Re-doing first year

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I thought this last year - I didn't work all year and started revising with 2 weeks to the exams. I thought i'd fail all my modules and have to retake the year, but somehow my cramming allowed me to average 60% across the exams (with a bit of help from throughout-the-year coursework). I ended up with a deferred pass in a module that I got ~38% in.

Moral is, don't give up until it's over. Lucky for me our first year exams don't count towards our degree, we just have to pass.

In terms of retaking, it varies from university to university, you'll probably have to talk to your course board and give a decent case for them to allow you to retake, other than that, if you only fail a few modules you will probably have to resit them during 2nd year.

(edited 11 years ago)

University of Manchester

Manchester

Reply 21

me, myself and I

Original post by Aemiliana

I'm re-doing my second year. The school of arts, histories and cultures do not let people re-do the year just to improve grades. You have to have mitigating circumstances (personal or medical) and will have to provide documents to prove this. In my case, I have been ill for all of semester 2 and most of semester 1. I had to provide a doctor's note and write a short letter stating how my illness had affected my studies (and vice versa). I will also need to provide another note from my doctor in September to prove that I am well enough to return to uni.

In your case, you're just going to have to cram I'm afraid.

I'm currently in second year too, and was also granted mitigating circumstances as the university counsellor wrote a letter to my head of dept. In my case though I'm sitting any resits as a first attempt in summer. I know I haven't done as well as I'd have liked/was capable of by any stretch of the imagination, but in my case I think I've passed enough to grant me progression to third year and then trying to pull my grade up next year due to the heftier finals weighting.

Anyway, my point is, re-doing the year is not something to be taken lightly by any means. The financial, and other, implications are pretty large and it's not really something you should casually choose to do (and it's highly unlikely the dept would let you anyway without mitigating circumstances as in my case, or Aemiliana's). You'll be given a second opportunity to prove yourself - in resits - and despite the fact that they may be capped, or your original mark taken anyway, the summer holiday is a very good time to get your act together and get up to scratch to start afresh for second year. Even if you do get a low average this year the likelihood is that first year counts for so little, or doesn't count at all, that you can make up for it later on.

Stop being lazy, and get working :tongue:

(and with that...I'm heading back to my books...)

Reply 22

canŵio

if you retake the year, won't you have to pay this year's tuition fees for the rest of your degree?

Reply 23

username163092

Original post by me, myself and I

(and with that...I'm heading back to my books...)

See, I'm on an interruption which means I don't even take the exams at the moment. I'll never know if I could have crammed it. :moon:

But yeah, despite not paying tuition fees for the extra year, you still have to get a maintenance loan out, which adds £3,500 odd quid to what you have to pay back.

Original post by canŵio

if you retake the year, won't you have to pay this year's tuition fees for the rest of your degree?

As far as I'm aware, no. There are people I know that took interruptions years ago and have just returned and they're paying under £2,000 for theirs.

Reply 24

oconnor

From my experience they won't let you re-sit first year if you fail it and if you pass first year why would you want to re-sit it? Use your reading lists and catch up over summer if you're worried

Reply 25

Welsh Leprecaun

Went today and found out I can't resit the first year. It wasn't a total waste though - my two 39's I got in January have been turned into passes :biggrin: