FAQs

Access to University buildings is severely restricted, but halls of residence will remain open for the rest of the semester.

Due to the continued spread of coronavirus (Covid-19) and the restrictions on movement that the UK government has put in place, the University paused teaching between Tuesday 17 March to Friday 3 April, and instead used that time as Reading Weeks for students. Course delivery will recommence on Monday 20 April and will be online only - there will be no face to face teaching. Some teaching materials were made available to students, where possible, prior to that date.

Many existing assessment deadlines were deferred to Friday 24 April. Other assessments have been adjusted, and in some cases reduced, in order to reflect the restrictions of the current situation and the pressures that students are under. Module leaders can advise students on the details of revised assessments and deadlines. If for any reason you feel that you will not be able to meet these deadlines, please refer to our Exceptional Circumstances guidance, which has been amended to reflect the current situation.

Any student who is considering interrupting their study due to coronavirus should email covid-19@brookes.ac.uk.

Update as of 16 April:

Access to University buildings is severely restricted but halls of residence remain open. Residents of halls of residence should observe social distancing advice to prevent the further spread of coronavirus (Covid-19).

The University has declared a number of Reading Weeks from 8.00am Tuesday 17 March to Friday 3 April. There will be no delivery of teaching during these weeks. Delivery will recommence after Easter and will be online only - there will be no face to face teaching.

After listening to the feedback that you have given us, we have asked staff to publish any new learning materials relating to courses scheduled to end in Week 12, which is now complete, from Friday 3 April - this is earlier than planned. Academic colleagues will let you know as soon as the material for your module is available. All learning material will be available by Monday 20 April (Week 11) at the latest. 

The wellbeing and attainment of our students will always come first. We are completely committed to ensuring that students are not disadvantaged as a result of the changes to teaching and assessment that we have introduced.

We know and appreciate that all students are affected by the current situation - particularly those with personal health concerns, those who are unexpectedly having to balance study with childcare, and those who may be caring for vulnerable loved ones.

We recognise that you may be feeling anxious about whether you’ll be able to give enough focus to this semester’s assessments to perform to the best of your ability. For that reason, as communicated in an email on Monday 6 April and further detailed in an email on Friday 22 May, we are introducing additional measures for all taught programmes, to make sure that you are not disadvantaged by the changes to the learning materials and assessment methods that have been introduced, or by the disruption that all students are experiencing as a result of COVID-19.

Please note, Oxford Brookes students studying at one of our partner institutions may have different arrangements and should refer to guidance issued by their teaching provider. The same principles of ensuring that students are not disadvantaged by the current situation will apply, but the arrangements may vary depending on the partner institution and the course.

We can reassure you that if your marks in Semester 2 are lower when compared with Semester 1 (or the most recent semester for which you have assessment results) we will put into place an adjustment so that you are not disadvantaged by the current situation. This adjustment does not rely on any previous application for Exceptional Circumstances: any student whose marks this semester are lower than their previous semester will be eligible, regardless of whether or not they had previously applied for Exceptional Circumstances.

The exact adjustment will depend on your situation, and any programme-specific or professional body rules which may apply, but the possibilities are:

• That your marks for these assessments will not count towards your final classification average or Grade Point Average: you will get an ungraded pass for the modules where your performance was affected.
• That you will get the chance to re-sit these assessments at a later date, for an uncapped mark.
• That, in certain very limited and specific circumstances, a “compensated pass” can be applied to a module that you may have narrowly failed.

The University will make it very simple for students to request an adjustment, ensure that all requests will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis and will provide more information in the week beginning Monday 22 June, prior to results being published on Friday 26 June (UG Semester 2 results and Semester 1 resit results) or Monday 29 June (PG results).

We would like to reassure all students that your assessments would always have been marked in a reasonable way, as per our existing policies and practices, and that will continue to be the case in light of the existing circumstances. 

We would like to reassure all students that your assessments would always have been marked in a reasonable way, as per our existing policies and practices, and that will continue to be the case in light of the existing circumstances.

For more details, see Section entitled Assessment Adjustment Process.

We continue to put the highest value on supporting students' wellbeing and attainment. The majority of academic provision has been moved online and academic staff can be contacted via email or Moodle. In addition, student services continue to be provided, either online or by phone. Therefore, there are no plans to reimburse tuition fees which sustains this level of support both academically and across student support services.

We will do all we can to support students during this difficult time. If you are advised to self-isolate, or your symptoms indicate that you should self-isolate according to the Government guidance, please fill in the Coronavirus reporting form in the first instance. You should then contact the Covid-19 team via covid-19@brookes.ac.uk if you have any particular support needs. If your condition worsens, please contact the University again through the reporting form if you then require further support. If you are in shared accommodation, please make sure that you advise your housemates of the situation. Please also email or phone your Academic Adviser or supervisor to tell them.

If the need to self-isolate affects your performance in any assessment task, please use the Exceptional Circumstances process to request an appropriate allowance. If you are unable to provide medical evidence, please explain clearly what circumstances have led to your self-isolation.

PHE guidance remains that students feeling unwell with new symptoms should follow government guidance and self isolate for seven days. This is in line with the Government advice issued on Thursday 12 March, which states that you should stay at home for seven days if you have either a high temperature or a new continuous cough. If you live with others, they should remain at home and not leave the house/accommodation for 14 days, according to Government advice from Monday 23 March. If any of the household develop symptoms, they then need to remain at home for another 7 days. You do not need to contact NHS 111 to tell them you’re staying at home but you do need to notify the University by completing the Coronavirus reporting form in the first instance. The NHS will not be testing people who are self-isolating with mild symptoms. Further information can be found on the PHE website.

Further support

• Managing your wellbeing during the coronavirus outbreak - from the Wellbeing team
• Studying online during COVID-19 - from the Centre for Academic Development team

During this unprecedented time, the University is aware that there are a lot of changes happening very quickly and this can feel overwhelming and cause worry and anxiety.

Student Support Coordinators (SSCs) are still working hard to support students with the many new processes being put in place. SSCs are also still able to help with your everyday questions and support needs as usual - further information on the support they provide can be found here.

Whilst it is not possible to use print books and other materials in our libraries at the moment, the library has secured access to an unprecedented array of online resources, including many thousands of ebooks and a number of highly regarded database resources. Most of these will be available until 30 June. Further information on availability can be found here.

