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Assessment

Assessment is an integral part of your studies, and much more than a series of tasks you need to complete to pass your courses.

Completing assessments allows you to build and consolidate your knowledge, understanding and skills. Receiving feedback allows you to track the progress of your academic performance and find ways of improving it. Assessments also provide a measure of your achievement in relation to the learning outcomes of your courses.

It’s likely that you’ll complete a variety of different assessments during your learning journey that will give you many opportunities to develop your skills and demonstrate your progression.

The types of assessments you’ll need to complete will depend on the course and program you’re enrolled in. Your course information will outline how and when, your learning will be assessed.

An outline of each course is published in the UniSQ Handbook.

This course outline, also called a Course Specification, includes an overview of the Learning Outcomes or content you will learn and the skills you will develop during the course. Course Specifications include a brief description of how you will be assessed during the course and will include details of:

  • Assessment Type – such as a Case study, Essay, Quiz or Presentation
    • Some courses include the assessment of compulsory competencies associated with clinical, teaching or other placements, residential schools and supervised assessments
    • Some courses include invigilated formal examinations where this is required as part of professional accreditation
  • Weight – the percentage an assessment item contributes towards the Final Grade for a course
  • Summative assessment – Summative assessment items contribute towards the Final Grade for a course and will be included in the Course Specification
  • Individual or group assessments
  • The relationship between each assessment item and the course learning outcomes
  • The week of the study period assessments are due.

The StudyDesk for a course is where you’ll find detailed information about the assessment for each study period. The Assessment section of the StudyDesk includes specific information about:

  • Individual assessment items, including task sheets which provide instructions and expectations
  • Assessment rubrics or marking guides
  • Due dates, times and submission requirements
  • How each item contributes to the Final Grade for your course

As a UniSQ student, you are part of an academic community that values and upholds integrity in all aspects of learning, teaching and research, and you have a personal responsibility to study with academic integrity.

UniSQ has a variety of resources aimed to support your understanding of Academic Integrity principles so that, whenever you work on or submit an assessment, you do so honestly, fairly, respectfully and responsibly.

UniSQ provides an extensive range of learning and assessment support resources and services.  

  • Course-specific assessment information can be found on your course’s StudyDesk, and if you have questions or need advice about the assessment items, contact the teaching team for your course. You’ll find contact details on StudyDesk. 

  • Access online Assessment resources designed to equip you with the skills you will need to succeed in your assessments and connect with the Library for support.

  • If you have a disability, learning difficulty, mental health or medical condition that impacts on your studies, Learning Support Plans are available. Book an appointment with a member of the UniSQ Wellbeing team to discuss your needs.

  • UniSQ is a member of the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS)'s Elite Athlete Friendly University (EAFU) Network and provides specialised support services in our Elite Athlete Program, designed for students who deal with competing demands of sport and study.

  • If you or your partner are current or former members of the Australian Defence Force (AFD), UniSQ provides specialised Military Connected Student Friendly Support.

  • UniSQ has extensive experience in supporting incarcerated students and understands the unique needs and internet restrictions that impact study in a correctional environment. 

We encourage you to plan your workload so you can meet assessment due dates and seek support as soon as you believe you need assistance.

You are expected to submit your assessment items by the due date published on your course StudyDesk.

A penalty will be deducted from your mark for each calendar day an assessment item is submitted late. An assessment item is considered late if it is submitted after the published due date without an approved extension of time or after the revised due date where an extension has been granted. An assessment item graded on a pass/fail basis will receive a fail grade if the relevant due dates are not met.

Late submissions

For eligible assessment items, you can request a short extension of three (3) calendar days if you can’t complete your assessment by the published due date.

A short extension may help you manage short-term interruptions to your study. You don’t need to provide a reason for an initial short extension request on a specific assessment item.

A short extension is available for many types of assessments, although not allowed for all assessment items. Check your StudyDesk to confirm that an extension is allowed and appropriate for the specific assessment item before you try to submit your extension request. If you are automatically approved, and you’ll receive an email confirming your revised due date when you successfully submit your request.

Note: If the assessment item is a quiz and the published due date has passed, or you have submitted your request outside University business hours, you will need to wait for our confirmation email that your course StudyDesk has been updated to reflect your due date extension. You won’t be able to attempt the quiz before we make the date changes to your quiz link in StudyDesk.

If you can’t complete your assessment by the published due date because of special circumstances, or if you’ve already been given a short extension and can’t complete your assessment by the revised due date, you may be eligible for a longer assessment extension

Before applying for an extension, consider the following information

  • Submitting an assessment after the published due date, even if your extension is approved, may prevent you receiving and applying feedback to any following assessment items in the course, and may impact your ability to complete other assessment items on time. 

  • Extensions are not possible for every piece of assessment. You may be asked to complete a varied assessment item instead, which will assess the same knowledge or skills as the original assessment item. Check your StudyDesk to confirm that an extension is allowed for the specific assessment item before attempting to submit an assessment extension request.

  • Extension requests are processed as quickly as possible. A complete request with all the required supporting documents normally takes between two (2) to five (5) University business days to evaluate and provide an outcome.
    • You may be asked to supply additional supporting documents for your extension request and extra time will be needed to provide an outcome. You must provide additional documents within 5 University business days of being advised of this requirement.
    • While an extension request is being considered and if the situation allows, we suggest working on your assessment and submitting it as soon as possible.

  • A request for a long assessment extension does not guarantee the extension will be granted. In accordance with the Assessment Procedure a penalty for late submission will apply if your assessment extension request is not approved. If your request is approved penalties will not be imposed.

Marks and feedback

Marks and Feedback for completed assessment items are provided by your Course Coordinator on your StudyDesk, and in the Marks and Grades section of your Student Centre. If you need advice about your assessment feedback or have questions about your mark calculation, contact your course's teaching team. You’ll find the contact details on StudyDesk.

If you have concerns about the feedback you've received on your assessment or your performance against the assessment criteria, you’re encouraged to discuss this with your Course Coordinator. If you still have concerns, you may wish to submit an Assignment Mark Recheck request, more information is available on the Feedback, Complaints and Grievance Resolution website.

Grades

Final grades are determined by the overall percentage mark you receive in your course, or on professional competencies that require a minimum level of achievement. The course specification and StudyDesk will outline the criteria for achieving a passing final grade in all your courses, including any compulsory competencies or supervised assessment requirements.

Temporary administrative grades such as Incomplete (I), Deferred Assessment (DA) and Supplementary Assessment (SA), indicate that you are required to complete outstanding assessment requirements before your final grade can be calculated. You will need to check StudyDesk and your Student Centre for grades and comments that include instructions for you on completing deferred or supplementary assessment items. Your Course Coordinator can answer any questions you may have about the individual deferred or supplementary assessment item.

You can also find more information about assessment results and final grades on the results webpages.

If you are concerned about your academic performance and assessment results at any time, you can access learning support through a range of online and in person services designed to help you develop new study habits, manage your tasks and time, and read and study more effectively.

Contact us

Assessment Support is available during business hours through iconnect.

For urgent enquiries:

Phone: +61 7 4631 2285 or 1800 007 252 (within Australia only)

Email: assessment.support@unisq.edu.au 

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