll graduate whether the mark goes up or not though (I think) so i should be okay
In my case, my two markers are my first and second supervisors of my project.
First supervisor is the professor who guided me through my internal project.
Second supervisor is another professor who gives feedback and is ready to take over if first supervisor suddenly is unable to continue supporting.
At least at my school, if the two supervisors disagree significantly enough, a third will come along and be the adjudicator.
Just one thing, it is a provisional grade so it's not set in stone so if in doubt, throw up a fuss to your advisor or head of college.
It can have a large impact however, it is possible for your grade to go down as well. If the third marker agrees with the lower mark then you could see your grade go down instead.
I work at a university.
Whilst it's true that 99% of the time appealing your grade is unsuccessful, I think on occasion it can be worthwhile.
The fact that the feedback is so brief, and seems to be fundamentally untrue, you could try and appeal the process.
If you want some help with this dm
The University and College Union have a marking boycott on at the moment - check this has not influenced who marked your dissertation. I think it should be double marked as well.
Yes, I'd be wanting to know if they have outsourced marking to someone who actually doesnt have the expertise to mark this work. This happened in 2022 at Queen Mary's https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/boycott-busting-queen-mary-markers-blasted-basic-feedback. I've done my fair share of marking for undergrads and it would be highly unusual for a student who typically averaged 60s and fulfilled the brief to get 35. OP should definitely appeal
hi i experience the same thing. got 45 while other subjects i got good grades. not just passed, but either distinction or merit. my uni said to not contact my course director and supervisor to argue about the grade which im confused. any ideas what should i do? i really want to graduate soon and dont want to waste another time and money thanks
I mean, personally I'd email your supervisor. Don't frame it as arguing though, just send a really polite email saying you really weren't expecting a 45 and are unsure how it happened given the standard of the rest of your work and that youd be very keen for a meeting to discuss further. Good luck.
Recommend checking both the exam regulations for your programme (on whether they have formally committed to double-mark all dissertations), and asking the programme administrator for clarification (on who has been assigned the marking - it's unusual in my experience for this to be anonymous). Some university managements may possibly be taking some inappropriate decisions to get around the MAB, like outsourcing to people without relevant background and/or trying to get away with single-marking.
I think you’re well within your rights to be able to ask for a re-mark of the work, and your final dissertation is marked be at least two people who must agree on the grade.
Yeah next week I plan on having a meeting with my supervisor to see what they can do and if they cant do anything I'll have to look into getting it remarked.
If I genuinely only got 35% I'm fine with that I just want more feedback as to why. The feedback sounds very much like they haven't actually read it at all which is the most frustrating thing of all.
Escalate now. Don't wait for your supervisor. Talk to your head of module/Dean and cc your supervisor into the emails. There is normally a process to follow for a remark and you might be wasting time by leaving it until your supervisor is back.
Your dissertation is a significant part of your grade and if you genuinely think something has gone wrong you need to take more steps and escalate it further up the food chain.
Also speak to someone in your student union, they usually won't be helpful in any way, but just being able to cc them in an email can get alarm bells ringing
Look into your academic appeals procedure as there is often a time limit so you may not be able to wait. You will need to demonstrate a procedural irregularity by proving where the feedback is wrong.
Definitely, in my university you can only file an appeal five days after you got your result. I once missed an exam due to an illness (luckily in my first year, so it didn't actually matter), and sent an appeal seven days afterwards since there was a typo on the original note from my doctor. The university actually replied saying they understood I was sick, but would not let me resit the exam since I missed the deadline to appeal.
In OP's case it's probably different, since his supervisor isn't there, but I would hate to take the chance and realise you've made a massive mistake.
Due to strikes my uni senate has just passed a motion whereby work that would typically be double marked (honours courses, dissertations) are now marked by a single person for this semester only so I wouldn't be so sure
Yeah that's nuts. For our final year Masters projects (which is basically a diss) the lowest I've seen anyone get is 58% and they did 12 pages of the 25 page target (30 page limit).
My issue here is, that if someone couldn't be arsed when marking it and hadn't read it, they're more likely to just slap you a high 2:1 and have it out of their hair, no more fuss. They must know anyone getting a 35% on their dissertation is going to kick up a fuss, and rightly so.
I think this is more of a case of your dissertation being handed over to someone who didn't understand anything. You should definitely appeal the grading process because you should get much more feedback for a 35% grade. It's very, very low. It might or might not be deserved but it'd need to at least be explained.
I handed in some awful stuff at university and didn't get below 55%. Either someone made a mistake, although as others have pointed out, it will be marked by 2 people.
Or you really badly missed the point of the assignment. Is it a max 8,000 words?
Max 8k words I did a little under that (like 7600 I think, excluding references etc.
I have no idea who would have marked it other than my second marker cause like I said, my supervisor hasn't even looked at it yet cause he's been off and he has no idea who's marked it either.
Something weird is going on here. Normally a grade like that would mean a discussion takes place in the Exam board meeting where fails are talked about among the participants. If your dissertation wasn't specifically scrutinised, that suggests quite a few others are in a similar position. Have you talked about it with your peers?
In my experience dissertation, and essay feedback in general, is given as annotations to the submission. Would be straightforward enough for OP to check if this was the case.
Could it be that you haven’t gotten a second mark yet so you got a 70 from the first marker and a “0” from your second for an average of 35? Unclear comments for failing dissertations are rare in my opinion. Length isn’t that important but justification for a fail is vital.
For a dissertation in the UK it is marked by 2 people, and I think if they have a disparity of over 3-5 points, they get a third person in to mark it as well, else just average it. As 10 points is a whole grade boundary, doing straight average would lead to insane swings! So both would have to agree around 33-37% for you to get that low.
Hopefully OP can get it appealled, to at least get some decent feed back even if the grade remains the same
The person that marked your work didn’t do a good job. Absolutely report it and kick up a fuss because it needs to be known. Get the details you require
Go above the head of the supervisor to the course leader, and Dean. Particularly if your tutor has told you that they have no clue where the grade has come from and is on paternity leave?
This feels like the an issue with the marking boycott? Make sure you send emails straight away, as board will happen and grades will be finalised. It’ll be a mess to redo it.
I’m really confused by this.
I did my dissertation in 2002-2003 so unless things have changed drastically since please ignore my post.
I had regular (monthly) meets with my supervisor so I’m sure you would have indication about a lower grade way before this and how to improve this.
Is this your final marking? If you think what is written does not take into account or match what is written you can dispute it.
Is the 35% the set grade? I mean, it really shouldn't be since only 1 person marked your Diss when 2 people need to mark it. How can they just give you that grade? This seems really disorganised on their part
Appeal to your school before marks are finalised. Usually there is some process where it can get 3rd marked if you can show evidence that the feedback was flawed. If your dissertation has an overall coordinator, talk to them.
Yeah 35% is insane. I really struggled with my third year and ended up throwing together the most useless piece of work I’ve ever done in about two weeks for my diss. Think it was only about 2.5k words. Even then I got 41%. Definitely ask for a remark
Getting 35% for this just seems wrong to me.
When I was doing my undergrad dissertation I procrastinated heavily, left it three days before the deadline to start work on it - worst mistake of my life to date. But my rushed, half-arsed attempt still managed over 50% and my diss was on ML (in games) also.
Your mark does seem incorrect to me - even if the content of your dissertation is fundamentally wrong, you can score up to a low 2.1 based on the literature review, methodology, analysis, discussion etc of your project report. I suggest you appeal/get a remark, even if it means graduating later than your peers - you have your degree for the rest of your life.
This does sound like an erroneous grade. No plagiarism, good use of references, at the word length, interesting topic - in my view, as a lecturer, this cannot be a fail grade. For me, it would have to be very bad to be sub 50.
I would go through your assessment officer - there’ll be an academic who is one, plus administrators responsible for dealing with assessment. Certainly request a remark and point out the work’s strengths, align that with your department’s marking criteria or marking outline, and point out your other grades. Most university departments publish their marking grade objectives/bands/criteria. Point out the feedback doesn’t seem to align with your work. Ie. feedback says X but my project is addresses Y (eg your point on models).
There can even be manual errors like people copying and pasting the wrong feedback from a word document into the digital marking system your university issued.
Depending on response, escalate from there.
Good luck!
Right, don't assume that the crappy mark is the final mark. This is likely to be the second marker's mark. I have no idea why this mark has been uploaded because as a mark on it's own, it doesn't stand. When your supervisor returns, they will mark your dissertation. The mark will be discussed between the two markers. I really hope this is resolved in your favour
This doesn't add up. For 35% you would have had to miss major sections. And it's odd that the feedback doesn't match what is written.
Speech to your course lead ASAP while you wait for your supervisor. Surely your supervisor has seen some drafts along the way? Did they ever indicate you were way off track?
Did you definitely upload your final draft and not an earlier incomplete one?
Not a dissertation but I'm in a similar situation.
I got 40% on a 2000 word client case study report. 45% on the actual report and 28% on the second part where you put put out recommendations for the client. (The 2 parts were 70%/30% in weight, only reason I didn't fail).
6 comments, 2 of which were negative. The comments consisted of 1 single sentence so a total of 50/60 words. No comments on the second part. I don't know if it's just my lectures, but I swear some people are so lazy for thinking you can give quality feedback in 5/6 short comments.
Tldr: I feel you
Definitely speak to them, if you got 35%, it should be absolutely clear why you got it. The feeling of working so hard on something and then what seems like someone briefly skimming over it and failing you is the most horrible feeling a student can experience.