The library webpages will provide further updates as the situation continues to change and as more content providers come on board. Library Help - our support chat service - can provide a valuable signposting service as well as direct help and support.

Please don’t forget that our Academic Liaison Librarians can also be considered a key resource available to you during this time and can be contacted here.

'More Books and More 2020' has now finished. This initiative was delivered by the library to provide students with books they requested, and over £20,000 was spent on books, e-books and journal articles. A full list of the titles purchased via More Books is available.

You can give your feedback about More Books via morebooks@brookes.ac.uk or complete the email feedback request if you were a user of the scheme.

The University has taken the decision to postpone the June Graduation ceremonies until further notice in light of the current restrictions around social-distancing and international travel. This decision has not been taken lightly, but the uncertainty around international travel will affect a lot of our students and their families and we cannot be certain that such a large event would be permitted by that time. We are now planning for the ceremonies to be held at a later date and will make a further announcement when the situation is clearer.

For more details on refunds, gown hire and cancelling gown hire and photography, please see the Graduation webpage. 

If we need to close the University, you will be informed immediately to your Brookes email account. Halls of Residence will contact students directly with any local arrangements. We will advise students of what services remain open, and how to contact them.

If assessed events are disrupted by the current situation, teaching colleagues will make arrangements for the assessments to take place in a different way. You will be contacted by Module Leaders with more details.

Further to information emailed to students on placements on 20 March, you should follow your employer’s instructions in relation to any action taken by your workplace in relation to coronavirus. If this disrupts your study, then the Exceptional Circumstances process will apply. Further guidance is also available for students studying for programmes in the faculties of Technology, Design and Environment and Humanities and Social Sciences and Oxford Brookes Business School.

An email to all students on 27 March confirmed that the results dates would be moved back by three weeks. Undergraduate results will now be released on 26 June and postgraduate results will now be released on 29 June.

Student Central will produce electronic transcripts for students who can’t graduate. It is not currently possible to produce hard copies.

Brookes Print is now running limited operational hours until further notice to fulfill essential printing requirements. Should you have any questions or wish to discuss future print projects we encourage you to email printservices@brookes.ac.uk with your requirements or to request a call back.

We can confirm that we do not intend to host any examinations in Oxford or Swindon for the remainder of this academic year. This includes April resits and Graduate Diploma in Law exams, the semester 2 exam period in May, and the semester 2 resit period in July. More details can be found on the Exams webpage. 

Students will have received communications from their Module Leaders on Thursday 2 April or shortly after, via Moodle or by email, about the changes to their assessments.

We acknowledge that some of you may have started preparing assignments which are now reduced, changed or cut altogether, and we appreciate that this will be disappointing. However, the new assessment strategies are designed to accommodate the highly unusual circumstances in which we all find ourselves - recognising that many students are feeling anxiety and stress, some are caring for others, some are unwell, some have limited access to learning resources and technology or a quiet space to work, and some are part-time essential key workers.

We have worked hard to ensure that new assessment methods provide a fair means of assessing student learning and engage with all core module learning outcomes, while reducing the assessment load on students at this difficult time. We are being guided by the Office for Students and other regulatory bodies in revising our assessment methods.

It is possible that some very minor changes to the assessments may be necessary over the coming weeks, when we start to load the information into the student record system - but we don’t anticipate that this is going to be a significant issue. You will be informed of any changes.

Where exams are replaced by an online assessment, it will run to the same, or a similar schedule as the original exam timetable. Google Calendars will be updated to show how to access the online assessment. July resits will be entered in Google Calendars once candidates are known. The exam will be time-constrained, with a time window for completion which allows for any international time differences, rest breaks, additional writing time or technical hitches. You should aim to complete the tasks in the exam time allowed, on your own.

Students with reasonable adjustment requirements will be permitted to use any screen reader or dictation software available to them, in place of human scribes or readers. Where there are complications in accommodating reasonable adjustments, we will work with students on a case-by-case basis to address these.

In order to help students prepare for an online assessment, a guide in the form of FAQs is available on the exams website on what to expect, how to prepare yourself, your working environment and your technology. This information will continue to be updated. If you think you will have difficulty accessing online exams, please contact exams@brookes.ac.uk.

We can confirm that Semester 1 resits will be covered by the Assessment Adjustment Policy (AAP). This means that if any of your marks from Semester 1 resits are lower than your recent standard marks from the most recent semester for which results are available, an adjustment can be made.

If you think you will have difficulty accessing online exams, please contact exams@brookes.ac.uk. We are unable to make any on-campus IT facilities available for students during this exam session so you will need to make use of network access and IT kit available to you. If you do not have sufficient facilities available to you then you can contact COVID-19@brookes.ac.uk to see if a hire can be arranged, or whether you are eligible for financial support with the cost of equipment. If, having done this, you are still unable to access IT equipment for your resit assessments, you will need to apply for exceptional circumstances.

For IT-related issues with equipment and access, either when checking in advance or on the day, please contact the IT Service Desk for assistance - Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 5.00pm BST:

Telephone: +44 (0) 1865 48 3311

Chat via the portal (including 24hr Self Service): https://service.brookes.ac.uk

You should notify the University that you are not fit to sit an assessment by using Exceptional Circumstances. If you have suspected or confirmed Coronavirus infection, you should also notify the University via the Coronavirus reporting form. See also Q. If I’m advised to self-isolate, what does that mean? and Q. What support is the University providing for students in self-isolation?

Students will have received an email on 2 April informing them that Module Leaders will begin to release teaching materials in Moodle as they become ready. Module Leaders will also release information about updated assessments from 2 April, so please check carefully what the updated assessments now entail as they may have been some changes.

The new assessment strategies are designed to accommodate the highly unusual circumstances in which we all find ourselves - recognising that many students are feeling anxiety and stress, some are caring for others, some are unwell, some have limited access to learning resources and technology or a quiet space to work, and some are part-time essential key workers.

We have worked hard to ensure that new assessment methods provide a fair means of assessing student learning and engage with all core module learning outcomes, while reducing the assessment load on students at this difficult time. We are being guided by the Office for Students and other regulatory bodies in revising our assessment methods.

If for any reason you feel that you will not be able to meet the deadlines or prepare for assessments, please refer to our Exceptional Circumstances policy. 

Please talk to your module leaders if you have concerns. Colleagues have set deadlines to give you the maximum time to complete your assessments. However, if you feel that you will not be able to meet the deadlines or prepare for assessments, please refer to our Exceptional Circumstances policy.

The exact adjustment will depend on your situation, and any programme-specific or professional body rules which may apply, but the possibilities, which are dependent on your degree programme and your stage within it, are:

If you have passed a module, but your mark is lower than your standard mark of the previous semester:

• You can do nothing and accept the result. You might want to do this if your mark is only slightly lower than your previous standard.
• You can have an adjustment which means that your marks for these modules will not count towards your final classification average or Grade Point Average: this is called an ungraded pass. You might want to do this if your marks are significantly lower than your previous standard. You can have ungraded passes applied to a maximum of two module credits in your programme (i.e. two single modules or one double module). When these modules appear on your transcript, it will be clear that you’ve passed the module, but no mark or grade will be listed.
• You can re-sit these assessments during the Semester 2 resit period (11 - 18 July), for an uncapped mark. This may not be an attractive option for students who are still affected by Covid-19 (students at any Level) or those who will be able to recover their marks in future study (Level 4 or 5 students) or those who can progress to their next level of study with the pass marks they've already achieved (Level 3 students). Therefore you might want to opt for the ungraded passes as described above. Re-sits will take place during the Semester 2 resit period (11 - 18 July), for an uncapped mark.

If you have failed a module:

• You can re-sit any failed assessment during the Semester 2 resit period (11 - 18 July), for an uncapped mark.
• In certain limited and specific circumstances, a “compensated pass” can be applied to a module that you may have narrowly failed.

This process will offer you, the student, some control over the decisions for your particular modules.

This diagram will help you understand the process. Please contact your Student Support Coordinator if you require more help to discuss your options.

All students whose marks this semester are lower than their standard of performance for their previous semester will receive an email from the University (sent by AAP@ec.brookes.ac.uk) to explain their options. If you receive this email, it is very important that you pay careful attention to the detail of the information in the message that you receive, especially the deadline by which you need to respond. 

You cannot change your mind once you have submitted the form. If there has been a genuine mistake, you should contact your Student Support Coordinator who will help if they can. 

Some students did receive an email informing them they were eligible for adjustment by mistake due to a technical error. Those students will now no longer be able to access the portal. We apologise for the confusion and inconvenience.

We cannot extend the deadline to request a resit. You can now either accept your marks as they stand, or you can accept an ungraded pass. You have until 12 noon on 10 July to do this. If you do not do anything, your marks will stand. You can have ungraded passes applied to a maximum of two module credits in your programme (i.e. two single modules or one double module). When these modules appear on your transcript, it will be clear that you’ve passed the module, but no mark or grade will be listed.

Once you have read the email and considered the adjustment(s) that you have been offered, you will need to decide which of the adjustments available you would like to accept - if any. 

Please bear in mind that Level 4 modules do not contribute to your final degree classification, and that a limited number of Level 5 modules contribute to your final degree classification: your two lowest marks at Level 5 are still discounted from the calculation of your final average even if you elect to take ungraded passes at this point.

Level 4 and 5 students - we recommend that you consider carefully whether you wish to select a resit adjustment during the current continued disruption. You may be able to recover your marks during your next year(s) of study. Taking a resit is a significant amount of work, which you should only commit yourself to if you think it could make a significant difference to your final award.

Graduating students - please think carefully about whether a resit is likely to make any significant difference to your final degree classification. If you are close to a grade boundary, you may want to talk to your Student Support Co-ordinator about whether ungraded passes are a better option.

The email will contain a link to a simple form where you can indicate which of the adjustments you would like to take. You can also use that form to tell us that you would like to accept the mark that you’ve already achieved.

Your responses will then be processed on our system, and any adjustments will appear on your Student Information page within a few working days. We will process the responses as quickly as we can, but please be patient if there is a short delay between your submission of the form and the updates appearing on your Student Information page. You will only be offered adjustments which are automatically available to you, so if you have selected an adjustment then you can be reassured that your student record will be updated accordingly. 

“Previous standard of performance” is your recent standard of performance, which we will compare your Semester 2 results against to determine whether you’ve been disadvantaged by the COVID-19 disruption. See “What marks will count in the calculation of my recent standard?” for information about how this will be calculated.

The grade point average (GPA) is a score which is calculated from your attainment over all the modules you take. More details here.

“Final average” is the figure that is used to determine the degree classification for graduating students. It will be calculated based on the regulations for your programme. Graduating students who are eligible for AAP will want to refer to this figure to consider which option(s) to take. Your Student Support Co-ordinator can help you if you’ve got any questions about this.  

Your marks will appear on your transcript as they are published on your Student Information page. If any of your marks are replaced with ungraded passes via this process, then they will appear as ungraded passes on your transcript - no marks will be shown, but it will be clear that you’ve passed the modules.

If any ungraded passes are added to your programme, the marks for those modules won’t count towards the calculation of your final degree average: which is the figure that determines the classification of your degree. This means that the number of modules on which your final average is calculated will be reduced by the number of modules on which you have an ungraded pass.

If any ungraded passes are added to your programme, the marks for those modules won’t count towards your Grade Point Average. Otherwise, it will be calculated in the usual way.

Yes, it will be online and event assessments (exam resits) will take place between 11 and 18 July.

If you had resits on any Semester 1 modules, then we recognise that your preparation and focus on these will also have been affected by the current situation.

If you had capped resits on Semester 1 modules, and you pass those resits, then there’s no need to adjust anything, because any pass will be an improvement on what you previously achieved.

If you had uncapped resits which you pass, but your marks for those modules are lower than your previous standard performance, you can have an adjustment applied under this procedure: i.e., for those marks to be replaced by an ungraded pass so that they don’t negatively affect the calculation of your final average.

If you had Semester 1 resits (capped or uncapped) which you fail, you can, in certain limited circumstances, have a “compensated pass” applied to the module(s) in question (see below for an explanation of the limitations on compensated passes), or you can have a further opportunity to submit or take the assessment during the Semester 2 resit period (11 - 18 July). Please note that this exceptional allowance is only available for resits which were failed in April 2020, in recognition of the sudden disruption that students were faced with at that time. Any Semester 1 resits which were previously capped will remain capped; resits which were previously uncapped will remain uncapped.

If you have a capped resit, we will be comparing this semester’s marks against the original mark, as this is the fairest and most accurate measure of previous performance. However, if your resit is uncapped (i.e., you were affected by exceptional circumstances at the time of the original assessment) we will discount the previous mark from the calculation.

We have adjusted our assessments to make sure that - within a changed timeframe - we’re still giving students the chance to show that they can meet all the Learning Outcomes which are required to pass your modules and your course. In recognition of the disruption that everyone is currently experiencing, any students who fail Semester 2 modules will be entitled to an uncapped resit, without having to apply for Exceptional Circumstances.

However, it is important for the value of your award that - even in these disrupted circumstances - you can say with confidence that you have met all of the required Learning Outcomes for your programme. We also recognise that resits may not be an attractive option for students who are still experiencing disruption as a result of the current situation.

So, if you do fail any Semester 2 modules, or any Semester 2 resits, then in certain very limited circumstances we may be able to award you a “compensated pass” on a limited number of modules (up to a maximum of 2 module credits at Levels 3 and 4, and a maximum of 1 module credit at Level 5), but this will depend on how close you have come to passing the module in question, and whether you have passed everything else required to progress.

Where applicable, compensated passes will be applied by the Examination Committee considering your results, and will be published with the rest of your results. If you would rather take an uncapped resit than have the compensated pass, you will need to let us know by responding to the email that we send you when your results are published. Please note that this only applies to compensated passes which are applied to your first sitting of these assessments: if compensated passes are applied to any Semester 2 resits, you will not be able to request a further resit. See also ‘What happens if I fail a resit/get a lower mark in a resit?’

In relation to second resit attempts on Semester 1 modules and resits on Semester 2 modules, if a student:

a) Fails a resit (capped or uncapped), they may be entitled to a compensated pass by the Subject Exam Committee (SEC) (within PSRB restrictions and existing limits on compensated passes), but no further adjustment would be possible;

b) Passes a capped resit, the capped mark will stand;

c) Passes an uncapped resit but at a lower mark than their previous Semester 1 average, then they can apply for an ungraded pass, provided they have previously not used the maximum allocation of two credits of ungraded passes on their programme. If they have fully utilised either of these allocations (compensated passes or ungraded passes), no further adjustment is possible.

d) Passes an uncapped resit at a lower mark than the previous attempt, the previous (higher) mark will stand, unless an ungraded pass is applied as described above.

The post-resit Assessment Adjustment Process will commence the week beginning Monday 17 August.

If you don’t have enough marks from previous semesters for us to be able to measure your previous standard of performance (e.g. because you started your course in January 2020, or because you started in September 2019 and are in the first year of a programme which consists of ‘long thin’ modules that run over Semester 1 and Semester 2), then we can’t make any definitive judgement on whether you were disadvantaged by COVID-related disruption. However, we have said that we acknowledge that all students will have been affected in some way, so in these instances, we will offer students the opportunity of an ungraded pass or an uncapped resit, which you can choose to take if you think that your performance was of a lower standard than you would have been able to achieve without the COVID disruption. 

If you don’t think you’ve been offered the appropriate adjustments, or you haven’t been offered any adjustments and you think you should have been, you should contact your Student Support Coordinator in the first instance.

If you think that there has been an error in the way we have calculated your marks and eligibility for adjustment, please contact your Student Support Coordinator in the first instance.

The Academic Adjustment Process should not become a means of circumventing or nullifying any penalty which has been applied following an Academic Conduct investigation. However, the exact relationship between an Academic Conduct penalty and AAP will vary greatly between different cases and we will cross-reference the penalties which have been awarded with a student’s eligibility for AAP. If you’ve had your marks reduced as a penalty from an Academic Conduct investigation, you may not be eligible for AAP even though your Semester 2 mark is lower than your previous average. If that’s the case then you won’t receive the email about your options. If one or more of your module results is ineligible for AAP because of an Academic Conduct outcome, but other modules are eligible for adjustment under AAP, you’ll be contacted separately to explain your options.  

For the full details of the grounds that are eligible for an appeal and the process of how to appeal, please see this document. 

We’re putting measures in place to ensure that students aren’t academically disadvantaged by the changes that we’ve made to teaching and assessment, and we think that the fairest way to do this is on a case-by-case basis, applying consistent measures and mechanisms. We’re not able to make any universal guarantees, however, because many of our courses carry professional accreditation, including nursing and other health care professions. We have to apply specific, rather than ‘blanket’ considerations to those courses, so that we don’t risk the integrity of the professional qualifications or the safety of the public.

We recognise that you may be feeling anxious about whether you’re able to give enough focus to this semester’s assessments to perform to the best of your ability. For that reason, as communicated in an email on Monday 6 April, we are introducing additional measures for all taught programmes, to make sure that you are not academically disadvantaged by the changes to the learning materials and assessment methods that have been introduced, or by the disruption that all students are experiencing as a result of COVID-19.

This is in addition to the the measures that were already in place, including:

• Creating alternative event assessments (exams, timed tests) that will be held online, adjusting assessment schedules, and where possible, reducing the amount of assessment tasks.
• Adjusting planned teaching to deliver it online rather than face-to-face, and reviewing it against learning outcomes to ensure we’re not over-burdening students.
• Extending the self-certification period for Exceptional Circumstances to 14 days.

We know and appreciate, however, that all students are affected by the current situation - particularly those with personal health concerns, those who are unexpectedly having to balance study with childcare, and those who may be caring for loved ones who are especially vulnerable at this time.

For that reason, in addition to the measures listed above, we’ve introduced an Assessment Adjustment Process in recognition of the current situation and its effects on students. These measures will mean that we can make some adjustments if this semester's marks are lower than your previous semester marks.

Please note: Oxford Brookes students studying at one of our partner institutions may have different arrangements and should refer to guidance issued by their teaching provider. The same principles of ensuring that students are not disadvantaged by the current situation will apply, but the arrangements may vary depending on the partner institution and the course.

We will look at your recent standard mark from Semester 1 of the current academic year (or the most recent semester for which you have assessment results), and compare that mark with your Semester 2 results, to identify whether you may have been disadvantaged by the changes to teaching and assessment that we’ve introduced in order to complete Semester 2.

If any of your marks for modules concluding in Semester 2 are lower than your recent standard mark for Semester 1 (or the most recent semester for which you have assessment results), we can make an adjustment.

