UCL announces exam protocols for the summer exam season 2021

UCL has recently provided an update on how online exams will work during the main examination period.

Notable changes this year include the introduction of the AssessmentUCL platform and timed exams.

The main examination period will be between 26 April and 28 May. However, some students may have additional exams outside of this period. In this case, they will be advised further by their department.

Students will not be able to access exam schedules on Portico this year. Instead, all individuals will be emailed on 1 March with a link to their online exam timetables. From there, students will be able to transfer the exam events directly to their calendars.

The online timetable will also indicate the exam type. All exams will be available to access within a 24 hour period to account for different time zones. However, some exams will be timed meaning that the assessment will have to be completed within a set duration (e.g. 2 or 3 hours) during the 24 hours indicated. The 24 hour period starts from the date and time shown on each timetable. Students will also have an additional hour for uploading and any technical difficulties.

Exams will now be carried out using the new digital platform, AssessmentUCL. Students will need to download their exam and complete it using their own computer’s word processing software (e.g. MS Word). Upon competition, assessments will need to be converted into a PDF and uploaded onto AssessmentUCL. There will be an opportunity to explore the new platform in early March.

AssessmentUCL is integrated with UCL’s Turnitin licence and similarity scores and reports will be available to examiners. However, students will still be required to acknowledge a Declaration of Honesty on the online cover sheet to state that they are in compliance with UCL’s regulations on Academic Integrity and Plagiarism.

Lastly, students with a SORA granting them additional time and/or a rest break will have 24 hours to complete their exams regardless of the exam type.

Full details can be found here.