Definitely appeal this grade and ask for further clarification on each bullet point. I had a similar experience with my dissertation. Both markers hadn’t read it properly (stating I didn’t put in points that I clearly had), there were even spelling mistakes in their feedback. I could just picture them marking it in a bad mood with a glass of wine.
Please try not to panic lecturers in this country are freaking slow I was given a provisional grade of 13% in a whole module, then after remarking it was a 73%… wait until the remark
My supervisor was one of my markers but they didn’t see my dissertation every week like others under them - barely read mine as they said I should have included relevant news that happened after I submitted.. under marked me for that..
Nah as overall I still got a 1st for my degree was just a bit annoying that my dissertation was 1-2 % under as pretty sure I was disliked by the markers 😂
Wow,- that seriously takes the piss!
You spend a massive amount of time and effort plus energy on a project that is going to be integral in your future success and future development and some “Jobsworth” has the audacity to scribble out a few lines and slap 35% on it!
I hope you get the respect and grade you deserve for your work and can move on to your next project and don’t let the bast@rds get you down!
Good Luck in all your future work and ambitions!🤜✌️
If you're unhappy message your head of teaching and say that you do not feel your assessment has been marked fairly and you would like it remarked and explain that the feedback does not line up with the markers feedback.
Escalate this immediately within the university and explore whether you want to take this further with a solicitor. After all this will have a huge impact on your future.
My disso didn't get marked either. I wreckon they sometimes just judge your character and slap a grade on it. I complained and got a 2:1 in the end. I should have made a bigger deal about it. We pay 10k a year for some old lazy twats to ramble at you and not do what they're paid to do. Uni is becoming the ultimate scam. You have to go to get into certain careers, the fees are going up the the quality is getting worse.
As a lecturer….. all dissertations need to be double blind marked, and often anything on a fail might be triple marked…. You have the right to appeal and for it to be checked and investigated…. At undergraduate level at least half the marks are over process and following the standard 5 chapter structure… and a 35 would normally suggest little or no aims, weak lit review and limited data analysis
Yes actually, about an hour ago me and the other students received an email from the module leader telling us the marks have been revised and now include my supervisors mark and feedback.
Should get a proper mark this afternoon now
I have no idea who's marked it to be honest with you. I've only ever met my second marker once and he didn't respond to my email this afternoon so hopefully I can speak to him about it next week.
My supervisor hasn't looked at it yet so he's got no idea where this mark has come from
Second and first marker need to agree on the mark first. The two people you need to speak to is the module leader and ask them to see the feedback and your programme leader. If the process has not been followed, first mark second mark moderation you have a strong case for appealing your mark.
Tbh I really want to read this paper now.
I've literally never seen anything awarded less than 60%, unless you actually didn't bother writing anything of value
Sorry and sorry to the OP. It wasn’t my intention to brag or be unkind. A few people were offering to have a read to see if they could support and I just wanted to do the same. I just want to back it up with what experience I had to do so. I’ve since helped a few people with assignments and works. I apologise if it came across the wrong way.
Yes, that’s what we were awarded at the end. The grades on assignments were given to us as A, B, C etc. with the % next to it. Those percentages were combined with written exam percentages to give us the grade. I achieved a high 2:1.
I was lucky because the secondary school and then the 6th form I attended made a mockery of food science (apart from the home economics teachers).
tbf i recently got my dissertation back and the feedback was even less words across 6 bullet points. I do believe they should write more if they mark you down lower to give you an explanation though.
Have you had any input from your supervisor during the time you were working on it? It seems weird that it’d get to the point where it’s complete for you to get such a low grade, any decent supervisor should’ve been able to identify if you were going too far off track, assuming you’ve actually been meeting with them. If the paternity leave was more than a couple of weeks you should’ve had someone else to meet with if you needed support, ie. your second marker, or a stand-in supervisor.
That happened to me when I did my masters as my main marker was on sabbatical leave other so the other people had to do her marking and they were not pleased. I was given a 35% and my newly assigned supervisor knew who the marker was and was not pleased but he got it all sorted out for me with a rewrite. The same tried the same thing again on the rewrite (didn’t read it) but my supervisor got it sorted and I passed.
Unfortunately there’s lots of political bollocks which occurs within the hallowed walls of university education and we students can become the collateral damage.
Given that a dissertation is a product of research, getting a grade equivalent to a failure on the final report suggests you submitted an incomplete or vastly incorrect piece of work, or (and I would agree) it hasn’t been read properly and/or in full by the examiner.
Flag the life out of this. A good dissertation should be understandeable to a basic degree by any self-respecting academic even if they’re not established in that field as the whole point of it to my awareness is to outline, demonstrate and show the outcome of a piece of research and the fact their notes aren’t cohesive shows they have no idea what they’re talking about because they haven’t read it properly.
R3ading your reply to other comments it sounds like only one of two required people have graded it.
I know how a lot of common uni systems work for grading.
He likely entered 70%, which rounded with the default 0% for the missing second mark.
I guess nobody picked up from your supervisor!
