You might know that, as part of a national dispute about pay and working conditions, there is a marking and assessment boycott at 146 universities across the UK, including the University of Sussex.

While the University respects union members’ right to take industrial action, we are doing everything possible to minimise the impact on you and your studies while also maintaining academic standards.

How will the boycott impact me?

The boycott means that while all your exams and assessments will be marked, in some cases this will take longer than usual. Some exams and assessments might not be marked until the boycott ends. Please see below a breakdown of how the boycott could impact you:

Finalists

Finalists will fall into one of three groups:

• Students who are unaffected by the boycott.
• Some students will have some missing marks. Many of these students will be awarded a temporary ‘ordinary’ degree this summer. Once the boycott ends all exams and assessments will be marked and, subject to these marks, ordinary degrees will be converted to classified honours degrees.
• Some students will have too many missing marks to be awarded an ordinary degree during the boycott. Once the boycott ends all exams and assessments will be marked and, subject to these marks, students will receive a classified honours degrees.

Non-finalists

All of your work will be marked, but for many students there may be an impact on when your work is marked. We will provide you with further updates and support as soon as possible.

Postgraduate Researchers

In some cases you may experience a delay in progress reviews and in arrangement of vivas. We will be in touch to provide further updates and support should this be the case.

Will I still be able to attend graduation?

Summer ceremonies will go ahead this year as planned. We will provide you with further updates and detail as soon as possible.

Further Support

We know this news is unsettling, but please be assured that we are doing everything we can to minimise the impact on you.

If you have any questions about how the marking and assessment boycott may impact on you, please contact your School who will able to help answer questions and provide further information.

In addition, updates will be provided on the Student Hub and the Industrial Action page as soon as we have any further information to share, so we advise that you check it regularly for updates.

The University’s Advice and Guidance team also provides a safe and confidential space for you to discuss any issues that concern or affect you. To get in touch, visit Student Centre: University of Sussex.

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