Access to HE

Student Handbook
Access to Higher Education Diploma
(Biosciences and Forensic Science)

The Access to HE Course.

The Access to HE Diploma is a nationally recognised qualification which is designed to provide a
preparation for study in higher education for adults returning to education. Successful completion of
each unit leads to the award of a certain number of credits, and successful completion of all the
required units (which must total 60 credits) leads to the award of the Access to HE Diploma.

Credits you will study:

Biology RH43CY119 J.H. 3
Cell Structure and Transport RH43CY125 J.H. 6
Microbiology and Health RH53CY012 J.H. 3
Enzymes RH33CY084 J.H. 3
Biological Molecules RH33CY082 J.H. 3
DNA, Polypeptide Synthesis and DNA Technology
Chemistry RD33CY018 H.B. 3
Atomic Structure RD63CY006 D.N. 3
Analytical Procedures in Chemistry RD43CY017 D.N. 3
Organic Chemistry – Hydrocarbons, Alcohols and Acids RD33CY017 D.N. 3
Proportions by which Chemicals React
Project RA13CY020 H.B. 3
Practical Scientific Project - Design and Implementation RA13CY019 H.B. 3
Practical Scientific Project - Analysis and Presentation
Physics RC63CY008 H.B. 3
Radioactivity
Health Physics RC83CY015 H.B. 3
Health Physics
Psychology PK83CY025 PS 3
Criminal Psychology
Maths – Level 2 ungraded RB12CY045 H.B. 3
Number RB92CY009 H.B. 3
Numeracy for Health Professionals RB12CY042 H.B. 3
Data Handling and Probability
Communication - Level 3 ungraded HC83CY012 H.B. 3
Communication Skills for Access to HE HC73CY153 H.B. 3
Delivering Oral Presentations

D.N. Donald Ndhlovu [email protected]

H.B. Helen Burn [email protected]

P.S Paul Steven [email protected]

J.H. Julie.Hammett [email protected]

Technician Rachel Gruber [email protected]
Hazel Norgate [email protected]

Science staff room 01495 333165
Learning Centre 01495 333366
Main switchboard 01495 333100

How will you be assessed?

There is no final examination. You will be assessed by submitting assignments throughout the course.
Your tutors will go through the assignment briefs with you to make sure that you understand what
you have to do and how the assignment will be marked.

Assessment methods may include:
 Case studies
 Academic posters
 Essays
 Group and individual presentations
 Group debate
 Evaluative reports
 Role play
 Creation of fact sheets or leaflets
 Controlled assessments/tests (open and closed book)

Handing in Assignments.

When you are given an assignment, the brief will contain a hand in date. All work must be uploaded to
Canvas by the deadline. If you miss the deadline your work will only be assessed to a pass.

When uploading, please ensure all work contains your name and the word count at of your main body
of text at the bottom. Any work that does not stay within 10% of the word count will be penalised.

You should save your work on the college system, OneDrive and on a memory stick. This is wise in case
of system failure, or in order to work on your own computer at home. Losing your work because a
memory stick has corrupted is not a reasonable request for an extension.

You may request an extension due to exceptional circumstances but this should be done 24 hours prior
to the deadline. You need to seek approval from the subject leader and the course tutor.

Your subject lecturer will mark your work within 15 working days of submission. The results will
normally be posted on Canvas.

Assessment Resubmission

In order for a learner to be granted a resubmission, the following must apply:

 The original submission must have been submitted on time. Assessments that are submitted late
and have not achieved the pass criteria must then be dealt with under the Referrals procedure
below.

 The original submission must be returned to the learners, with written feedback which explains
which learning outcome(s) has/have not been achieved.

 No feedback on about the standard of the work in relation to grades may be given at this stage.
 The specific requirements of a resubmission opportunity must be made clear to the learners;

including a 10 working day resubmission deadline.
 The missing criteria will be resubmitted as a separate document. No other alterations to your

original submissions will be allowed.
 Successful resubmissions will be graded following the same process as used for successful

submissions and grades given accordingly.
 Only one resubmission opportunity may be provided for any individual assignment.

If the resubmission is unsuccessful (that is, the resubmitted work still does not meet the learning
outcome(s) in full), the only means by which a further opportunity for resubmission can be provided
within the same registration period is through referral.

Assessment Referrals

Normally, a learner is permitted only one opportunity to resubmit work which fails to meet all the
requirements of the associated learning outcomes. The referral process allows the course team to
recommend that a learner should be permitted a second resubmission opportunity.

Referral may also be requested for learners who have submitted work after a deadline without an
agreed extension, and this work has failed to meet the requirements of one or more of the associated
learning outcomes. If this occurs within the duration of a course, the recommendation is referred to the
lead/external moderator. Referrals are made initially to Jen Trayhern who will pass them to Victor
Morgan at Agored Cymru.

If the need for referral occurs at the end of the course (for example, as the consequence of assessments
that have been taken in the last weeks of a course), the recommendation is taken to the awards board,
as referrals at this stage in a course have implications for staffing, resources and results that need to be
fully considered and carefully managed.

Late Submissions

When an assignment is submitted at after the formal deadline has passed, and no extension has been
granted (and there are no exceptional extenuating circumstances which explain the failure to request an
extension), all grade indicators relating to that assignment must be capped at a pass.
If an assignment is submitted after the deadline without an extension having been granted and the work
does not meet the learning outcomes, there is no opportunity for resubmission except via the referrals
process.

Key features of the grading scheme

A grade is awarded for every grades level 3 unit that a student completes successfully as part of an
Access to HE Diploma. (All diplomas comprise 45 credits from grades level 3 units, and 15 credits from
level 2 or level 3 units that are not graded.) A grade of pass, merit or distinction is awarded for each
graded unit.
The standard of performance required for a pass grade is the minimum required to meet the specified
assessment criteria for the learning outcomes of the unit.
Merit and distinction grades indicate higher levels of performance within level 3.
Students who do not achieve the specified learning outcomes for a unit cannot be awarded credit for
that unit. The unit is therefore not eligible for grading. There are no separate grade descriptors for ‘pass’
or ‘fail’. All 60 credits must be achieved to be awarded the diploma.

The Grade Descriptors

There are a common set of grade descriptors which are used as the basis for all grading judgements on
all courses. The seven descriptors relate to different aspects of performance which are relevant to the
assessment of a student’s readiness to study in higher education. They are presented under the
following headings:

1. Understanding of the subject
2. Application of knowledge
3. Application of skills
4. Use of information
5. Communication and presentation
6. Autonomy/Independence
7. Quality