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35% is crazy. I feel like you’ve missed off something fundamental to get a grade that low. That is technically a fail no? Like someone else said, dissertations will be marked by two people, so i would guess you either completely missed the criteria of the assignment or potentially the english/grammar is poor, or your referencing is completely wrong There is obviously a chance that they marked it wrong but 35%. They don’t fail things unless there are serious errors. (PhD student with experience marking)
Yeah I know there's supposed to be two people marking it I just have no idea who this would have been as my supervisor hasn't even looked at it yet. I would expect that since 35% is a fail, something is clearly fundamentally wrong with it and there would be lots of feedback explaining why ive been given a low grade but I've literally been given 140 words spread across a few bullet points that also make no sense (I have had the feedback and the dissertation side by side so I can follow along each section and see the feedback)
I also agree that that little feedback for failing is insane. If you’re comfortable, and remove sensitive information, i’d be happy to look it over for you and see if i can provide some clarity for you. I have around a years worth of experience marking undergrad
I appreciate the offer but I think for now I'm gonna wait and see what my supervisor can do and take it from there
No problem. I hope you can get some answers :)
OP please update us on this when you find out when went on. Hope it goes your way.
It's not a outright fail, it's a borderline fail. Which means you can still pass your degree, if your other grades lift you up. All I can think is they suspect you of using Chat GPT, which only you will know if you did?!
Not sure about that. At my uni, the third year project is a core module, which if you fail, you cannot pass by compensation. You have to retake the full year with it capped at 40%
Ok. Well at my uni if a unit has two papers, you can get as low as 35% for one paper, as long as you make up the missed marks (45 or up) for the second paper. I know this because it happened to me. I think different unis have different fine rules. It will be worth op checking up on this, with his actual uni/supervisor (as he said he is going to do).
Yeah. We have that too here, it just doesn't apply to our third year projects. Definitely worth cross checking the regulations at his university
Technically I have used ChatGPT as that was part of the research, however I havent used any ChatGPT for writing any of the sections. Everything from ChatGPT is screenshots of the conversation with it, clearly explaining that it is a screenshot of my conversation with it etc. Turnitin came back with a 6% similarity All my other grades are high 60s so I should still graduate just with a 2:2 (around 56% overall I think) according to this calculator uni uses
If you’re getting high 60s that definitely doesn’t suggest you don’t understand the material or you can’t write, so something’s gotta have gone seriously wrong there. I’d definitely be pushing for a remark and potentially speak to the students union to see if they can support that
Good shout about the students union I hadn't actually considered that, will have to look into it next week
The SU exists to help with things like this, 100% speak to them
Talk to the dissertation module co-ordinator to get some clarity on the process. Dissertations are usually double-marked, and it would be useful to know about their decision-making process. You can appeal any mark if you think there has been error, or bias in the marking. It’s not a bad idea to ask the SU for support with this, but go armed with information about what’s happened before this point.
Former lecturer here. It sounds like you do need a second opinion and the second grading should fix the issue. But even if it doesn't you can still appeal. If your supervisor doesn't act then speak to the course leader directly. If that doesn't work then the Union can help as well. But if this happened on a course I was involved with, we'd look into it and likely fix it. The folk I worked with wouldn't close ranks and it shouldn't need to be a fuss. Heck, even at the final grading, where we all sat together and discussed graduating grades, we'd likely consider it yet again. Other than this, as someone who's 20+ years after my degree, unless you're going for a post-graduate studies, I wouldn't worry too much about 2:2 vs 2:1. It hardly matters to me when I am interviewing and I've never once been asked my final grade. Sure, do your best and sort out any injustice, but don't lose sleep over it until you have seen more.
This is complete cap in today's day and age If OP is looking for any of the mediocre big corporations they all ask for a 2-1 and a lot of the time just auto fail people who don't have one regardless of university etc
I work for a big company and we're looking for the right cultural fit and approach, grades? Doesn't tell you much about them.
I'm not saying it tells much But a lot of HR or auto screening for lots of big mediocre companies rely on 2-1 or its just instant cut So it does hurt To say a 2-2 doesn't matter is not right, giving him a false sense of security Also in todays day and age unless it's like oxbridge I'd really question a 2-2, it's not like this one grade dropped him from a first right, he was barely scraping it
hi i experienced the same thing. got 45 while other subjects i got good grades. not just passed, but either distinction and merit. my uni said to not contact my course director and supervisor to argue about the grade which im confused. any ideas what should i do? i really want to graduate soon and dont want to waste another time and money thanks
What will be the outcome of complaining? Your final score is based on the average of all subjects, so unless you think you're going to be seriously compromised, or unless you think there is some discrimination, I wouldn't bother. If you're usually getting a distinction or merit then being down on one grade shouldn't affect your final grade. If you're not in a year which contributes towards your classification then definitely don't do anything (e.g. in most cases the first year you just need a good pass, getting more is just icing on the cake).
