1. Disclaimer

This handbook should be used together with the Academic Regulations and arcs.qmul.ac.uk/students. This handbook provides information specific to the School of Mathematical Sciences, while arcs.qmul.ac.uk/students gives information common to all students at Queen Mary. The Academic Regulations provide detailed information on progression, award and classification requirements.

Nothing in this handbook overrides the Academic Regulations, which always take precedence.

The Academic Regulations are available online at: http://www.arcs.qmul.ac.uk/policy/

The information in this handbook is correct as of [Friday 18th December 2020]. We will endeavour to keep the information in this handbook correct but it may occasionally lag behind reality. In the unlikely event of substantial amendments to the material during an academic year, the School of Mathematical Sciences will inform you of any changes via email and QMPlus announcements. You should always refer to the latest version.

Queen Mary cannot accept responsibility for the accuracy or reliability of information given in third party publications or websites referred to in this handbook.

ALTERNATIVE FORMATS

For a large-font version, please use the zoom control in your web browser to zoom in.

This handbook is available in large print format. If you would like a large print copy, please contact the Maths School Office, Mathematical Sciences Building - MB102, 02078825470. If you have other requirements for the handbook, please contact William Ng (Student Support Officer), 02078825454.

2. Welcome to the School of Mathematical Sciences

3. Contact Information

Contact Information for SMS

The School of Mathematical Sciences comprises mathematicians who work in pure and applied mathematics, and statistics. The School is located in the Mathematical Sciences Building which is located by Mile End Road, and located in Godward Square of the Mile End Campus (number 4 on the map). The building is a short walk from Stepney Green or Mile End tube stations. You can enter the building from Mile End Road, or alternatively via the Godward Square entrance.

Postal address

School of Mathematical Sciences 
Queen Mary University of London
University of London 
Mile End Road 
London E1 4NS

General queries

Email: maths@qmul.ac.uk.

Tel: 020 7882 5470.

PGT Admission queries

mathpgadm@qmul.ac.uk

Contacting specific staff

The following links give contact details for academic staff and Professional Services staff. It is usually best to contact academic staff (at least initially) by email. You may also visit academic staff in pre-arranged meetings or telephone them. Staff may arrange regular "office hours" during which students can drop in.

Each of the four MSc programmes has a Programme Director. If your query is administrative, please contact the Maths School Office or If your query is academic, please contact your programme director.

Each module has a module leader or convenor, and each module generally has at least one office hour per week allocated during the teaching semester, during which students can meet with the module leader. Before travelling any distance, you should always arrange an appointment with the particular academic staff member by email or phone. Information about academic staff office hours will be available once term starts.

Summer vacation support

During the summer vacation, many academic staff will be away; you may still be able to contact them by email but not otherwise. You should contact the Maths Office or the Student Support Officer (hereafter referred to as "SSO"), if you need academic advice or assistance and cannot contact the appropriate member of academic staff.  The SSO is Mr William Ng: william.ng@qmul.ac.uk.

4. Mission, Aims and Objectives

Queen Mary's Mission Statement

As detailed in its Strategic Aims, Queen Mary seeks "to teach its students to the very highest academic standards, drawing in creative and innovative ways on its research".

The QMUL Charter contains a list of expectations for both staff and students to help create a community which is mutually supportive and works to further knowledge creation and dissemination.

The aims of Taught Mathematics

• To ensure that when you graduate you have the mathematical skills most likely to be useful to you and your employers. In particular these include: fluency and accuracy in elementary calculation; ability to reason clearly, critically and with rigour, both orally and in writing, within a mathematical context; and, within the areas that you study, a sense of how and where your mathematical knowledge can be applied.
• To help you build up more general skills and sound habits. These include the ability to plan your work, to work independently and in groups, to explain your work to others, and to use computers and the internet effectively and responsibly
• To deliver a set of taught modules in mathematics that forms a coherent whole at the appropriate levels for each year of a university degree. To challenge and encourage all students within a friendly, stimulating and responsive environment.
• To exploit our research strength by designing modules that will be interesting and useful for the students but also reflect recent developments in the subject; and at the same time to build on those modules and procedures that we have found successful in the past.
• To deliver sound assessments of your work in order to keep you informed of your progress during your studies and in order to reflect your overall achievements in your class of degree.

The Objectives of Taught Mathematics

1. All graduates will be able to use deductive reasoning and manipulate precise concepts, definitions and notation, to postgraduate standard.
2. All graduates will be able to approach a mathematically posed problem with confidence and technical dexterity, to postgraduate standard.
3. All graduates in programmes that involve analysis of data will have acquired skills in data handling, quantitative statistical analysis, and the ability to synthesise results, to postgraduate standard.
4. All graduates in interdisciplinary programmes will have developed both basic knowledge and understanding of the companion discipline, and appropriate mathematical expertise, to postgraduate standard.
5. All graduates will possess appropriate computational skills, to postgraduate standard.
6. All graduates will demonstrate an ability to write technical reports, to postgraduate standard.

5. Key Dates

Dates for the academic year 2020/21 are as follows – Key Queen Mary dates are also available on the ARCS homepage (www.arcs.qmul.ac.uk).

Project submission date is 12pm (GMT) on Thursday 13th January 2022. 

Bank holidays:

-       1^st January 2021;

-       2^nd April 2021;

-       5^th April 2021;

-       3^rd May 2021;

-       31^st May 2021;

-       27^th December 2021;

-       28^th December 2021;

-       3^rd January 2022;

-       15^th April 2022;

-       18^th April 2022;

Graduation Dates: Graduation will take place in April 2022 with a final date TBC. All Graduation dates will be confirmed later in the academic year and all information can be found here - http://www.qmul.ac.uk/graduation/. 

Individual Coursework and Assessment submission Dates: Any individual module coursework or assessment dates are noted on the module QMplus pages and all students will be notified of key submission deadlines during lectures and tutorials. Reminders will be sent out regularly to all students.

EXTENUATING CIRCUMSTANCES CLAIM DEADLINES

You must submit claims as soon as possible and at the latest by:

Claims submitted after the relevant deadline will not be considered.

6. What must I do as a Student?

• Read this handbook carefully at the start of the year and refer to it later if you have a question about your course.
• Monitor email communications from SMS staff sent to your qmul.ac.uk email address.
• Check the School QMplus landing page and the student information notice boards in the Mathematical Sciences offices regularly.
• Visit your advisor at the start of your course, and answer any email from your advisor promptly.
  
• Keep your advisor informed of your circumstances and any problems you may experience.
• Keep your full contact details up to date in MySIS.
• Submit all exercises required for each module by the stated deadline.
• Inform the module organiser if you withdraw from a module or start a module late.
• Ensure you are registered for the correct degree programme, which should be the one you were originally accepted for unless you have explicitly changed it.
• Ensure that you prearrange and respect appointments made with your adviser and lecturers; please see Contact Information.
• Respect Queen Mary policy on harassment, which states that all members of Queen Mary are entitled to work within an environment where they are treated with dignity and respect and where harassment of any kind is unacceptable.
• Don't smoke except in designated areas.

Updating Personal Details

It is important that Queen Mary has up-to-date personal details for all students. You can update your address and contact details online using MySIS, although a change of name must be done in person at the Student Enquiry Centre in room CB02 of the Queens' Building with accompanying identification. Please also ensure you notify the Maths Office so that we can update our departmental records.