All modules passed during Semester 1 of the current academic year (or the most recent semester for which you have assessment results) will be counted towards the calculation of your recent standard mark.

If you’ve failed any Semester 1 modules and have been given a capped resit, then your original mark for that module will be included in the calculation of your recent standard mark.

If you’ve been given uncapped resits (via Exceptional Circumstances) for any Semester 1 modules, then your original mark won’t be counted in the calculation of your recent standard mark.

If you don’t have any marks from Semester 1 of the current academic year (perhaps because of the structure of your course, or because you were on temporary withdrawal during that semester), we will calculate your recent standard based on the previous semester for which assessment results are available. Failed modules will be included in the calculation.

Adjustments will be applied to individual modules, in the cases where your marks for those modules are lower than your recent standard mark. If some of your Semester 2 modules have a lower mark than your recent standard mark, and other modules are equal or higher than your recent standard mark, adjustments will only be applied to those modules where the marks are lower than your recent standard.

If you don’t have enough previous marks for us to make a comparison, we’ll contact you separately, when your results are released, to explain what’s available to you.

Once your Semester 2 results have been published, we will contact all students who are eligible for an adjustment. Please note that not all adjustments will be available to all students - it will depend on your programme situation, and any professional, statutory, or regulatory body requirements which apply to your programme - but we will apply whatever we can to make sure that you are not disadvantaged, without compromising the integrity of our programmes or - most importantly of all - the value and status of your degree.

You can respond through a simple form and you won’t have to provide evidence.

If you had resits on any Semester 1 modules, then we recognise that your preparation and focus on these will also have been affected by the current situation. They will be included in this process and we can make adjustments if you pass any uncapped resit with a lower mark than your previous standard mark, or if you fail any resits.

We will contact eligible students immediately when results are released.

No. Students will still need to pass modules to get the necessary academic credits to progress or to graduate, except in the very limited circumstances where we can apply a compensatory pass to modules which have been narrowly failed: more details on this will be published in June. Resits will take place from 11-18 July. Students who fail Semester 2 modules will be entitled to an uncapped resit without having to apply for Exceptional Circumstances.

We will look at placements individually - there is a lot of variation in the situations that students on placements find themselves in. If placements have been curtailed prematurely due to COVID-19, we are finding ways of providing opportunities for students to complete their placement requirements however we can.

The health and safety of our residents remains our priority, as such at the current time for the practical implementation of Government guidelines, you cannot have visitors or guests to your University accommodation. This helps you, and all of our residents to stay safe.

The University will continue to monitor this guidance and will update this FAQ should this change.

We will do all that we can to support our students during this difficult time. The Government has provided the following health advice for people who live in the same accommodation as an individual being tested for coronavirus.

In the event that a student in our residencies is in self isolation while undergoing testing for coronavirus, the University has procedures in place to act rapidly.

If you display symptoms of Covid-19, follow the Government guidance to immediately self-isolate in your accommodation for 10 days. All other household members who remain well must stay in your flat or shared house and not leave for 14 days.

Remember, if you have a positive Covid-19 test, please tell the University by using the Coronavirus Reporting Form. Do not come on to campus - follow government guidance on self-isolating.

If you have coronavirus symptoms, please visit the NHS Coronavirus website for information on booking a test and stay in your accommodation.

Yes, the Government guidance treats a flat as one household. 

Essential facilities will remain open such as laundries but communal spaces will be restricted, housekeeping services reduced and only essential maintenance carried out at this time. This is largely to fully support social distancing and to safeguard the people responsible for these services.

You can still receive post at this time and we are looking at ways to consider how we might be able to ensure that parcels are delivered, but at this time staff are not on site to administer this. Parcels that can be delivered directly to doors have not been affected. 

Michelle Donelan, the Minister for Universities, wrote to all students on 27 March, stating: 

“The Government’s advice is that students remaining at university in England should now stay where they are and not attempt to travel. If you are living in student halls, or private rented accommodation, you should remain there and stay indoors while current restrictions are in force. As the Prime Minister said, staying put and remaining indoors is a crucial step now to slow the rate of transmission of COVID-19, to protect the NHS from being overwhelmed, and save the lives of fellow citizens. The government published advice on staying at home.” 

In line with government guidance, you should now stay in your student accommodation. 

Catering is still being supplied in our only catered hall. Unfortunately, we are not able to provide additional catering facilities because of space constraints and the necessary fire assessments for such equipment have not been carried out. 

The Wellbeing team has produced a Google site full of useful content to help you manage your wellbeing during the coronavirus outbreak. It links to a Guardian article which gives advice about living with and without other people during this period. 

After careful consideration, the University has taken the decision that all students who vacated Oxford Brookes-owned halls of residence*, Cheney Student Village (UPP partnership) and Brookes Lettings Properties by 18 April 2020 will, from that date until the end of their contract, have their accommodation fees discounted by up to £1,200 or 50% of their rent over this period - whichever of the two is greater.

Where the amount of rent owed for the remainder of the contract is less than £1,200, the amount owing will be fully discounted but no additional credit or cash payment will be given. For those students who have already paid their contract in full, we will reimburse the amount discounted. The Student Finance team will be in touch with students directly on this.

To be eligible for the discount, students will need to agree to the University acting on your behalf to vacate your room and that this will remove your right to occupation and legal licence.

* In addition to Brookes Lettings Properties, the Halls of Residence this policy applies to are: Cheney Student Village, Clive Booth Student Village, Paul Kent, Crescent, Friar Court, Harcourt Hill and N Block, Lady Spencer, Thames Street, Warneford and Westminster.

The University understands that this is an anxious time for all of our students and concerns about money are very real. In taking this decision, we have had to balance: the ongoing costs we incur in maintaining halls of residence; the reduced income that the University is incurring through the closure of our campuses and the impact of Covid-19 on a number of commercial income streams; and the cost of this discount, which will total approximately £3.3million.

However, we feel that this is the right decision to take for our students who live in University-owned accommodation. As a result of this decision, we estimate that almost 60% of affected students will have their remaining rent fully discounted, whilst around 40% - generally those in more expensive accommodation or with longer contracts - will have their remaining rent substantially discounted. 

The Accommodation team emailed all students in Oxford Brookes-owned halls of residence, Cheney Student Village (UPP partnership) and Brookes Lettings Properties on Friday 1 May with further information on the discount would be available. Please contact us via accommodation.query@brookes.ac.uk if you do not have access to the email or have any further queries on this.

Students in halls run by Unite, IQ and Host have been released from their contracts. The position for students in halls owned by A2D and UPP has not yet been confirmed.

If you are facing financial difficulties, we would encourage you to speak to us as soon as possible. Where applicable, students will still be able to use their maintenance loan and any Oxford Brookes bursaries they receive in full to support living costs. The University will also be able to set up a payment plan if you wish to pay any remaining rent over a longer period - our Student Finance team will be able to advise further. Please contact us via accommodation.query@brookes.ac.uk

The University Financial Aid initiative is also in place to help. The University has recently bolstered the amount of money available for financial aid and the Financial Aid Committee is giving specific consideration to students who have been affected by the coronavirus situation. The University will not be able to make up every shortfall which students have experienced as a result of the current situation, but we will consider each case in relation to students’ immediate support needs and we are ensuring that this is considered as quickly as possible. Information is available on the University website about the help available - we would encourage you to explore this. 

Yes. Please note that this will take a few days to process once agreement has been made on your tenancy arrangement. 

The 18 April date was chosen as it reflects the restart of semester two at Oxford Brookes, following the introduction of reading weeks from 17 March to 3 April and the Easter break period.

For those students who have already paid their contract in full, we will reimburse the amount of discount stated. The Student Finance team will be in touch with students directly on this. 

Those students who have remained in Halls of Residence or Brookes Lettings Properties from 18 April will be required to pay the full rental amount for the remainder of their contract. Those in this position will continue to be able to live in their accommodation for the rest of their contracted period. In line with Government policy, accommodation and security support will continue to be provided.

To be eligible for the discount, students will need to agree to the University acting on your behalf to vacate your room and that this will remove your right to occupation and legal licence.

If you had opted to pay your accommodation fees in three instalments, the balance of your final instalment (minus the discount) will be due for payment on Friday 15 May. If you selected an instalment plan where payments are due at the beginning of each month, please check your accommodation portal to view your revised instalments once the discount has been applied. Please contact Student Finance on financehalls@brookes.ac.uk if you would like to make any changes to the revised instalments on your portal.

The Accommodation team emailed all students in Oxford Brookes-owned halls of residence, Cheney Student Village (UPP partnership) and Brookes Lettings Properties on Friday 1 May with a form to establish the status of your room and to arrange for the return of room keys. Please contact us via accommodation.query@brookes.ac.uk if you do not have access to the email. We will communicate with residents via a further follow-up email, with suggestions of how arrangements for storage and the return of belongings will take place, in due course.

If you believe you will require accommodation that extends beyond your current licence period, please contact us via accommodation.query@brookes.ac.uk and we will advise the options that are available to you.

The University’s position on accommodation fees, communicated on 1 May 2020 and detailed above, would apply in this scenario.

The University’s position on accommodation fees, communicated on 1 May 2020 and detailed above, would apply in this scenario.

Any discounted fees will be paid back to the account they were paid from.

If you have already started an application via University Financial Aid, please contact the team via finaid@brookes.ac.uk.

All post and mail sent to you will be returned to the sender on your behalf. If there is something important you are waiting for, please let your Hall Office know so that they can keep an eye out for you.

Yes.

Student Finance England has a support webpage for students concerned about their maintenance loan payments and Childcare Grant. The NHS Learning Support Fund also has information on its website.

There is information here about how you can seek additional financial support from the University. The Financial Aid Committee will be giving specific consideration to students who have been affected by the coronavirus situation. The University will not be able to make up every shortfall which students have experienced as a result of the current situation, but we will consider each case in relation to students’ immediate support needs.

As of 21 April, £755,000 of financial aid from the University has been allocated to students, with under £50,000 related to Covid-19 claims. This money comes from a £1.2million financial aid fund from the University to cover the full 2019/20 academic year, which includes the additional £300,000 awarded by the University Major Incident Team for coronavirus-related claims.

Student Finance England has now reinstated its contact centres in a limited capacity, but it advises you to use the website FAQs wherever possible as the system is very busy. 

Student Finance England has answered this question on its website. 

In addition to the national and international information and guidance detailed on this webpage, you may find the Government’s guidance for health professionals useful. The WHO has also provided an online course giving a general introduction to coronavirus, aimed at public health professionals and others, while NICE is providing updates on rapid Covid-19 critical care.

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

The principle is that, you should only be asked to care for a Covid-19 positive patient if, in conjunction with your supervisor and following a risk assessment, you are identified as an essential care giver for that patient. If you are giving care you must be provided with both training in the use of appropriate safety equipment, and access to that equipment. If this principle is not being met then you should seek advice and not undertake the activity with the patient.

This is an evolving situation and advice is being reviewed very frequently by PHE. For information about personal protective equipment you are advised to visit the infection control section of the PHE website for the latest data. The local organisation you are placed within will also be able to give you updated information as it becomes available. Due to the fast changing situation, you are advised to check for the latest information before commencing shifts and if you become concerned that you do not have the correct equipment for the activity you are undertaking.

Occupational Health advice and at risk groups

As the situation is constantly changing, the NHS Occupational Health teams supporting our health care and social work students are basing their advice on PHE guidance and information from the medical royal colleges.

Everyone in the country, including students, considered to be in an at risk group and therefore self-isolating for 12 weeks, should now have been contacted directly by the NHS.

Students that have previously declared health related conditions and fall within the at risk groups should have been directly contacted by occupational health. If you have not disclosed information to them and you are about to go into practice and you think you are in an at risk group it is strongly recommended that you contact occupational health for advice.

If any healthcare student is concerned that these restrictions apply to them and they have not been in receipt of advice please discuss this immediately with the Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust’s Occupational Health Team by calling 01865 223325 or email OccupationalHealthJR@ouh.nhs.uk. In addition you may be required to contact your GP or specialist for support and advice with this.

If you move into a paid clinical role during this period you will need to be practicing under the occupational health guidance of the organisation you are working with.

Health and Life Sciences Professional Practice Support Covid-19

There is a new website hosted by staff from the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, and supported by colleagues from Wellbeing Services across the wider University. This website is to help those of you going into a professional practice environment where due to the Covid-19 emergency things may not be operating in a 'normal' way. Faculty staff want to make sure that you have all the support you need to help you manage in this very demanding environment. This site is intended to complement rather than replace support you may be receiving from programme teams, placement staff and the University's wellbeing pages. It's aim is to provide an additional layer of help specifically related to health and wellbeing in practice.