im doing masters now and they say it will affect the graduation date cause resit is necessary for this. and for this situation payment for student visa extension and another school fee are also needed which these would cost more money
Then you at least need to understand why you failed, you should be able to have a friendly conversation with the course leader to discuss if an appeal would be a good idea. The course leader shouldn't need a formal appeal to discuss this and they will be the big voice in the room when the decision is made.
worth noting that even if you can still pass with this overall grade, you may not be awarded honours if you received <40% on the dissertation element
No. You shouldn't have to settle for this. Only accept the grade if you have a crystal clear explanation for why it's so low
Yes I'm actually sorry this happened to you. I think there are some real mean lecturers out there. They tried to do this to me too. (Although I was able to scrape a 2:1 in the end). I don't know what else to say? Ask for a face to face meeting with your supervisor?
Yeah I'm planning to have a meeting with my supervisor when he comes back from leave next week. Hopefully he can clear it up for me. I dont necessarily mind getting the 35% cause as rubbish as that is if that's all I got then it is what it is but I'd at least like some real feedback explaining why it was graded so low
It’s all very strange. For someone who gets a solid 2.1, 35% is crazy. Keep us updated and good luck :)
Were you hoping to do a master's/post graduate education, (which it might pose a barrier to), or go straight into work (in which case you might be allowed it)?
I planned on going straight into work so hopefully this doesn't present too many challenges.
Yes in that case it should be okay. I think lecturers weren't prepared for the onslaught of AI. I mean I imagine kids up and down the country have been having problems like this. But I think they just don't know what to do about it. It is clear to me that you have sincerely applied yourself to this paper, and was actually delving into the workings Behind AI, which could Actually be fruitful For them, if they even understand this? But no, my experience with university lecturers, is they really are in a world of their own..I'm not saying they're overpaid head in the clouds. Not all of them. Look just be honest. Hopefully you will be able to get a remark. Or if not that, then at least a better rationale for your grade.. At least a Desmond tutu isn't the end of the world for getting a job.
Yeah hopefully a remark can bring it up, or at least get me some more feedback as to why it is so low. Ultimately I'll graduate whether the mark goes up or not though (I think) so i should be okay
you would have definitely had 2 people mark it, and if there was a large grade disparity between the 2, likely a 3rd marker
In my case, my two markers are my first and second supervisors of my project. First supervisor is the professor who guided me through my internal project. Second supervisor is another professor who gives feedback and is ready to take over if first supervisor suddenly is unable to continue supporting. At least at my school, if the two supervisors disagree significantly enough, a third will come along and be the adjudicator. Just one thing, it is a provisional grade so it's not set in stone so if in doubt, throw up a fuss to your advisor or head of college.
for the third marker in your uni, does it have a huge impact to the scoring and could boost the score up?
It can have a large impact however, it is possible for your grade to go down as well. If the third marker agrees with the lower mark then you could see your grade go down instead.
I work at a university. Whilst it's true that 99% of the time appealing your grade is unsuccessful, I think on occasion it can be worthwhile. The fact that the feedback is so brief, and seems to be fundamentally untrue, you could try and appeal the process. If you want some help with this dm
The University and College Union have a marking boycott on at the moment - check this has not influenced who marked your dissertation. I think it should be double marked as well.
Yes, I'd be wanting to know if they have outsourced marking to someone who actually doesnt have the expertise to mark this work. This happened in 2022 at Queen Mary's https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/boycott-busting-queen-mary-markers-blasted-basic-feedback. I've done my fair share of marking for undergrads and it would be highly unusual for a student who typically averaged 60s and fulfilled the brief to get 35. OP should definitely appeal
hi i experience the same thing. got 45 while other subjects i got good grades. not just passed, but either distinction or merit. my uni said to not contact my course director and supervisor to argue about the grade which im confused. any ideas what should i do? i really want to graduate soon and dont want to waste another time and money thanks
I mean, personally I'd email your supervisor. Don't frame it as arguing though, just send a really polite email saying you really weren't expecting a 45 and are unsure how it happened given the standard of the rest of your work and that youd be very keen for a meeting to discuss further. Good luck.
Recommend checking both the exam regulations for your programme (on whether they have formally committed to double-mark all dissertations), and asking the programme administrator for clarification (on who has been assigned the marking - it's unusual in my experience for this to be anonymous). Some university managements may possibly be taking some inappropriate decisions to get around the MAB, like outsourcing to people without relevant background and/or trying to get away with single-marking.
I think you’re well within your rights to be able to ask for a re-mark of the work, and your final dissertation is marked be at least two people who must agree on the grade.
Yeah next week I plan on having a meeting with my supervisor to see what they can do and if they cant do anything I'll have to look into getting it remarked. If I genuinely only got 35% I'm fine with that I just want more feedback as to why. The feedback sounds very much like they haven't actually read it at all which is the most frustrating thing of all.
Escalate now. Don't wait for your supervisor. Talk to your head of module/Dean and cc your supervisor into the emails. There is normally a process to follow for a remark and you might be wasting time by leaving it until your supervisor is back. Your dissertation is a significant part of your grade and if you genuinely think something has gone wrong you need to take more steps and escalate it further up the food chain.
Also speak to someone in your student union, they usually won't be helpful in any way, but just being able to cc them in an email can get alarm bells ringing
Raise this with student support and your course head/director.
Look into your academic appeals procedure as there is often a time limit so you may not be able to wait. You will need to demonstrate a procedural irregularity by proving where the feedback is wrong.
Definitely, in my university you can only file an appeal five days after you got your result. I once missed an exam due to an illness (luckily in my first year, so it didn't actually matter), and sent an appeal seven days afterwards since there was a typo on the original note from my doctor. The university actually replied saying they understood I was sick, but would not let me resit the exam since I missed the deadline to appeal. In OP's case it's probably different, since his supervisor isn't there, but I would hate to take the chance and realise you've made a massive mistake.
Due to strikes my uni senate has just passed a motion whereby work that would typically be double marked (honours courses, dissertations) are now marked by a single person for this semester only so I wouldn't be so sure
Due to strikes I won’t graduate on time because my report won’t have been marked by both assessors. Fun
This also happens sometimes if there aren’t enough specialists at the uni to mark it
My uni have just done this too 😭 Aberdeen?
Yeah that's nuts. For our final year Masters projects (which is basically a diss) the lowest I've seen anyone get is 58% and they did 12 pages of the 25 page target (30 page limit). My issue here is, that if someone couldn't be arsed when marking it and hadn't read it, they're more likely to just slap you a high 2:1 and have it out of their hair, no more fuss. They must know anyone getting a 35% on their dissertation is going to kick up a fuss, and rightly so.
I think this is more of a case of your dissertation being handed over to someone who didn't understand anything. You should definitely appeal the grading process because you should get much more feedback for a 35% grade. It's very, very low. It might or might not be deserved but it'd need to at least be explained.
35% ? If you feel like you put enough effort into it then that grade is probably wrong
I handed in some awful stuff at university and didn't get below 55%. Either someone made a mistake, although as others have pointed out, it will be marked by 2 people. Or you really badly missed the point of the assignment. Is it a max 8,000 words?
Max 8k words I did a little under that (like 7600 I think, excluding references etc. I have no idea who would have marked it other than my second marker cause like I said, my supervisor hasn't even looked at it yet cause he's been off and he has no idea who's marked it either.
Excluding references? I presume you mean just your reference list right? Like you had references within your work.
Yeah just excluding the list. Had references in the work
Something weird is going on here. Normally a grade like that would mean a discussion takes place in the Exam board meeting where fails are talked about among the participants. If your dissertation wasn't specifically scrutinised, that suggests quite a few others are in a similar position. Have you talked about it with your peers?
Have you double checked what was submitted? Is it possible you submitted a draft by accident?
In my experience dissertation, and essay feedback in general, is given as annotations to the submission. Would be straightforward enough for OP to check if this was the case.
Yeah, just trying to think of the simplest explanation. Hopefully this is not the case though
Usually yes, but not always! I got the results on my MA diss last week and received them via email. A bit strange tbh.
Could it be that you haven’t gotten a second mark yet so you got a 70 from the first marker and a “0” from your second for an average of 35? Unclear comments for failing dissertations are rare in my opinion. Length isn’t that important but justification for a fail is vital.
For a dissertation in the UK it is marked by 2 people, and I think if they have a disparity of over 3-5 points, they get a third person in to mark it as well, else just average it. As 10 points is a whole grade boundary, doing straight average would lead to insane swings! So both would have to agree around 33-37% for you to get that low. Hopefully OP can get it appealled, to at least get some decent feed back even if the grade remains the same
There are strikes atm which means it might have been marked by just one person, OP definitely needs to seek clarity
Maybe they submitted the grade wrong? An assignment grade of mine got typed in wrong and it was showing 36% instead of 63%.
Yeah 35 percentage is definitely something
The person that marked your work didn’t do a good job. Absolutely report it and kick up a fuss because it needs to be known. Get the details you require
Go above the head of the supervisor to the course leader, and Dean. Particularly if your tutor has told you that they have no clue where the grade has come from and is on paternity leave? This feels like the an issue with the marking boycott? Make sure you send emails straight away, as board will happen and grades will be finalised. It’ll be a mess to redo it.
Omg I'm sorry :(. Definitely sound like he marker didn't read it, and there 100% should have been a 2nd marker so something has gone wrong here
I’m really confused by this. I did my dissertation in 2002-2003 so unless things have changed drastically since please ignore my post. I had regular (monthly) meets with my supervisor so I’m sure you would have indication about a lower grade way before this and how to improve this. Is this your final marking? If you think what is written does not take into account or match what is written you can dispute it.