Communication

Queen Mary will communicate with you in a variety of ways. Formal correspondence will be sent to you by electronic letter, and it is important that you keep Queen Mary up to date with your personal details and address. You can do this online via the MySIS record system: http://www.arcs.qmul.ac.uk/students/mysis-record/index.html.

It is most common for the school/institute, Queen Mary and the Students’ Union to contact you by your Queen Mary email. You are assigned a university email address when you enrol, and you are responsible for checking this account on a daily basis. All major notifications and updates will be sent to you by email first.

You can access your email account by logging on to a Queen Mary computer, or, if you are not on campus, at: http://mail.qmul.ac.uk.

Email Etiquette

Email is often the best way to contact Queen Mary staff, but you must use your Queen Mary email account and, in the email body, include both your full name (as registered with Queen Mary) and your 9-digit student number. Use standard and correct English with correct capitalisation; you should avoid using abbreviations or colloquialisms. Save "txtspk" for friends and family! Address staff by their title and surname: for example, Prof Gnedin, Dr Phillips, Ms/Mr/Mrs/Miss Ng. You can check staff titles on the School of Mathematical Sciences web pages, here. If you are replying to an email then please include a copy of that email.

If you follow the above requirements then you can reasonably expect an acknowledgement within about two working days and a full reply within about five working days during term time, but responses may take longer during vacations. If you do not follow the above requirements then we may ignore your email.

• How (not) to write an email to a member of staff - a pictorial guide

Requesting References

If you want an academic reference for a job or further study, you should normally ask your advisor. If you need a second reference, you should ask another member of academic staff who knows you and your work well, but they may refuse.

You should always ask a member of staff well in advance whether they are willing to act as a referee before naming them on an application form. If you ask them by email then you must follow the email etiquette above. If you need letters of reference (rather than just names of referees), you should allow about two weeks for your referees to write them and referees may refuse to provide references with less than one week's notice.

Code of Conduct

The Code of Student Discipline applies to any action of misconduct whether it takes place on or off Queen Mary premises. The Code also applies to actions that are electronic and occur via electronic means such as (but not limited to) the internet, email, social media sites, chat rooms or text messages.

It is important that when using dedicated PGT resources situated within the School of Mathematical Sciences that you respect the environment.  Mathematical Sciences Building MB-302 (the Maths PGT IT Lab)] is dedicated to PGT and final year MSci students, who can access the room via card-entry access doors.  You must not let other students access these facilities at any time. 

Zero Tolerance campaign

REPORT + SUPPORT

Report + Support: tackling harassment, gender-based violence and hate crime

Queen Mary is committed to creating an environment for work and study where staff and students are treated with dignity and respect.  We have no place for bullying, harassment and hate. We recognise that these behaviours can take many forms.  Any allegation of harassment, hate crime, bullying or victimisation will be treated seriously, regardless of the seniority of those involved, and anyone found to have behaved unacceptably may be the subject of disciplinary action subject to the processes detailed in the relevant Queen Mary policies.

Report + Support is our secure online platform for anyone at Queen Mary to report harassment, gender-based violence or hate crime, and find out about support options. If you have experienced or witnessed any form of bullying, harassment, violence or hate crime, please see reportandsupport.qmul.ac.uk. 

Personal Information and Data Protection

During application and at (re-)enrolment you provide us with personal information about yourself such as relevant addresses and information about your background, which is held in systems such as MySIS. It’s important that you ensure this information is accurate and keep it up to date. Throughout your studies (or after you graduate) you may also provide, or we may collect, other personal information and you should be aware that this also includes any work you submit for assessment in the course of your studies. Tutors may occasionally use anonymised student essays (or portions from them) as part of the teaching process. We hope you will be willing to support your fellow students by allowing this, but you may opt out by contacting your school office. Other markers of engagement are monitored to help support students.

We ensure that all personal data is held securely and not disclosed to third parties without your consent, unless we are obliged to do so by law - for example the annual student record that we submit to the Higher Education Statistics Agency - or other conditions allow. 

HESA requires us to collect details of our students’ ethnicities and disabilities as a means of monitoring the success of equal opportunities policies at a national level. This information is kept confidential and helps us to provide you with support and information on facilities and services that may be useful.

When you enrol or re-enrol online you will be asked to read a privacy notice about the purposes for which we use your personal data and to whom we may disclose it when required. You must read this declaration carefully. All personal data is maintained in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation   For more information, visit: https://www.qmul.ac.uk/privacy/ and/or contact QMUL’s Data Protection Officer via data-protection@qmul.ac.uk.

Use of Mobile Phones

Please do not use your mobile phone or allow your mobile phone to make any sound in lectures, classes, the library, computing laboratories or staff offices. If you do then a member of staff may ask you to leave. You must switch off your mobile phone in all tests and examinations. Allowing a mobile phone which is on your person to ring during a test or an examination is a disciplinary offence that will normally lead to failure in the test or examination with a mark of zero, with more severe penalties for a second offence.

7. Key Information about the School of Mathematical Sciences

8. IT Services

9. Advice and Support

You will be allocated a Advisor and there is a Programme Director for each degree programme; see below.

For straightforward administrative enquiries, normally you ask in the Maths School Office first. For general academic advice, normally you ask your adviser / Programme Director (they may well be the same person) or the Student Support Officer. Their roles are described below.

How do I know who my advisor is?

The relevant Programme Director will generally be assigned as an Advisor for postgraduate students; see Contact Information. MySIS will show who your current adviser is. If you cannot find who your current adviser is then please contact the Maths School Office.

The Advisor's Role

Your advisor's role is to give you information and advice during your studies; in particular to discuss with you and approve any electives in your "module registration" – the list of modules you register for each year. You should get to know your advisor, and normally you would ask them to act as a referee for job applications, etc. If possible, you will keep the same advisor throughout your time at Queen Mary. Teaching is not part of an advisor's role, although your advisor may be willing to help you with mathematical problems.

You should visit your advisor at the start of each semester to agree your programme of study for that semester, and you should visit your advisor at least once again during each semester to discuss your progress. It is also important that you discuss with your advisor any academic, financial, medical or other problems as soon as they arise. Your advisor can then refer you to the appropriate person within Queen Mary to deal with your problem, which you may also need to report to the Programme Director (if not advisor) or the Student Support Officer; see below.

The Student Support Officer's Role

The Student Support Officer is there to help you with any difficulties that are not primarily academic, and to provide an additional layer of support between the Maths Office and the academic staff. The Student Support Officer is an expert on the technical and bureaucratic aspects of student life. In particular, the Student Support Officer will act as a back-up adviser when your advisor is not available, will help you report extenuating circumstances, will direct you to the appropriate Queen Mary support services such as Advice and Counselling (see below), and may be available when the Maths Office is closed. The Student Support Officer will also help us to monitor your attendance, exercise submission, and marks for in-term assessment, and may discuss these issues with you.

an introduction from the Advice and Counselling Service

The Roles of the Director of Education and Director of Postgraduate Taught Studies

The Director of Educations is Dr Mark Walters. His email is: m.walters@qmul.ac.uk.  He oversees all taught programmes and takes primary strategic responsibility for programme development and resource allocation. The Director of Postgraduate Taught Studies is Dr Michael Phillips.  He takes primary operational responsibility for postgraduate programmes including student information and quality assurance. His email is: michael.phillips@qmul.ac.uk.

