Failed 3rd year at University of Glasgow, can I leave with a Cert/Dip of HE?

Original post by blueeyedgal

Hey,

I'm hoping someone out there can help me?? I was studying for a degree in Biology at Glasgow Uni, I managed to pass 1st & 2nd years but failed 3rd. Tbh I don't want to repeat a year (which I've been offered the option of doing) because I didn't enjoy the course in the first place. Does anyone know if Glasgow Uni offer the option of graduating with a Certificate or Diploma of Higher Education in Biology? So at least that way I have something to show for my 3 years I spent there. Also I'm hoping to go on to do Nursing, what I wish I'd done in the first place so it'll look better on applications if I can say "I graduated/left with a Diploma in Higher Education" rather than just "I failed third year so didn't get my degree".

I know I'll have to contact my advisor at some point to get a definite answer but I was just wondering if anyone had any ideas?

Thanks :smile:

I am assuming you are a student from the school of life sciences ...

The "Regulations & advice" document says that

[...]On occasion, students admitted to Year 3 Honours do not wish to progress to Year 4 or fail make the progression criteria.
If you are in this position, you can graduate with a Designated Degree in your named Honours subject, providing you are
appropriately qualified.
However, if you have not attained the minimum requirements to graduate, you may be allowed to transfer to the related
Designated Degree programme and be assessed on the best 75% of your assessed work, even after the Year 3 Honours
results are published. This may raise your overall attainment to the minimum required to graduate. You would then
graduate with the appropriate BSc in a Designated Subject (BSc Animal Biology, BSc Biomolecular Sciences, BSc Human
Biology, BSc Infection Biology or BSc Sports Science) rather than your named Honours programme. If you are in this
position, you should consult both your Adviser of Studies and your Programme Coordinator as soon as possible.[...]

http://ibls.moodle.gla.ac.uk/file.php/299/2011-12_regulations_advice_for_Y3_Y4_students.pdf

Reply 2

OP

Original post by NoCommentMan

I am assuming you are a student from the school of life sciences ...

The "Regulations & advice" document says that

[...]On occasion, students admitted to Year 3 Honours do not wish to progress to Year 4 or fail make the progression criteria.
If you are in this position, you can graduate with a Designated Degree in your named Honours subject, providing you are
appropriately qualified.
However, if you have not attained the minimum requirements to graduate, you may be allowed to transfer to the related
Designated Degree programme and be assessed on the best 75% of your assessed work, even after the Year 3 Honours
results are published. This may raise your overall attainment to the minimum required to graduate. You would then
graduate with the appropriate BSc in a Designated Subject (BSc Animal Biology, BSc Biomolecular Sciences, BSc Human
Biology, BSc Infection Biology or BSc Sports Science) rather than your named Honours programme. If you are in this
position, you should consult both your Adviser of Studies and your Programme Coordinator as soon as possible.[...]

http://ibls.moodle.gla.ac.uk/file.php/299/2011-12_regulations_advice_for_Y3_Y4_students.pdf

Hi,

Yeah I was a life science student. Unfortrunately I failed quite badly so once I was assessed under the 75% rule I still was short of the required GPA to graduate by 0.1 of a point! I can't access that link above to see if I would be eligible for the Diploma of Higher Education as it's asking me to log in and since I'm not a matriculated student or whatever it's not letting me!! Annoying.

Thanks for the info though at least I know roughly where to look now for more info.

Reply 3

Original post by blueeyedgal

Hi,

Yeah I was a life science student. Unfortrunately I failed quite badly so once I was assessed under the 75% rule I still was short of the required GPA to graduate by 0.1 of a point! I can't access that link above to see if I would be eligible for the Diploma of Higher Education as it's asking me to log in and since I'm not a matriculated student or whatever it's not letting me!! Annoying.

Thanks for the info though at least I know roughly where to look now for more info.

Well, what's about that ...

[...]Resit Examinations (Year 3 only)
If you are awarded a grade A, B, C or D at the first examination diet, you will not normally be allowed to resit the end-ofcourse examination. If you have an E, F, G or H grade, or Credit Withheld result, you will be entitled to resit the
examination, but normally only once and at the next available diet; the grade points awarded as the result of the resit
examination will be capped at 9 (equivalent to D3).
Note that the coursework grades you achieved during the session will be carried forward and used to calculate the resit
result. Consequently, it is vital for you to do as well as you can in your assessed coursework.
A resit of one of the Year 3 examinations does not normally allow admission to Year 4. Therefore, if you do not achieve
Grade D in both your Year 3 courses in the main diet and the School of Life Sciences Progress Committee does not give
you permission to progress to Year 4 based on the resit results, you should discuss with your Adviser of Studies whether
you need to take the resit. Your main diet result may be enough to graduate. On the other hand, taking the resit gives
you the opportunity to improve the grade appearing on your transcript.[..]

Reply 4

LSD

17

Hmm I know it's honours degree for fourth year, designated for third, but I've never ever heard of getting anything for just passing first and second year :s especially since we don't specify at all in second year, it's all just a pile of random subjects. I'm fairly sure you don't get anything cause I know a few people in life sciences who failed third year and just left with nothing cause they didn't want to repeat. :frown:

This was posted from The Student Room's iPhone/iPad App

(edited 11 years ago)

Reply 5

http://www.gla.ac.uk/media/media_234557_en.pdf

Original post by blueeyedgal

Hey,

I'm hoping someone out there can help me?? I was studying for a degree in Biology at Glasgow Uni, I managed to pass 1st & 2nd years but failed 3rd. Tbh I don't want to repeat a year (which I've been offered the option of doing) because I didn't enjoy the course in the first place. Does anyone know if Glasgow Uni offer the option of graduating with a Certificate or Diploma of Higher Education in Biology? So at least that way I have something to show for my 3 years I spent there. Also I'm hoping to go on to do Nursing, what I wish I'd done in the first place so it'll look better on applications if I can say "I graduated/left with a Diploma in Higher Education" rather than just "I failed third year so didn't get my degree".

I know I'll have to contact my advisor at some point to get a definite answer but I was just wondering if anyone had any ideas?

Thanks :smile:

Reply 6

OP

Original post by LSD

Hmm I know it's honours degree for fourth year, designated for third, but I've never ever heard of getting anything for just passing first and second year :s especially since we don't specify at all in second year, it's all just a pile of random subjects. I'm fairly sure you don't get anything cause I know a few people in life sciences who failed third year and just left with nothing cause they didn't want to repeat. :frown:

This was posted from The Student Room's iPhone/iPad App

I know that if you study Chemistry you can leave at the end of 2nd year with a Diploma of Higher Education (General Science) but I've been trying to find life sciences standpoint on it but can't find anything. I've emailed my adviser but she's never too quick to reply so I'll have to wait a while to find out I guess...

(edited 11 years ago)

Reply 7

LSD

17

Original post by blueeyedgal

I know that if you study Chemistry you can leave at the end of 2nd year with a Diploma of Higher Education (General Science) but I've been trying to find life sciences standpoint on it but can't find anything. I've emailed my adviser but she's never too quick to reply so I'll have to wait a while to find out I guess...

Hmm I've never heard of anything like that in life sciences sorry :frown:

I'm sure you'll find out soon enough, can you not do the resit, pass it, then leave with a designated?

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Reply 8

OP

Original post by LSD

Hmm I've never heard of anything like that in life sciences sorry :frown:

I'm sure you'll find out soon enough, can you not do the resit, pass it, then leave with a designated?

This was posted from The Student Room's iPhone/iPad App

Potentially I could but I wouldn't get any funding, I'd have to pay my own fees which I couldn't afford. Plus it was a couple of years since I left, I already had travelling booked so couldn't go back straight away. So it'd mean moving back to Glasgow for the year with no income or anything.

And I got an out of office reeply from my adviser she's not back for another 3 weeks :frown:

Reply 9

LSD

17

Oh my I'm confused? I thought you'd only just finished third year this summer and failed, if you passed the resit this August would you not get a designated then? Or was it ages ago you left?

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Reply 10

@blueeyedgal

Your situation is kind of completely confusing.

You leave uni. Then, I few years later, it comes into your mind that you left uni without a degree!?

Reply 11

OP

Original post by NoCommentMan

@blueeyedgal

Your situation is kind of completely confusing.

You leave uni. Then, I few years later, it comes into your mind that you left uni without a degree!?

Um...... thanks but I was aware that I didn't have the degree some time ago.

Basically I sat the 3rd year exams in 2010. I failed then did the resit in August but just missed passing by one mark. However I already had booked a gap year and had everything paid for, so I spoke to my adviser and explained the situation. She said it was fine, I could take some out and come back and repeat a few 2nd year subjects to up my GPA and qualify for the designated degree. We agreed that I would come back in a year or two when I was back from travelling. But the situation is now that I'm back travelling and and have a job. I don't however have the means to move back to Glasgow at the moment. I'd also get no funding. So I may not be able to go back and was wondering if there was some exit point where I could at least come away with something i.e Cert/Diploma of HE.

(edited 11 years ago)

Reply 12

Apart from the fact that I find your way of doing things (like going travelling after having problems at uni) stupid, I still want to help you.

Under the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework, you are entitled to the HNC or CertHE after having successfully completed first year at uni and you are entitled to the HND or DipHE after having successfully completed second year at uni.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scottish_Credit_and_Qualifications_Framework#Further_Discussions

If Glasgow Uni does not want to give you anything, you might have to contact the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework or the Scottish Qualifications Authority and see how they can help you.

http://www.scqf.org.uk/

http://www.sqa.org.uk/

(edited 11 years ago)

Reply 13

OP

Original post by NoCommentMan

Apart from the fact that I find your way of doing things (like going travelling after having problems at uni) stupid, I still want to help you.

Under the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework, you are entitled to the HNC or CertHE after having successfully completed first year at uni and you are entitled to the HND or DipHE after having successfully completed second year at uni.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scottish_Credit_and_Qualifications_Framework#Further_Discussions

If Glasgow Uni does not want to give you anything, you might have to contact the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework or the Scottish Qualifications Authority and see how they can help you.

http://www.scqf.org.uk/

http://www.sqa.org.uk/

Yeah I agree that maybe leaving uni at that point wasn't the most sensible idea. To be honest with you I had a lot of personal problems going on during my 3rd year. I was also diagnosed with depression. I just wanted to get away from it all for a bit so took off. And it did me the world of good, I'm doing ok now and just want to get on with my life. Hence me seeing about picking up uni.

Thanks for the info above though, it's a great help and very much appreciated!

Btw just one more question... I contacted my adviser and got an out of office reply saying that she won't be back for a little while. Do you think that it'd be a simple case of contacting Registry and they'd be able to arrange it? Or do you reckon I'll have to wait till she's back to get it all sorted?

Reply 14