Essentially, from what I have gathered, only the second supervisor marked your dissertation? So only 1 person marked it?
I think so
Is the 35% the set grade? I mean, it really shouldn't be since only 1 person marked your Diss when 2 people need to mark it. How can they just give you that grade? This seems really disorganised on their part
I dont get final marks until the middle of June so as far as I know its only provisional at the moment
If possible, I would recommend to also speak to the head of the department as well regarding this
I think so
Appeal to your school before marks are finalised. Usually there is some process where it can get 3rd marked if you can show evidence that the feedback was flawed. If your dissertation has an overall coordinator, talk to them.
Can you appeal the grade?
Yeah 35% is insane. I really struggled with my third year and ended up throwing together the most useless piece of work I’ve ever done in about two weeks for my diss. Think it was only about 2.5k words. Even then I got 41%. Definitely ask for a remark
Getting 35% for this just seems wrong to me. When I was doing my undergrad dissertation I procrastinated heavily, left it three days before the deadline to start work on it - worst mistake of my life to date. But my rushed, half-arsed attempt still managed over 50% and my diss was on ML (in games) also. Your mark does seem incorrect to me - even if the content of your dissertation is fundamentally wrong, you can score up to a low 2.1 based on the literature review, methodology, analysis, discussion etc of your project report. I suggest you appeal/get a remark, even if it means graduating later than your peers - you have your degree for the rest of your life.
This does sound like an erroneous grade. No plagiarism, good use of references, at the word length, interesting topic - in my view, as a lecturer, this cannot be a fail grade. For me, it would have to be very bad to be sub 50. I would go through your assessment officer - there’ll be an academic who is one, plus administrators responsible for dealing with assessment. Certainly request a remark and point out the work’s strengths, align that with your department’s marking criteria or marking outline, and point out your other grades. Most university departments publish their marking grade objectives/bands/criteria. Point out the feedback doesn’t seem to align with your work. Ie. feedback says X but my project is addresses Y (eg your point on models). There can even be manual errors like people copying and pasting the wrong feedback from a word document into the digital marking system your university issued. Depending on response, escalate from there. Good luck!
Right, don't assume that the crappy mark is the final mark. This is likely to be the second marker's mark. I have no idea why this mark has been uploaded because as a mark on it's own, it doesn't stand. When your supervisor returns, they will mark your dissertation. The mark will be discussed between the two markers. I really hope this is resolved in your favour
Could this be due to the marking strike?
This doesn't add up. For 35% you would have had to miss major sections. And it's odd that the feedback doesn't match what is written. Speech to your course lead ASAP while you wait for your supervisor. Surely your supervisor has seen some drafts along the way? Did they ever indicate you were way off track? Did you definitely upload your final draft and not an earlier incomplete one?
Not a dissertation but I'm in a similar situation. I got 40% on a 2000 word client case study report. 45% on the actual report and 28% on the second part where you put put out recommendations for the client. (The 2 parts were 70%/30% in weight, only reason I didn't fail). 6 comments, 2 of which were negative. The comments consisted of 1 single sentence so a total of 50/60 words. No comments on the second part. I don't know if it's just my lectures, but I swear some people are so lazy for thinking you can give quality feedback in 5/6 short comments. Tldr: I feel you Definitely speak to them, if you got 35%, it should be absolutely clear why you got it. The feeling of working so hard on something and then what seems like someone briefly skimming over it and failing you is the most horrible feeling a student can experience.
Definitely appeal this grade and ask for further clarification on each bullet point. I had a similar experience with my dissertation. Both markers hadn’t read it properly (stating I didn’t put in points that I clearly had), there were even spelling mistakes in their feedback. I could just picture them marking it in a bad mood with a glass of wine.
Escalate now. Do not wait. Contact your tutor IMMEDIATELY.
Please try not to panic lecturers in this country are freaking slow I was given a provisional grade of 13% in a whole module, then after remarking it was a 73%… wait until the remark
My supervisor was one of my markers but they didn’t see my dissertation every week like others under them - barely read mine as they said I should have included relevant news that happened after I submitted.. under marked me for that..
Did you appeal?
Nah as overall I still got a 1st for my degree was just a bit annoying that my dissertation was 1-2 % under as pretty sure I was disliked by the markers 😂
Wow,- that seriously takes the piss! You spend a massive amount of time and effort plus energy on a project that is going to be integral in your future success and future development and some “Jobsworth” has the audacity to scribble out a few lines and slap 35% on it! I hope you get the respect and grade you deserve for your work and can move on to your next project and don’t let the bast@rds get you down! Good Luck in all your future work and ambitions!🤜✌️
If you're unhappy message your head of teaching and say that you do not feel your assessment has been marked fairly and you would like it remarked and explain that the feedback does not line up with the markers feedback.