Getting Help

If you have administrative or technical questions relating to a specific module then you should approach the module organiser, either at the end of a lecture or in the module organiser's office hours; see Contact Information. Some module organisers may also provide additional support for students who are finding the module difficult – ask about this if necessary.

Writing Support

Mathematical Sciences students often have difficulty writing essays and other descriptive text. However, this is an essential skill that you will probably use much more than mathematics in your working life, so you need to improve it during your university course.

• We offer some general guidance on mathematical writing.
• The Language Centre provides a range of programmes in academic English and study skills, including in-sessional programmes for students currently studying at Queen Mary, pre-sessional programmes, foundation programmes and pre-masters graduate diplomas to prepare students for their undergraduate and post-graduate studies, courses in modern foreign languages, and courses for specific purposes.
• The Academic Skills Enhancement (ASE) service works in a number of ways with taught students at any level, undergraduate or postgraduate, from any subject discipline, to develop the skills and practices needed to become more effective in their academic work and excel at university. Areas covered include: writing for academic purposes, effective reading and note-making, presentation skills, time-management, critical thinking, understanding marking criteria, using feedback, revision and exam preparation and avoiding plagiarism.  We also support the work of student mentors through providing resources and training to support peer and social learning. Academic Skills Tutors offer support and developmental opportunities in the form of one-to-one tutorials, workshops, drop-ins, and self-access resources. In addition, we host  Royal Literary Fund (RLF) Fellows who offer writing advice to both taught and research students.

MyQMUL

MyQMUL should be used together with this handbook for general information on your time at Queen Mary. MyQMUL contains a wide range of information, including:

• Academic and student support services;
• The academic year;
• Campus facilities;
• Details of some key Academic Regulations;
• How to? advice;
• QM contact information;
• Calendar
  • Graduation
  • Student administration, and enrolment advice;
• QM policies;
• Campus and QM information.

Access MyQMUL at: www.my.qmul.ac.uk.

10. Students' Union Societies

11. Student Services

12. Student Representation and Feedback

Your views are important to the School of Mathematical Sciences and to Queen Mary. There are a variety of ways in which you can communicate your opinions to us. At an institutional level, there are student representatives on Council, Senate and various committees across Queen Mary.

Student-Staff Liaison Committee

The School of Mathematical Sciences Postgraduate Student-Staff Liaison Committee (SSLC) normally meets twice a semester. It discusses matters of interest to postgraduates, including the curriculum, student experience, student voice, student welfare and facilities, and advises the Head of School. The Students' Union arranges elections for at least one student course representative from each MSc programme. Please raise any matters of concern with one of your student course representatives.

The School takes suggestions from the SSLC very seriously. The committee is chaired by Dr Sebastian del bano Rollin and attended by the Head of School, Director of Education, Programme Directors, Director of Postgraduate Taught Studies, Student Support Officer and the Education Services Manager. We provide details of the SSLC on QMplus, including minutes of past meetings. See also Student feedback.

Student Ambassadors

The School of Mathematical Sciences employs a number of students to act as guides and talk to prospective students who attend open days or post-offer visit days. There are similar opportunities within Queen Mary. Look out for emails and notices if you are interested, and see i² Keepin' it real - Maths student support.

Module Evaluation Questionnaires

Each semester, we will ask you to complete a standard questionnaire for each of the Mathematical Sciences modules that you are taking. We use the results to try to identify any problems and rectify them.

Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey

The Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey (PTES) is conducted every year. It is facilitated by Advance HE, the national body that champions teaching excellence. The PTES gives you, as a postgraduate taught student, an opportunity to give your opinions on what you like about your time at Queen Mary, as well as those aspects that you feel could be improved. Please do consider completing the survey; your feedback really is invaluable and will help us make a difference for future generations of Queen Mary students. http://my.qmul.ac.uk/your-voice/feedback/postgraduate-taught-experience-survey.

How can I provide personal feedback?

You are welcome to make suggestions for improvement to members of staff, such as your module organisers or advisor, and we will try to pursue any serious suggestions that may lead to improvements in our procedures. More information can be found here.

13. Appeals and Complaints

An academic appeal is a request to review a decision about progression, assessment or award.  Before you submit an appeal please speak to the School of Mathematical Sciences about the decision you wish to appeal as many issues can be resolved without the need for an appeal. The School of Mathematical Sciences will be able to provide you with feedback on your marks, or degree classification. Please note that appeals cannot provide feedback on academic work.  Appeals against academic judgment are not permitted, this means you cannot appeal simply because you think the mark you have received is too low.

There are two grounds for appeal:

• procedural error: Where the process leading to the decision being appealed against was not conducted in accordance with Queen Mary’s procedure, such that there is reasonable doubt as to whether the outcome might have been different had the error not occurred. Procedural error shall include alleged administrative or clerical error, and bias in the operation of the procedure.

• that exceptional circumstances, illness, or other relevant factors were not made known at the time for good reason, or were not properly taken into account.

An appeal must be submitted within 14 days of the notification of the decision you want to appeal and should be submitted from your Queen Mary email to appeals@qmul.ac.uk.

 Further information about how to appeal and the appeal form can be found on the Queen Mary website: http://www.arcs.qmul.ac.uk/students/student-appeals/appeals/index.html.

 If you are not satisfied with the outcome of your appeal you may submit a Final Review to the Principal’s nominee. Once a Final Review is complete you will be sent a Completion of Procedures letter which outlines the final decision of Queen Mary and the reasons for the decision.

Complaints

Before submitting a complaint you are advised to speak to a member of staff in the School of Mathematical Sciences as most issues can be resolved informally without the need for a formal complaint.

If your issue it not resolved through the informal process then you will need to complete the Stage 1 complaint form and submit this to the School of Mathematical Sciences for investigation under the Student Complaints Policy:

http://www.arcs.qmul.ac.uk/students/student-appeals/complaints/index.html.

Most complaints are resolved at Stage 1 but if your matter is still not resolved then there are two further stages to the policy, which are the institutional level and review stage.

 When the complaint process is finished you will be issued with a Completion of Procedures letter explaining the final decision and the reasons for it.

Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OIA)

If you are unhappy with the outcome of an appeal or complaint then you may submit a complaint to the OIA within 12 (twelve) months of receiving your Completion of Procedures letter. The OIA is the independent body set up to review student complaints and is free to students. For further information regarding the OIA please visit their website: http://www.oiahe.org.uk/

14. Module Selection and Registration

You can find the module options for your programme on the School of Mathematical Sciences web pages.

The MSc Data Analytics module options are found here.

To register for your modules you will log-in to MySIS (your personal area of SIS where you pre-enrol and the portal to your student record) with your Queen Mary IT log-in, and make preliminary choices from a list using the descriptions to tell you what the modules are about. Any core or compulsory modules will be pre-selected and you cannot change these.

Once you are happy with your choices, you will send them to the School for approval by your Advisor.

You can send comments to them with the selection if you wish. All of your selections must be confirmed and approved by the specified deadline. The final outcome of your choices will be confirmed to you by email. Module registration has to be completed by the specified deadline. 

Some modules have a limited number of places, and priority is given to students who are required to take them for their programmes. Therefore, it is important that you choose your electives and complete module registration as soon as possible.

During the first two weeks of each semester, students are usually able to modify their choice of modules by undoing their choices in MySIS. You can find out more about choosing your modules on the Student Enquiry Centre website.

What if I have Failed Modules?

You may attempt each examination at most twice but you cannot resit any examination you have already passed. Once you have passed enough credits you will normally graduate, after which you cannot resit any modules.

The following regulations normally apply to resit examinations:

• You must resit each examination at the first opportunity.
• We currently allow you two attempts at any one module, including one resit.
• When there is a significant change in either style or content of the examination paper from one year to the next, resit candidates will be set a special resit paper that is comparable to the original one; they cannot take the current year's paper.
• You must make any request to waive any of these regulations by writing to the examination board chair by
  • 19 February for examinations the following May, or
  • 12 July for examinations the following August, or
  • 22 October for examinations the following January. 

15. Time Management and QMplus

Time Management

Ideally, you should make up your own study timetable, including lectures, and specify when you are going to read the lecture notes and do the exercises each week. Studying at university is a full-time job; the standard expectation of time spent by students studying for a taught degree is 1200 hours per year. That is equivalent to 150 hours for each 15-credit module. In addition, the MSc dissertation / project is worth 60 credits (the equivalent of 4 x 15 credit modules) and requires considerable investment of time, from semester 2, until submission at the start of September.

QMplus

For some of your modules the lecturer may choose to give you information regarding teaching, assessment and learning materials via the Queen Mary virtual learning environment QMplus (sometimes referred to as 'QM+'). Please note that the log in details needed for your QMplus account are the same as for your MySIS account. For training in how to use QMplus, please see here.

16. Exercises, Assessments, Examinations, Results and Learning

Exercises

Assessment

Your modules may be assessed in a variety of ways. The majority of the postgraduate taught modules are assessed by written examination. Others have more than one element of assessment which will count towards your final module mark. For these modules you may be required to sit a mid-term test or submit one or more pieces of coursework during the semester in which the module is taught, as well as sitting a final examination. The two main examination periods take place each year in early January and May. For January 2021 starts their will be additional exam periods in addition to the two main exam periods. The lecturer will make the method/s, weighting/s and deadline/s of the module assessment/s for their module clear through the module page on QMplus.

Please note that late submissions for the MSc project will be penalised as follows: for each day that the submission is late, 5 marks will be taken off the 100 marks available for that work.  Any submissions made later than 120 hours after the deadline will be given an automatic 'zero' mark (0%).

If you do not achieve a passing mark for any of the taught modules, you are entitled, on one occasion, to resit the examinations/ resubmit the coursework which you have failed. The resits will take place at the earliest opportunity. For precise details about the nature of resit assessments, please contact the relevant lecturer. Students who have resits should note that their module marks are capped at 50%.

Examination Timetable

Your individual examination timetable will be available in MySIS a couple months prior to the exam period start date. Please check it and report any errors to Registry immediately. In particular, check your resit and first sit entries, if appropriate.

Results

Resit Examinations

We will offer you  resits of any exams you fail and first sits if there were extenuating circumstances justifying your absence from previous examinations. We will enter you automatically for all resit exams for which you are eligible. You can withdraw but if you are absent then it counts as a fail. 

Your results will be made accessible via MySIS.

Please note that academic staff members are available to help you with your modules during term time, but not generally during vacation periods, and certainly not without you first making an appointment. There is no formal revision period for late summer exams.

Examination Offences

Queen Mary takes your assessment very seriously. This means that we must strictly obey the rules governing assessments and so must you. If calculators are allowed then the examination rubric will state this clearly, so be sure to read the rubric. It is an examination offence to use a calculator in an examination in which calculators are not allowed. It is also an examination offence to take any notes into the examination room even if you do not look at them (unless the exam is open-book), to look at another student's work, to disrupt the examination in any way or to fail to do what an invigilator asks you to do. These rules apply also to class tests.

17. Student Engagement Policy

Markers of student engagement

The School of Mathematical Sciences uses the following markers of student engagement to ensure that you are well supported and given every opportunity to progress with your studies and to achieve to your full potential whilst here.

1. ATTENDANCE

You are expected to attend all scheduled taught sessions including lectures, practical classes, group work, workshops, tutorials, computer lab sessions, problem-solving classes, exercise classes, project meetings, and other events associated with the modules for which you are registered as part of your programme of study. If you are absent from Queen Mary for more than a day then please always let your academic adviser know (preferably by email) at the earliest opportunity. Attendance is important; failing to attend usually leads to failure in assessment, and persistent absence may result in deregistration (see the section entitled, "Deregistration" below). Reading lecture notes is not a satisfactory substitute for attending lectures.

Online Attendance:

If you attend an online scheduled taught session then your attendance will be automatically recorded and you will not need so anything else to record your attendance. Please make sure you attend the scheduled taught session on your timetable. If you attend a session not on your timetable your attendance will not be recorded.

Face to Face Attendance:

 We will collect evidence of attendance using hand-held barcode scanners or registers. It is your responsibility to scan your Queen Mary student identification card with the hand-held barcode scanner supplied or sign the register.

2. Coursework submission

3. Participation in formative assessments

4. Marks from summative assessments

5. Other student engagement activities

Action following identification of students who may require support

1. Actions taken by the School of Mathematical Sciences are designed to support students to engage or re-engage with their study programme. The underpinning principles are that the School, once it has admitted a student to a programme of study, has a duty of care to that student, whilst in turn the student has a responsibility to engage with the available support. In such cases, support will be designed by the School around the needs of the individual student.
2. If you are identified as approaching or falling below the requirements of engagement set by the School an email will be sent to your Queen Mary email account alerting you to this and outlining the support mechanisms available to you to deal with the issues that may be contributing to this. Please be aware that if you do not reply to our email within seven days, we will put a record of your poor engagement in your file. This information may be passed on to your funding body or used in any references from the School.
3. Once you are identified as in need of support in order to re-engage with your studies, you will be invited to a meeting with the Student Support Officer to discuss any issues that might be affecting your studies, and for the provision of encouragement and advice (with possible referral to Queen Mary support services if necessary). The Student Support Officer may liaise with your advisor or Programme Director. In exceptional circumstances, a senior member of the School team, such as the Head of School, may be involved in this process.
4. The School of Mathematical Sciences will always try to help you if you are experiencing problems, but we cannot do so if we are not kept informed of them. If there are factors making engagement with your study programme difficult, it is essential that you discuss these with your academic adviser, your Programme Director or other appropriate person in the school at an early stage. This will give us the opportunity to intervene and provide the necessary support.

Reporting Absence

If you wish to be absent for more than a day then you must have a good reason and you should seek the permission of your Programme Director in advance.

If  something serious (such as illness) prevents you from attending an assessment (such as an exam or test) or submitting assessed work (which counts towards your overall module mark) you should report this to us using the appropriate form. See "Extenuating Circumstances" for details.

If you are absent for more than 5 days you must provide supporting documentary evidence such as a letter from your GP.

Should you not meet programme requirements for attendance or for submission of coursework, you may be deregistered from your programme of study. You will be given warnings before deregistration occurs, and you will have the right to represent your case to School of Mathematical Sciences.

18. Absences and Extenuating Circumstances

Extenuating Circumstances

If you believe that your ability to attend or submit a particular item of assessment has been negatively impacted by circumstances outside your control that cast doubt on the likely validity of the assessment as a measure of your achievement, you may wish to submit a claim for extenuating circumstances. Extenuating circumstances include illness, death of a close relative, etc. Extenuating circumstances do not include computer problems, misreading your exam timetable, planned holidays or local transport delays.

If you do not feel you are well enough to attend any invigilated examinations then you should not attend and should submit a claim for extenuating circumstances instead. You should note that the Academic Regulations state that if you attend an examination then you will be deemed to have declared yourself well enough to sit it and as a result any extenuating circumstances claim will not be considered.

Extenuating circumstance claim are completed online via MySIS. If you believe that you have a case for consideration, you should complete this form and supply supporting documentation (for example medical certification, death certificate, police report and crime number, or other written evidence from a person in authority), and submit the paperwork to the Maths Office by the specified deadline. You will be given a receipt for the claim form you have submitted, which you must keep safe for the duration of your studies. Please note that although accompanying documentation can be submitted late, claims without any evidence cannot be considered. It is in your best interest to provide evidence and supporting documentation that is as comprehensive as possible. All cases of extenuating circumstances are kept confidential until they are considered by a small subcommittee of the examination board. All proceedings of the subcommittee are strictly confidential, and details of individual cases will not normally be discussed at the full examination board meeting. It is your own responsibility to submit any claims for extenuating circumstances, not that of your advisor. Please ensure that if you do have what you believe is a valid case, you complete the submission process in accordance with the School guidelines and deadlines.

You are entitled to self-certify on up to three occasions each academic year. This means completing and submitting the Queen Mary self-certification form in place of independent evidence. Please note that self-certification does not mean automatic approval of a claim – the School will consider it in the normal way and will need to be satisfied of the validity of the claim, and satisfied that it justifies the outcome.

We do not distribute supporting evidence to staff who are not on the extenuating circumstances board, but we may disclose it in confidence to relevant Queen Mary officials. Maths Office staff will process the form itself. Copies will go to your advisor, any relevant module organisers and your file, and will be available to any staff writing a reference for you.

It is not possible to make a retrospective claim for extenuating circumstances, specifically once you know your results. Therefore claims submitted after the deadline will not be considered by the examination board.

• Please refer to the full guidance notes on Extenuating Circumstances from the Advice and Counselling service here.

ABSENCES

Students cannot be absent from Queen Mary University of London during term-time without obtaining written agreement in advance from the School of Mathematical Sciences.

If you are unable to attend any scheduled teaching or Advisor meetings then please notify the School of Mathematical Sciences of your absence via email prior to the scheduled activity -  maths@qmul.ac.uk. 

You need to include the scheduled teaching activity/s and/or meeting/s you are missing including the reason for your absence. A member of the Education Services Team will notify you if your absence has been approved.

This is underpinned by the School of Mathematical Sciences Student Engagement Framework and you may be de-registered for poor or non-engagement.

In advance of deregistration you will be sent a formal, written warning and a specified period in which you must improve your attendance, participation, or submission of assessment before deregistration from your programme of study occurs.

Further information can be found in the Academic Regulations (point 2.55 onward).

If you are absent for more than 5 weekdays you may be asked to provide supporting documentary evidence such as a letter from your GP.

Missed In-term Assessments

If you report that an extenuating circumstance prevented you from submitting exercises and/or attending a test (you must provide evidence) and we accept your reason for the absence, then we will excuse you.  We show an excused mark as "0NA".  We normally ignore any excused marks when computing your overall average mark.  Please note that this puts more weight on your other assessed work.

A module leader may instead wish to organise a replacement assessment exercise, which you would be expected to attend, and the result of which would form part of your overall mark.

If you miss exercises and/or tests for modules taught by other Schools then you should speak to the module organiser directly and, if you are studying on a joint programme (e.g. Mathematical Finance), follow the rules of the School concerned.

Missed Examinations

Do not delay! If you report that an extenuating circumstance prevented you from attending an examination and we accept your reason then we will allow you to sit the examination later without any penalty. We normally require documentary evidence such as a medical certificate or letter (a prescription is not acceptable) from the Student Health Centre, a GP, a hospital or the police. Please note that a medical certificate or letter from the Health Centre or your GP must clearly state that you were unfit to sit examinations during a specified period.

An examination sat later than normal because of extenuating circumstances is called a "first sit". You normally take such (EC-claim-related) first sits in August or at the earliest opportunity. If you pass enough credits to graduate then we will take account of any examinations missed because of extenuating circumstance when classifying your degree.

Please note that if you attend an examination but later tell us that you were ill during the examination we cannot normally grant you a first sit. If you feel ill before an examination then it may be best not to attend the examination but instead to seek medical advice and submit a medical certificate.

General Disruption of Studies

If extenuating circumstances either disrupt your studies for a substantial period or have a substantial direct effect on your examination performance (but do not necessarily cause you to miss any assessments) then you should discuss your case with the Student Support Officer before completing a form. If you wish the department to take account of your extenuating circumstances when determining your degree classification then you should support your form with documentary evidence such as a letter from the Queen Mary Medical Centre, a GP, a hospital or the police. The Examination Board will not consider extenuating circumstances without supporting documentary evidence.

Retaking the Year

If you expect that you might not meet the hurdle to progress, but have extenuating circumstances, you may be able to retake the year. In order to be considered for a retake, you must request this before the end of the examination period, i.e. before you know any of your examination results. You must demonstrate that significant extenuating circumstances have been present for much of the academic year, which, for example, have led to your missing large parts of Semester A or B. Normally, extenuating circumstances covering only parts of the revision period or the examination period are insufficient.

• For further information please see the full guidance notes on Extenuating Circumstances from the Advice and Counselling Service.

You should provide the Student Support Officer with a one-page summary detailing your case. Summarise briefly any extenuating circumstances affecting the current year and, where appropriate, refer to extenuating circumstances forms you submitted earlier. For recent occurrences that have not been covered by previously submitted extenuating circumstances forms, you should also submit a new extenuating circumstances form. The Senior Tutor or Student Support Officer will be able to advise you on whether a request to retake the year might be successful. If you want to go ahead with a retake request, you need to complete a Queen Mary Retake of Academic Year form, which is available from either the Maths Office or the Student Enquiry Centre. Please hand in all completed forms to the Maths Office.

Interruption of Studies or Withdrawal

If you decide to withdraw from Queen Mary, either temporarily or permanently, you should firstly discuss the matter with your advisor and Programme Director. If you decide to proceed, you must complete an "Interruption of study" or "Withdrawal from Queen Mary" form, which documents are available from the Maths Office, or Student Enquiry Centre. You should then take the form to your advisor or Programme Director for their signature, who will want to discuss it with you before agreeing to sign it.

If you wish to interrupt, i.e. withdraw temporarily, then you must do so by the end of the second semester. Interruption of studies is normally for one complete year but, in exceptional circumstances, the period may be up to two years. If you interrupt your studies then you lose the automatic right to enter examinations for modules that you took before you interrupted, and we may not allow you to enter for any examination in which you would be the only candidate.

19. Degree Classification and Borderline Policy

DEGREE CLASSIFICATION

The College Mark is the weighted average of the marks you receive in your modules and in the dissertation.  The classification of your MSc degree depends on your College Mark as detailed below, per the Academic Regulations 2020-21.

BORDERLINE POLICY

Examination boards may use a borderline policy when making recommendations for degree classifications. The following criteria are used, according to the Assessment Handbook 2020-21.

The borderline policy has been adjusted for this academic year according to Queen Mary’s Covid Mitigating Measures Policy which can be found here -

http://www.arcs.qmul.ac.uk/students/study/covid-mitigating-measures/

 Information on graduation can be found at: http://www.qmul.ac.uk/graduation/.

20. Change of Study Programme

Your degree programme is initially the same as the course for which Queen Mary accepted you. Some details of your current study programme are encoded in MySIS and limit the options available to you. Provided you meet all the programme requirements, including those not encoded in MySIS, you can choose your elective modules freely, subject to the approval of your advisor. We may allow you to change your degree programme, but all such changes require careful consideration and formal approval. You must follow the procedures below and complete a Queen Mary Change of Programme of Study form, which is available from the Student Enquiry Centre, room CB02 in the Queens' Building, and on the web. If this form is not completed and returned to the Maths Office then you will not have formally requested to change your degree programme.

How do I change to a different Mathematical Sciences degree programme?

1. Discuss the proposed change with your advisor or Programme Director, then complete a Change of Programme of Study form and obtain your advisor's signature (at the bottom of the front of the form; there is no designated area for this signature).
2. Take the completed form to the director of the proposed new programme. If the Programme Director accepts the change, please leave the form with the Programme Director, who will also sign the bottom of the front of the form (next to your advisor's signature) and then forward it to the School Office, or direct to Registry to complete the processing.

How do I change to a degree programme run by another School?

1. Visit the School that runs the degree programme you want to transfer to and discuss it with them. If they agree to the change then complete a Change of Programme of Study form.
2. Take the completed form to your Programme Director for approval of your release from the School of Mathematical Sciences and inform your advisor.
3. Take the completed form to the other School and follow their procedure for approving a change of study programme. They may require you to return the form to Registry yourself.

21. Computing and Library Facilities

22. Submission of MSc Project Dissertations

The project module organiser will tell you how to submit your MSc dissertation, but you should submit an electronic copy to QMplus, together with further files containing copies of any source code (e.g. C++ files, Maple worksheets, Mathematica notebooks, etc.) that you have written. This will be used for plagiarism detection, for which we currently use Turnitin; see the next chapter.

Project reports must have a title page showing clearly the module code and title, the title of your report, and your full name and student number. A project report should look like any well produced document. Content is more important than presentation, but presentation is also important. In particular, you may lose marks for poor spelling and grammar; most modern word processing or text editing applications provide a spelling checker, which you would be well advised to use.

For more specific guidance on organisation of and style in your written work, please consult the individual QMplus pages of the project modules.

Correct referencing of other people's work that you have used in your report is essential and will help avoid accusations of plagiarism. Please see the chapter entitled, "Referencing, Plagiarism and Turnitin", in this handbook.

23. Referencing, Plagiarism and Turnitin

Referencing

Different publications use different referencing styles; you should choose one and use it consistently. What is most important is to provide enough information that the reader can find the document you are referencing. You must always include the author and document title, and you must include the publication date of a printed document and the date when you last accessed an online document. See the next chapter for details of recommended referencing style.

Plagiarism

"Queen Mary defines plagiarism as presenting someone else’s work as your own, whether you meant to or not. Close paraphrasing, copying from the work of another person, including another student, using the ideas of another person, without proper acknowledgement or repeating work you have previously submitted without properly referencing yourself (known as ‘self plagiarism’) also constitute plagiarism." –
Regulations on Assessment Offences, http://www.arcs.qmul.ac.uk/students/student-appeals/assessment-offences/index.html. 

Plagiarism is a serious offence and all students suspected of plagiarism will be subject to an investigation. If found guilty, penalties can include failure of the module to suspension or permanent withdrawal from Queen Mary. It is your responsibility to ensure that you understand plagiarism and how to avoid it. The recommendations below can help you in avoiding plagiarism.

• Be sure to record your sources when taking notes, and to cite these if you use ideas or, especially, quotations from the original source. Be particularly careful if you are cutting and pasting information between two documents, and ensure that references are not lost in the process.
• Be sensible in referencing ideas – commonly held views that are generally accepted do not always require acknowledgment to particular sources. However, it is best to be safe to avoid plagiarism.
• Be particularly careful with quotations and paraphrasing.
• Be aware that technology, such as Turnitin, is now available at Queen Mary and elsewhere that can automatically detect plagiarism.
• Ensure that all works used are referenced appropriately in the text of your work and fully credited in your bibliography.

Turnitin

Turnitin is a web-based plagiarism detection system used by most universities in the UK. This section describes how Turnitin is used within the School of Mathematical Sciences and the data it creates about your work.

How Turnitin works

1. A Turnitin assignment is set up by a member of staff on QMplus. You then access this assignment online and upload your work before the due date. Turnitin will analyse the submitted work to identify text matches with other sources and will compare the work against:
   • the current and archived versions of QMplus;
   • previously submitted work;
   • books and journals.
2. For each piece of submitted work Turnitin provides two things:
   • a similarity index, which indicates the percentage of the submitted paper that Turnitin has identified as matching other sources;
   • an originality report, which shows each of these matches in more detail, including the source(s) that Turnitin has found.

How we use the information provided by Turnitin

1. Turnitin is used on all project modules and various assignments that contribute towards your final grade. Turnitin will not normally be used on the following:
   • short assignments (under 500 words);
   • contributions to online discussions;
   • exercises submitted on paper;
   • exams.
2. For those assignments where Turnitin is used, all submissions to that assignment will be submitted to Turnitin.
3. How we use the information provided by Turnitin:
   • Only academic staff will make a judgement on whether plagiarism has occurred in a piece of work. An academic may be guided by the originality report but Turnitin itself does not make the judgement;
   • We do not use a threshold percentage to identify whether plagiarism has occurred and may review any originality report in detail;
   • Turnitin will highlight matching text such as references, quotations, common phrases and data tables within work that has no plagiarism issues at all. Those interpreting Turnitin reports will discount such matches and so initial percentages are often irrelevant;
   • Where it is suspected that plagiarism has occurred in a piece of work, the originality report may be submitted to the Head of School and possibly to an Assessment Offences Panel for further investigation.

You may have a chance to view your Turnitin report before you submit the final version of your assignment; for guidance please see here.

24. Recommended Referencing Style

This guidance is about how to reference published work such as books and research articles in documents such as project reports. You should follow the recommendation below unless you have a good reason not to (such as being given different instructions by your module organiser). There is no single referencing style used preferentially within the mathematical sciences literature.

Queen Mary Library will only offer support for the two referencing styles recommended below, so if you wish to seek advice from the library then you must conform to one of these styles. Both styles are used below as illustrations, although you must use only one referencing style consistently throughout any one document.

Recommendation

It is recommended that the version of either the Harvard (author, date) or Vancouver (numerical citation) referencing style as applied by the guide to referencing, Cite Them Right (Pears and Shields, 10th edition, 2016), is adopted throughout the Faculty of Science and Engineering at QMUL.

Harvard referencing style

Originating at Harvard University within the discipline of biology during the late 19th Century, Harvard referencing is widely accepted in a broad range of scientific publications. The Harvard system’s author, date method helps to ensure a reader familiar with a particular field is likely to recognize a citation without having to check in the references section. This characteristic is particularly helpful within scientific disciplines whose works are commonly known by their date of publication.

Vancouver referencing style

The Vancouver referencing system is a numeric citation system used in biomedical, health and science publications. It was first defined in 1978 at the conference of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) in Vancouver, Canada, hence its name. It is also known as the Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals. It is used extensively in the physical sciences.

Guidance

Cite Them Right (Pears and Shields, 10th edition, 2016) is currently available from QMUL Library in print format. It offers a standard and up-to-date source for constructing citations and references in the Harvard and Vancouver referencing styles. It also provides guidance on referencing and citation more generally, including how to avoid plagiarism. The library currently highlights and recommends the guidance provided by Cite Them Right in their Find it! Use it! Reference it! introductory information literacy skills module on QMplus.

We advise you to use Cite Them Right Online, which contains clear guidance on the Harvard and Vancouver referencing styles.

• You can choose a source to reference from a drop-down menu or by using the search facility.
• Cite Them Right Online shows you how to create the reference in the style you need.
• There are examples to copy, and a "You try" box so you can build your reference on screen.
• You can check your references against a correct example.
• You can then export the prepared reference straight into your coursework.

You can find more information about Cite Them Right, on QMplus.

Acknowledgement

This chapter is based closely on one written by Martin Beeson, Library Teaching and Learning Support Manager in Student Services, and Sally Mitchell, Head of Learning Development in Student Services.

References

Harvard-style reference

Pears, R. and Shields, G. J. (2016) Cite them right: The essential referencing guide. 10th ed.  Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

Vancouver-style reference

1. Pears R, Shields GJ. Cite them right: The essential referencing guide. 10th ed. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan; 2016.

25. Careers and Personal Development

Looking for part-time work or an internship? Need help with your CV or a job interview? Want to find out about your options when you graduate? Thinking about starting a business?

The QM Careers and Enterprise Centre Team provides information, advice and employer events to help you get the best opportunities. We provide students with access to work experience, support with starting a business, employer networks and self-presentation skills for the recruitment process.

Students in every School are able to participate in a diverse careers programme. This might include in-curriculum lectures, lunchtime workshops, professional career options panels, 1-to-1 careers guidance, application feedback appointments and mock interviews. This is supported by a wealth of careers information online. 

Get the latest news on social media, search jobs on our online jobs board, read our jobs blog or website for advice and insights and use our practice interviews and psychometric test software.

We host over 160 events per year, from alumni career option panels to CV and interview workshops and large scale recruitment fairs.

Our enterprise programme assists aspiring entrepreneurs and social entrepreneurs to set up their own businesses.

You can:

• Book an appointment for one-to-one careers guidance. Book by phone (020 7 882 8533) or in person up to a week in advance, or drop by on the day – we may have appointments free;
• Find out more about the world of work from employers and former students at our careers events: http://www.careers.qmul.ac.uk/events;
  
• Attend workshops on job applications, interviews, assessment centre techniques and a range of graduate skills – from leadership to commercial awareness;
• Find a range of part-time, and full time job vacancies on our website: www.careers.qmul.ac.uk/jobs;
  
• Use our work experience hub, where you can get placed into an internship, temporary work or local work experience placement: https://qmjobsblog.wordpress.com/category/qrecruit.

Engage fully in your degree programme

Make sure that you identify where in your degree programme the opportunities for developing graduate attributes occur and engage fully in these learning activities.

Engage in work experience and other forms of extra-curricular activity

Make sure you take up some of the wide range of opportunities open to you, such as work experience, volunteering, and enterprise education and entrepreneurship opportunities.

Enhance your ability to reflect on your learning and monitor your progress for employability

Sign up for an award or certificate designed to ensure you gain the most from your student experience.

Be active in your career decision making and preparation for employment from your arrival at Queen Mary

Make sure you attend the Mathematical Sciences careers programme and other Queen Mary careers activities.

Make employability information work for you!

Look at these resources early on and plan ahead:

• Graduate Attributes and Employability;
  
• Queen Mary Careers.
  

EXEMPTIONS AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

There are various professional examinations in accounting and actuarial science for which some of our programmes or modules may provide exemptions. Details can be found under the title "Professional exemptions and accreditation" here.

We also have close relationships with the two major UK professional societies for mathematics, The London Mathematical Society and The Institute for Mathematics and its Applications. Many of our staff are members of one or both societies.

The London Mathematical Society was founded in 1865 and has a national and international membership of around 2,300 professional mathematicians. For further information please visit: www.lms.ac.uk. The Institute for Mathematics and its Applications was founded in 1964 and awards the Chartered Mathematician, Chartered Scientist and Chartered Mathematics Teacher designations, visit their website to find out more: www.ima.org.uk.

Both of the above societies support mathematics in many ways, such as producing journals, organising conferences, engaging with government and promoting public engagement.

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES

Queen Mary wants you to make the most of your student experience. For that reason, we want to help you identify the opportunities that exist to develop your graduate attributes. These attributes reflect the location and profile of the student body and the research-intensive nature of the institution. They are detailed in the Queen Mary Statement of Graduate Attributes, which consists of 32 attributes grouped into 7 themes that will help you prepare yourself for your future employment.

26. Safety and Emergency Procedures

You should familiarise yourself with emergency procedures for all areas in which you work, noting the location of emergency exits, assembly points and equipment. On hearing a fire alarm in a QM building, you should immediately leave through the nearest emergency exit, unless redirected by a Fire Marshal. Do not go to any other part of the building for any reason. Proceed to the designated emergency assembly area and report to the Fire Marshal. Do not leave the assembly area or re-enter the building until instructed to do so. Failure to follow these procedures may lead to disciplinary action. 

Tampering with fire alarms or fire-fighting equipment is a serious offence, and we will take disciplinary action may be taken against any student responsible who break this rule. 

In an emergency, dial 3333 from any internal phone and clearly state the nature and location of the problem, your name, and the number you are calling from (if known). If there is no internal phone available, call 999 and follow the normal procedure. You should ensure that corridors and doorways are not obstructed and that fire fighting equipment is not removed from its station.

First aid assistance for minor accidents can be obtained by dialling 3333 from an internal phone, or 020 7882 3333 from any other telephone.

Covid-19 (Coronavirus)

For the latest Covid-19 pandemic updates, information and guidance for Queen Mary University of London students and staff please see https://www.qmul.ac.uk/coronavirus/. This webpage is updated regularly. 

27. Queen Mary ID Card

You will receive a QMUL photo-identity (ID) card upon enrolment. This card is very important, and must be carried at all times on campus. If you do not produce this card upon request and satisfy staff that it is your card through comparison of your face and the photograph, you may be removed from the building, or from campus. Misuse of your card will normally lead to an investigation under the Code of Student Discipline (http://www.arcs.qmul.ac.uk/students/student-appeals/misconduct /)

The card shows your student number. You must take your card into all examinations, and display it on your table for inspection. You will also need to copy the student number onto your paper.

The card also serves as your library card and as an access card for certain buildings and equipment (such as printers and photocopiers). Many buildings have security points at which you must show your card and others require you to touch your card on a reader (as with an Oyster card) to release the doors.

You may also be required to present your card to confirm your attendance (e.g. you may need to touch your card on a reader in a lecturer theatre).

It is vital that you keep your card safe and with you at all times on campus. If you lose your card, or if your card is stolen, you should contact the Student Enquiry Centre, who will be able to help you. A fee is charged to replace lost ID cards.