Social media during Covid-19

Social media can be helpful in a time of emergency as information is shared rapidly and support can be shared. We would like to caution you to ensure you are considering the evidence base of what you are reading, especially in relation to practice based activities. In addition we recognise that there are lots of images and stories being shared in relation to the crisis and we would again caution you to think before you share images and information. You should ensure you comply with both professional body and University standards

Social distancing- reminder

Please be aware that as a student on a professional course the expectation is that you will be role models for enacting advice regarding social distancing when off duty. We would also expect you to meet the placement/employer guidelines for social distancing whilst in the clinical setting and/or supporting clients.

Teaching placements for the coming term have been suspended following guidance from the Department for Education. Affected students from the School of Education have been advised on the latest situation by email and should contact their programme lead if they have any further enquiries. Further information on work placements for Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences students can be found online.

Please talk to your tutors about your situation in the first instance. We recognise that it is difficult to study. If you feel that you will not be able to meet the deadlines or prepare for assessments, please refer to our Exceptional Circumstances policy. You may also find these resources useful:

• Managing your wellbeing during the coronavirus outbreak - from the Wellbeing team
• Studying online during COVID-19 - from the Centre for Academic Development team.

Students now have access to the Fika app, which offers students access to a dedicated series of programmes on topics including managing distractions and uncertainty, maintaining motivation and positivity, staying connected, self-care and healthy habits. Find out how to download the Fika app, and gain access to the Fika community and its resources for free.

Since the move to remote working, teams across the University have been using different technologies to keep in touch, such as Google Hangout/Meet and Zoom. There are also other software applications available to keep in touch, such as FaceTime (Apple devices), Skype, WhatsApp. These are all available to use over an internet connection and therefore don’t require the use of your international minutes on your mobile phone.

The Wellbeing team has produced a Google site full of useful content to help you manage your wellbeing during the coronavirus outbreak. This includes a section on how to stay connected. Brookes Union has also put together some useful resources and information.

If you are living in Halls of Residence, wardens are still available for welfare support but this will be managed remotely for both parties’ safety. Physical security patrols will still be operational and physical issues such as trip switches, lock outs and fire alarms will be managed by staff presence on site. Out of hours welfare and wellbeing support is still being provided by the warden team via telephone. First contact point for these services is to call security on x3060.

If you are living in private, rented accommodation you can also call security on x3060 who will be able to provide guidance on best practice and guidance on staying safe.

If you are in Oxford, 001 Taxis who work with our Students’ Union have launched a new service of conducting deliveries for food, shopping, medication etc to people’s doors. This can be booked through the app. The customer simply needs to ring the place they want to get shopping from, place an order and pay over the phone, then book a taxi via the app under grocery delivery and 001 Taxis will go and co

llect it and drop it to them. This delivery service can only be used by card payment. See also What support is the University offering students in self-isolation?

Yes, with the national response to the Covid-19 outbreak putting lots of things on hold for an unknown amount of time, we want to reassure you we are here to help. There are a range of constructive things that you can do and we have advice and information to help, whether you are based in the UK or internationally.

We have provided answers to some of the commonly asked questions below. If you have a question that isn't included below, please e-mail careers@brookes.ac.uk and we will make every effort to answer it.

Although we are not able to meet you on campus, the Careers team are still able to support you using email, video chat (Google Meet) or on the phone, contact careers@brookes.ac.uk.

Before you contact us, if you haven’t already, you may find it helpful to register with our Careers Portal Jobteaser and create your own profile. This will help with accessing appointments, database of vacancies and events.

Current Students – by going to: Jobteaser and logging in with your student number and password, and completing the registration form.

Graduates – by going to: https://brookes.jobteaser.com/en/users/sign_in

Please click on ‘sign-up’ under the heading ‘new user’. You will be asked for your Oxford Brookes email, but as a graduate enter your personal email address. You will now receive a confirmation email, click on the link contained in the message to complete the process.

First of all, try not to worry! Contact us by emailing careers@brookes.ac.uk, we can help with ideas to get you started in a way that is right for you. We can provide you with a range of tailored resources and, if appropriate, can arrange a virtual Drop In consultation with one of our Careers Consultants who will listen carefully and offer you support and guidance through Google Meet or a phone call.

We have lots of resources available in the Info Zone on Jobteaser and on our webpages including our Hot Tips:

Drop-in discussion with a careers consultant – what can I expect?

Career Confusion - finding your way forwards when unsure of your direction

And our

CV Guide and CV Checklist.

Please let us know when you email to make an appointment if you require any adjustments to enable us to help you. We are experienced in working closely with our students and graduates to accommodate any reasonable adjustments to enable you to access the careers support you need.

Please email your query with the attached document you wish to have reviewed to careers@brookes.ac.uk along with some information on the role you are applying for. We will review your document initially via email and then, if necessary, arrange a GoogleMeet or a telephone appointment with a Careers Consultant.

We recommend you visit our online resources for some help in constructing your document before you submit it for review:

CV guide and Information Zone.

Congratulations on being invited to an interview! Yes, we can certainly help you prepare. The current guidance is that you should not be leaving your home and we are prepared to offer you the appropriate support for the style of interview - video, social platforms, phone - you may have been offered to accommodate this. If, in the unlikely event, you are invited to a face-to-face interview, do not be afraid to politely question this and refer to the COVID-19 Government guidance.

We do require some notice to prepare the interview questions that will reflect the role you are applying for. Please get in touch as soon as you receive your invitation to interview.

When we hear from you the process will begin with us sending you an Interview Preparation Pack with lots of information and advice.

Once you have had a chance to review this document, we will arrange a virtual Practice Interview with a Careers Consultant.

The session will be conducted via GoogleMeet and will be approximately 1 hour in length (although this may vary). You will be asked questions which are tailored by us to reflect those that you will be asked in the actual interview, you will receive feedback on your answers as well as further useful resources. 

It’s very difficult to know how your situation might be affected and, at this stage, the employer is most likely trying to work out their way forward. Try to be patient: the changes in ways of working are new for employers too. If your internship, placement, volunteering, job etc is due to start this summer, then do enquire with your contact in the organisation about the status of your application or opportunity but be aware their responses may take a little longer than usual. Some employers are coming up with innovative ideas such as mentoring, online experiences and some may consider you for their autumn graduate scheme as an alternative. Try to be as flexible as you can and remain optimistic.

