Exams, Assessments & Results

The UCD exam hall is located in the Simmonscourt RDS Exam Hall.

• RDS Simmonscourt, Simmonscourt Rd, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4

• You can bring a water bottle, a clear pencil case, and a calculator if needed into the exam hall.

• To sit your exam you need to bring your UCard with you.

• The exam regulations have been updated to include the following prohibition on the use of all electronic devices during exams, including smart watches;

  • "The use or attempted use of any other electronic device is strictly prohibited during an examination or in the examination hall and is a serious breach of discipline. The use or attempted use of any electronic device that holds, receives or transmits data including but not necessarily limited to mobile phones and smart watches (unless the use of this device is specifically confirmed by UCD Access and Lifelong Learning through a Needs Assessment prior to the exams, for reasons such as medical) is strictly prohibited during an examination or in the examination hall and is a serious breach of discipline."

• If you can’t attend an exam due to an unforeseen situation such as a serious illness you should contact your module coordinator as soon as possible. You should also apply for Extenuating Circumstances through Sisweb. This applies for all examinations, both in-person and online, as well as in-trimestor assessment submissions and exams.

• You will need to resit the exam or repeat the module within the next two trimesters.

  • The fee to resit an exam has been abolished.

  • The cost to repeat an entire module is €230 per module.

  • If you are unsure whether you will be resiting an exam or repeating the module please check the ‘What happens if I fail?’ section in your module descriptor on Brightspace, and/or contact your Module Coordinator.

  • To register to any repeat or resit modules log into SISWeb, click on ‘My Registration’, and click on the ‘Repeats’ section under module registration.

  • For more detailed information click HERE

• If you are invited to a meeting by your Schools Plagiarism Committee, please contact education@ucdsu.ie (undergraduate), graduate@ucdsu.ie (post grads) or your Student Adviser.

• As Student Support Officers within the University, we can meet with you to explain the process to you and how a Plagiarism Hearing is conducted. We can also accompany you to your meeting and can offer you advice and guidance following the result of the Hearing.

• You will receive an email with a link to your own results. You will only be able to access your results via this link where you can view them by logging into your SISWeb and clicking the Examination Results tab.

• If you are struggling following results and feel you need extra support, please reach out to welfare@ucdsu.ie, graduate@ucdsu.ie, Student Advisers, Chaplains and UCD Student Health. 

• NiteLine and Samaritans are also available if you need help.

UCD uses grade point averages to aggregate the grades awarded to modules for different reasons and at different times during students' careers in UCD. The methods of calculating different GPAs are outlined by Registry HERE

• If you feel you may need to appeal a decision made relating to an assessment, UCD does provide an Assessment Appeals Process. Assessment Appeals in UCD are guided by the UCD Assessment Appeals Policy and the process is overseen by the Student Engagement, Conduct, Complaints and Appeals unit (SECCA).

• There are certain grounds under which you can apply for an appeal of the decision of an examination board. Being dissatisfied or disappointed with the grade of your assessment is not one of these grounds, as Academic Judgement is not a ground for appeal. 

• You can appeal on the following two grounds:

  • Procedural irregularity – where you have evidence that procedures relating to the decision made were not followed correctly, and this irregularity may have impacted the decision; or

  • Late extenuating circumstances – you had extenuating circumstances at the time of the assessment, the Programme Board was aware of this but had previously rejected them because you made the application late and the reason for these extenuating circumstances being late was not accepted as valid by the Governing Board.

• There are two stages to an appeal.

  • The first is an Early Resolution; this is done after you first receive your results and you express your concerns to either the Module Coordinator Programme Director or Head of School. If you are unhappy with the outcome of this stage, you can then move to the second stage and submit a Formal Assessment Appeal. 

  • An Assessment Appeal must be submitted within 10 working days of your final result becoming available to you. Here you will need an Assessment Appeal Form which is then emailed to the SECCA Assessment Appeal Officer.

• If you are considering submitting an appeal, feel free to contact one of the student support units on campus e.g., the Student Advisors. You can also come talk to the Education Officer or the Graduate Officer in the Students’ Union.

You can find out more information about the Appeals Process HERE

Student Advisers

Student Advisers meet with students in times of need to offer academic and personal support throughout your degree, including during the exam season. Each College has either one or two Student Advisers who will be able to give you programme specific advice and guide you through University procedures and policies.

Find your Student Advisor HERE

UCDSU Education, Welfare and Graduate Officers

The Students’ Union is here for you throughout the exam period from peer to peer support to organising the exam buses. The Education Officer (education@ucdsu.ie) offers advice and support on issues surrounding academics and finances, the Welfare Officer (welfare@ucdsu.ie) offers peer to peer support on a range of issues from mental health to housing, and the Graduate Officer (graduate@ucdsu.ie) acts as both an Education and Welfare Officer for Graduate students.

Access and Lifelong Learning

The ALL centre is located on the first floor of the James Joyce Library and offers a wide range of supports. Students can apply for a needs assessment through ALL in order to receive exam support which can include extra time in exams and the option to sit exams in the alternative exam centre in Newman, as well as information on financial support available for students.

More info on ALL can be found HERE

Maths & Writing Support Centre

Both support centres are located in the James Joyce library 1st floor to either side of the main reception desk. UCD’s Library has a dedicated Maths Support Centre, which can provide help for a huge number of level 0, 1, or 2 modules. UCD Library also has a Writing Centre which provides tuition on all aspects of writing, whether creative, research based or as part of a formal presentation.

Student Desk

The Student Desk is located in the Tierney building and the support team can provide a range of advice on administrative issues. The team offers advice on the majority of issues which arise surrounding exams and assessment. The student desk operates a walk-in service alongside being contactable through their connector form HERE

College Office

The College Office should be your go to for finding out info about the nuts and bolts of your degree, including issues around timetabling issues, extenuating circumstances applications and other general queries. Each College within UCD has a College Office and some of the larger Schools have their own specialised School office.

Chaplains

• The Chaplains are available for one-to-one meetings for students of all faiths and none, and can support students with a wide variety of issues, including Extenuating Circumstances Applications. More information on the Chaplaincy can be found HERE