All students enrolled on a School of Mathematical Sciences MSc programme can collect their student ID card on Friday 22nd January 2021 between 4pm-4:15pm in the Great Hall, Mile End Campus.

If you are not able to collect your student ID card at the scheduled slot as you are not on campus, do not worry.  Details on how to collect your student ID card at a later date will be made available via the Student Enquiry Centre website.

28. Useful Websites

Advice and Counselling Service

Careers and Enterprise

Careers Guidance for University Students: "Prospects"

Disability and Dyslexia Service

Fees

How to find Queen Mary campuses

International Office / "QMUL International"

IT Services

Learning Development

Library

MyQMUL

MySIS

Nightline

Nursery

QMplus

Queen Mary University of London

Residential Services and Support

Samaritans

School of Mathematical Sciences

Security

Student Enquiry Centre

Student Health Service

Student Loans Company

Students’ Union

The QMUL web app

Transport for London

29. Glossary of Useful Terms for your Studies

This section explains some of the main terms that you are likely to encounter in this handbook and in your studies.

Academic credit refers to an indicator of the amount and level of learning. Academic credits are normally awarded in multiples of 15.

Academic level refers to the relative complexity, depth of study, and learner autonomy required in relation to a module in the context of its discipline. Each module is assigned a level from the following scale:

• Level 3: Foundation or pre-degree level;
• Level 4: Introductory;
• Level 5: Intermediate;
• Level 6: Final;
• Level 7: Masters.

Academic year refers to a period running from September to August. The developmental years of most programmes follow academic years, and policies and regulations are always written by academic year. See also Developmental year and Calendar year.

Advanced standing refers to prior certificated study from another institution that is deemed equivalent to Queen Mary modules from which exemption is sought.

Assessed coursework refers to coursework that students are required to complete and submit, and which contributes in whole or in part to module marks and awards.

Award refers to undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate certificates, diplomas, bachelors degrees (with and without honours), undergraduate masters degrees and postgraduate masters degrees. The awards offered by Queen Mary are detailed in the Ordinances and the Academic Regulations.

Calendar year refers to a twelve month period from January to December which may cross two academic years. See also Academic year and Developmental year.

College Mark refers to the weighted average of a student’s performance, calculated in accordance with the regulations for the award, on which the classification of the award is based.

Compulsory module refers to a module that must be taken in order to meet requirements for progression or award.

Core module refers to a module that must be taken and passed in order to meet requirements for progression or award.

Co-requisite module refers to a module that must be taken at the same time as another, specified, module.

Developmental year refers to a year of a programme, normally one academic year of full time study, during which MSc students are normally required to be registered for 180 credits of modules. Developmental years for part time students normally last two academic years. See also Academic year and Calendar year.

Dissertation, project, research project refers to an extended piece of independent study assessed by an output report or extended essay. The dissertation or project comprises a significant part of most MSc programmes.

Element of assessment refers to an individual item of assessment. The assessment for a module may comprise several elements of assessment.

Enrolment refers to a process by which individuals with offers of places to study become students of Queen Mary. New students must pre-enrol before enrolment, and returning students must re-enrol each year.

Extenuating circumstances refers to circumstances that are outside a student’s control which may have a negative impact on a student’s ability to undertake or complete any assessment so as to cast doubt on the likely validity of the assessment as a measure of the student’s achievement.

First sit refers to the repeat of all or part of a module’s assessment following a certified absence at the first attempt due to extenuating circumstances acceptable to the examination board. A first sit replaces the first attempt and does not count towards the value of academic credit for which a student must normally be registered in an academic or developmental year. First sit module marks are not capped.

Invigilated examination refers to a timetabled summative examination that contributes in whole or in part to the module mark.

Level See Academic level.

Module assessment refers to assessment of the performance of a student on a module. This may include a variety of elements and forms, including coursework, dissertations, and practical assignments.

Module refers to an approved block of teaching and learning leading to the award of academic credit and forming part of a programme of study.

Module mark refers to the overall module result. This may be an aggregate of marks from several elements of assessment, which may be weighted.

Prerequisite module refers to a specified module that should be taken before a second specified module can be taken. The School of Mathematical Sciences distinguishes essential prerequisites that you must take and helpful prerequisites that we recommend you take.

Programme regulations refers to the regulations for an individual programme of study, approved by Senate, or its delegated authority.

Programme of study (programme) refers to a package of modules approved by Senate, or its delegated authority, and leading to an award by Queen Mary University of London.

Project See Dissertation.

QMACF refers to the Queen Mary Academic Credit Framework. The structure of academic credits and levels applies to all modules and programmes leading to awards of Queen Mary or the University of London (introduced in 2008).

Qualifying mark refers to a specified minimum mark that must be obtained in one or more elements of assessment in order to pass a module. This is in addition to, and distinct from, the requirement to achieve a pass in the module mark to pass the module.  The School of Mathematical Sciences does not currently use qualifying marks.

Registration refers to a process by which students sign up for modules of a programme of study.

Required assessment refers to assessment that students are required to complete to a prescribed standard and to submit, but which does not contribute to the module mark.

Research project See Dissertation.

Research students refers to students registered for a programme of study specifically designated as a research programme.

Resit refers to the repeat of all or part of a module’s assessments, following failure at a previous attempt. Resits do not involve the repeat of attendance for the module. They do not count towards the value of academic credit for which students must normally be registered in an academic or developmental year. Resit marks are normally capped at 50%.

Retake refers to the repeat of a module following failure at a previous attempt. Retakes involve attendance and completion of all elements of the module, and the submission of all assessments (summative and formative). They count towards the value of academic credit for which students must normally be registered in an academic or developmental year. Module marks for retakes are not pegged. Retakes incur pro rata tuition fees.

Special regulations refers to programme regulations that diverge from the general Academic Regulations for exceptionally good reason, and which are approved by Senate, or its delegated authority. The special regulations are detailed in sections 6 and 7 of the Academic Regulations.

Students refers to students of Queen Mary. Ordinance C1 describes "those persons who are students of Queen Mary and associate students of Queen Mary". The Academic Regulations apply to all students undertaking undergraduate or postgraduate study at Queen Mary, and to any persons whom Senate declares to be students of Queen Mary.

Taught component refers to the parts of a programme that are delivered as taught modules, as opposed to dissertations and projects. The term is generally used in relation to postgraduate programmes.

Total credit value refers to the total amount of academic credit required for an award.

University when capitalized refers to the University of London, unless otherwise specified.

Assessment Type Definitions

Invigilated examination (short code EXM):

A formal, timed and invigilated assessment that takes place under the regulations for invigilated examinations. To include but not limited to: seen and unseen examinations (including on-line examinations) that take place in Queen Mary’s formal examination periods.

Coursework (short code CWK): An assessment that takes place during the module. To include but not limited to: essays, reports, presentations, poster presentations, seminar/tutorial work, in-class or in-semester tests, mid-sessional examinations, project proposals, exercises and homework sheets.

Practical (short code PRA): An assessment that requires the application or demonstration of knowledge and/or skills/competencies in a practical context. This may include but is not limited to: laboratory work, computer work, performances, fieldwork and oral assessments in languages.

Dissertation/project (short code DIS): An extended piece of independent study that is assessed by the output report or long essay. This may include but is not limited to: dissertations, research projects and project reports.

30. Maps and Travel

For a map of the Campus, see here. 

For travel around London, see here.

For Google Maps, see here.