The policies below apply to all students on taught courses.
The University of Essex Marking Policy underwent major review in 2023-24 and the policy has been substantially revised for 2024-25. The previous policy can be found here.
The University of Essex employs a proportionate approach to the management of marking, which seeks to safeguard the academic standards and quality of University of Essex awards and marking and feedback for all assessed work. The requirements set out in this policy are risk-based. Single marking with moderation by sample is the default across assessment, with double marking required for work where a higher risk is identified. This includes, but is not necessarily limited to, situations where:
The requirements set out in the policy are the baseline across the University and should not normally be exceeded unless there is a compelling reason to do so, such as the requirement of a professional, statutory or regulatory body. The policy applies to all summative assessment.
The policy requires that departments keep records of moderation and second marking which allow for others, including External Examiners, to review the moderation and double marking processes. Suggested templates for these are given below. These can be adapted to department need and it is not compulsory to use these templates as long as suitable records are kept.
Please note that specific marking requirements are in place for assessment with no permanent output. This is any form of assessment where the work being assessed is transient and cannot be reviewed by a moderator, second marker or External Examiner subsequently. This could include, but is not limited to, performances, presentations and the observations of tasks to be completed. Where the student work is recorded it does not fall into this category unless the recording does not allow for the assessment of all learning outcomes for the task: for instance, a voice recording is not sufficient if body language is being assessed as part of presentation style. Where there is a record that would allow for a marker who was not present at the original assessment to mark against all assessment criteria then this recorded task is considered to have a permanent output and can be moderated accordingly.
Recordings should be retained via a central departmental Box folder in line with the usual departmental retention periods and with appropriate permissions.
Please find below variations for the 2024-25 academic year approved under the procedure set out in section 6 of the policy: