65-Credit format to tackle Student Dropouts

A new initiative is to be trialled next year which would allow students who fail certain five-credit modules to advance to the next year of their course and undertake a 65-credit workload instead of repeating the year.The scheme, which was suggested for introduction by the Academic Development & Standards Committee, will originally be limited to first year students, before being made more widely available, if successful. The 65-credit format, however, will not be available in cases where the failed module is compulsory and students who wish to partake in the initiative must first receive the approval of their respective Head of Department.UCCSU Education Officer Joe Kennedy, who was involved in the development of the scheme, highlighted that these limitations were introduced to protect the best interests of any affected students: “These restrictions aim at helping students – the student has likely already failed the module twice so it may not be in their own interest to take on the heavier work load of 65 credits the following year.”Kennedy added, however, that this development may reduce the number of students who feel the need to drop out of college. “I hope this initiative will be of great benefit to students. At the moment we see situations where students are faced with spending an entire year repeating a single five-credit module. Many are unable to do so for financial reasons. This will make things a little more understanding and compassionate.”