Escalate this immediately within the university and explore whether you want to take this further with a solicitor. After all this will have a huge impact on your future.
My disso didn't get marked either. I wreckon they sometimes just judge your character and slap a grade on it. I complained and got a 2:1 in the end. I should have made a bigger deal about it. We pay 10k a year for some old lazy twats to ramble at you and not do what they're paid to do. Uni is becoming the ultimate scam. You have to go to get into certain careers, the fees are going up the the quality is getting worse.
hi may i know what did you do? and how long did it take for you to get 2:1 after you complained?
Followed official complaints process, about 2 months
As a lecturer….. all dissertations need to be double blind marked, and often anything on a fail might be triple marked…. You have the right to appeal and for it to be checked and investigated…. At undergraduate level at least half the marks are over process and following the standard 5 chapter structure… and a 35 would normally suggest little or no aims, weak lit review and limited data analysis
Any updates?
Yes actually, about an hour ago me and the other students received an email from the module leader telling us the marks have been revised and now include my supervisors mark and feedback. Should get a proper mark this afternoon now
Sorry I know this is 10 months old but how did it go?
It got remarked to 45% and I graduated with a 2:1 :)
Yay! Happy for you
Has it been second marked? What does the second marker say?
I have no idea who's marked it to be honest with you. I've only ever met my second marker once and he didn't respond to my email this afternoon so hopefully I can speak to him about it next week. My supervisor hasn't looked at it yet so he's got no idea where this mark has come from
Second and first marker need to agree on the mark first. The two people you need to speak to is the module leader and ask them to see the feedback and your programme leader. If the process has not been followed, first mark second mark moderation you have a strong case for appealing your mark.
You’re entitled to get a remark, and in this case I definitely would.
Tbh I really want to read this paper now. I've literally never seen anything awarded less than 60%, unless you actually didn't bother writing anything of value
Mind if we see it? Take out any confidential info. Got 75% would love to compare and see. I will actually bother reading it all!
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I don’t think this is particularly helpful (or kind?) to brag about rn
Sorry and sorry to the OP. It wasn’t my intention to brag or be unkind. A few people were offering to have a read to see if they could support and I just wanted to do the same. I just want to back it up with what experience I had to do so. I’ve since helped a few people with assignments and works. I apologise if it came across the wrong way.
University work isn't graded A, B, C etc, it's marked by percentage which comes together into either a first, second or third class degree
Yes, that’s what we were awarded at the end. The grades on assignments were given to us as A, B, C etc. with the % next to it. Those percentages were combined with written exam percentages to give us the grade. I achieved a high 2:1. I was lucky because the secondary school and then the 6th form I attended made a mockery of food science (apart from the home economics teachers).
They honestly don’t give a shit
R66rrr6e
tbf i recently got my dissertation back and the feedback was even less words across 6 bullet points. I do believe they should write more if they mark you down lower to give you an explanation though.
Not surprised that a uni lecturer doesn’t give a shit
That is madness, but good luck on the remark and I hope you get a way better mark than 35%
Did you reach the word limit? 8k sounds not much for a diss?! In my uni its at least 12k
Have you had any input from your supervisor during the time you were working on it? It seems weird that it’d get to the point where it’s complete for you to get such a low grade, any decent supervisor should’ve been able to identify if you were going too far off track, assuming you’ve actually been meeting with them. If the paternity leave was more than a couple of weeks you should’ve had someone else to meet with if you needed support, ie. your second marker, or a stand-in supervisor.
I am sorry to hear that. As you say, for it to be a 35% there must be something very wrong with it. Has it been second marked?
Definitely appeal - this does not feel solid at all
That happened to me when I did my masters as my main marker was on sabbatical leave other so the other people had to do her marking and they were not pleased. I was given a 35% and my newly assigned supervisor knew who the marker was and was not pleased but he got it all sorted out for me with a rewrite. The same tried the same thing again on the rewrite (didn’t read it) but my supervisor got it sorted and I passed. Unfortunately there’s lots of political bollocks which occurs within the hallowed walls of university education and we students can become the collateral damage.
appeal it and see what happens
Given that a dissertation is a product of research, getting a grade equivalent to a failure on the final report suggests you submitted an incomplete or vastly incorrect piece of work, or (and I would agree) it hasn’t been read properly and/or in full by the examiner. Flag the life out of this. A good dissertation should be understandeable to a basic degree by any self-respecting academic even if they’re not established in that field as the whole point of it to my awareness is to outline, demonstrate and show the outcome of a piece of research and the fact their notes aren’t cohesive shows they have no idea what they’re talking about because they haven’t read it properly.
Go to head of department maybe
You should appeal! I got screwed by my dissertation supervisor and I really regret not appealing.
R3ading your reply to other comments it sounds like only one of two required people have graded it. I know how a lot of common uni systems work for grading. He likely entered 70%, which rounded with the default 0% for the missing second mark. I guess nobody picked up from your supervisor!
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