SENATE RESOLUTION

System of Assigning Codes for Study-Units

A study-unit can be described as the building block of a University award scheme. It is the basic unit of instruction - a self-contained component of a certificate, diploma or degree programme. it is normally made up of a series of lectures/tutorials/practicals but may also be made up entirely of private study, as is the case, for example, in a dissertation study-unit. Each study-unit has its specific aims, a syllabus, a teaching/learning pattern and a means of assessing a student's progress.

Study-units are taught at different levels, reflecting the academic standard of the study-unit and the demands placed on students as they progress from year to year. In the first instance, the responsibility for ensuring the academic quality of each study-unit, including its content, delivery and assessment, lies with that academic entity, normally an academic department or division, but may be a programme board, to which Senate assigns the study-unit. The Faculty or Institute to which the department, division or programme board is assigned is responsible for academic quality control at the next higher level over the study-units offered under the Faculty's or Institute's responsibility.

The University, through Senate, remains ultimately responsible for ensuring academic quality control, external examining, examination boards, admission to a course programme, including the study-units that compose the programme, and seeing that resourcing (including staffing) is adequate. It authorises all changes to the content and structure of the programme and may from time to time conduct a formal review of any programme.

The coding system reflects the principles listed above and is applicable from October 2002 onwards.

Assigning Codes

Each study-unit shall be assigned a unique code, comprising a first letter indicating the Faculty or Institute, three letters indicating the department, division or programme and four digits.

Each faculty/institute is assigned a code for use for those study-units that are inter-departmental and are offered under the responsibility of the Faculty/Institute as a whole. Examples of such study-units include: Research Methods, Teaching Practice, Work Placements, Dissertation.

Letter codes are assigned to each entity, that can be a department, division or programme, to which Senate assigns the responsibility for teaching and research in a given discipline or sub-discipline. Thus, any study-unit bearing a code commencing with particular letters denotes that the department/division/programme board concerned assumes academic responsibility for that study-unit. Conversely, it is to be assumed that Senate wil only authorise entities to offer study-units in that subject/area of study that falls within the academic responsibility assigned to them.

Assigning Digits

The first digit shall indicate the level at which the study-unit is offered, assigned by the department / division / programme board concerned according to the following criteria:

Level 0
Pre-tertiary or foundation or proficiency study-units.

Level 1
Study-units normally of ered in Year 1 of an undergraduate course where it is assumed that the students have a general level of education at least meriting the award of the Matriculation Certificate. In courses where admission is dependant on students being in possession of special course requirements, such as a pass in a subject taken at Advanced level, lecturers can assume that students possess the pre-required knowledge.

Levels 2 & 3
Study-units offered in Years 2 and 3 of an undergraduate course. Level 3 credits are also offered in Year 4 of an undergraduate non-professional course.

Level 4
Study-units offered in Years 4 and 5 of a professional course. Such study-units normally imparting specific professional competencies, although given at a level higher than Level 3, are still considered as being at undergraduate level.

Level 5
Study-units offered at postgraduate level such as study-units exclusively required for the award of Postgraduate Diplomas and Master's degrees.

The second, third and fourth digits are the numbers assigned to each study-unit by the department / division / programme board offering the study-unit.