Please remember to follow the COVID-19 Government guidance at all times when arranging any contact.

Don't panic! Hang on in there, and rather than dwelling on things you CAN’T do, focus on what you CAN do. Make the most of the time to develop your skills and experience in other ways through online courses, interests and hobbies, blogs or volunteering (where possible) and use this time to research and plan. We know that is a very challenging time but if you can, use this time to try new things and to develop resilience and coping strategies. Speak to a Careers Consultant for ideas about what you could do to help build up relevant skills and stay motivated.  

All our scheduled Careers Fairs for this academic year have already taken place. We are currently planning the Fairs and Events for Semester 1 for the academic year 20/21, details will be posted on our News and Events webpage. We will be updating our events listings on our careers portal JobTeaser as soon as we have completed the planning. You can also follow us on (Twitter/Instagram) for announcements.         

Whilst the Volunteer Centre is currently offering an online service only, we are still working with the local community to look for safe and practical ways we can support each other. You can reach us at volunteering@brookes.ac.uk if you would like any information or advice about volunteering.

You can also follow us on Facebook, where we're promoting various online opportunities that can be done remotely!

Graduates of Oxford Brookes University can access the full range of Careers support, free of charge for three years after graduation. Graduates who have exceeded the three year limitation can access our online resources free of charge.

If you have discontinued your studies you can use our services for a period of six months.

If you have graduated or left your studies and require access to our services please email careers@brookes.ac.uk. 

There are 2 main areas where our resources can be found:

For a full range of vacancies - graduate/vacation roles/internships/part-time jobs and employer information - use our careers portal JobsTeaser.

For a wide range of careers support from practical information on making applications/ psychometric tests/interview techniques to resources to help you reflect on your skills/development/career thinking use the ‘Resources’ link on the front page of our website.

Any students who feel that they need to leave their host institution or work placement to return home, should do so. If you choose to leave you should do the following:

• Speak to your host institution to find out how they plan to deliver the remainder of your learning, and whether there will be an online study option.
• Check out arrangements for leaving your accommodation.
• Resolve other outstanding issues relating to your exchange/work placement.

If you would prefer to stay in the country where you are now resident, that is your choice and we understand that you may not wish to return home (whether that be the UK or another country).

Should you decide to remain on exchange we recommend that you do the following:

• Continue to monitor up to date information on the Foreign Travel Advice website
• Follow the directives and advice of local authorities
• Check in regularly with your host university

If your Exchange University is offering you the possibility of continuing your studies online, then this is a viable option.

In all cases where Oxford Brookes students have been unable to complete the Exchange assessment, we will work with you to find reasonable solutions, and do whatever we can to ensure that you are not disadvantaged, whilst still ensuring that course requirements are met. The detail of these solutions will need to be worked out on a course-by-course basis, and more detail will be shared with students when it has been worked out in relation to individual courses, students, and placements, and more detail will be shared and discussed with students by Faculty colleagues when it has been worked out.

In all cases where Oxford Brookes students have been unable to complete the overseas work placement element of their programme, we will work with you to find reasonable solutions, and do whatever we can to ensure that you are not disadvantaged, whilst still ensuring that course requirements are met. The detail of these solutions will need to be worked out on a course-by-course basis, and more detail will be shared with students when it has been worked out.

Claims under the travel insurance are managed at faculty/directorate level. Student travel claims must be submitted by faculty staff. Faculty travel insurance claims are managed by:

• Faculty of Technology, Design & Environment: Sally Wells
• Faculty of Humanities & Social Sciences: David McPhee
• Faculty of Health & Life Sciences: Karen Brockington
• Oxford Brookes Business School: Emma Coles

In light of the current situation with COVID-19, we wish to confirm that exchange students who feel that they need to leave Oxford, should do so.

Please note, if you are a European or International student who is unable to get home, or you need to stay in Oxford for reasons of accommodation, our halls of residence will remain open.

Details of how the remainder of your learning will be conducted will be shared with you in due course. As you will have seen elsewhere on our coronavirus webpage, our plan is to deliver the remainder of this semester’s teaching and assessment online, but we need to work out the details of this before it can be communicated to students by teaching colleagues.

When making plans and organising your travel, please be sure to follow the UK Government’s latest advice and updates from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). If you are not from the UK, please visit the Embassy website of your home country. If you are already overseas, please visit the Government website of your home country, either UK or other, for advice.

Further to the latest Foreign and Commonwealth Office advice, Oxford Brookes has suspended all student travel for Exchanges or Study Abroad to a large number of additional countries, cities and regions to which the FCO is advising against non-essential travel.

If you are concerned about how the outbreak could impact on your studies, please email covid-19@brookes.ac.uk.

No, unfortunately a virus pandemic is not included in the list of events covered by insurance that can trigger the end of an accommodation agreement.

Where an exchange has been cancelled by the host university, we will agree on a discretionary basis to cover the additional expenses incurred in returning to the UK. Please note that this only extends to additional expenses and would therefore be predicated on the traveller already having a pre-booked ticket to return. If that ticket cannot be amended for an early return, we would then be able to consider the cost of a new ticket. If they do not already have a ticket however, we would not be able to assist as they would have needed to book a ticket at some point anyway and this is not therefore an additional item of expenditure.

Yes. Cancellation cover is for causes beyond your control so this should be covered.

If your room has been emptied of your personal belongings, then yes please do send the keys back.

Please see the Government guidance for visa holders in the UK and you should also contact the International Student Advice Team (isat@brookes.ac.uk) for further information and advice.

There is information on the Financial Aid website about how you can seek additional financial support from the University. The Financial Aid Committee will be giving specific consideration to students who have been affected by the coronavirus situation. The University will not be able to make up every shortfall which students have experienced as a result of the current situation, but we will consider each case in relation to students’ immediate support needs. 

The insurance policy is not able to provide additional funds.

Please see the latest update on UMAL’s website:

https://umal.co.uk/umal-travel-cover-and-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak-update/

Please see the latest update on UMAL’s website:

https://umal.co.uk/umal-travel-cover-and-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak-update/

The University’s insurance policy does not cover unused accommodation costs.

No, but it is unlikely that the airline would not refund the ticket cost.

These additional costs should be covered.