Regulations for postgraduate research students: Section 1

Section 1: Important Information Applicable to all Students

 

You should read the following information fully and in addition to the Key Facts about Your Enrolment. It sets out what is expected of you and of us.

 

You should seek impartial advice and support from the Students’ Union Advice Centre if you are unclear or require support on the information listed below.

 

1.1 Enrolment

1.1.1 Before you begin your course, you are required to enrol with us:

  • You will officially register as a student on your course using the University’s online enrolment process.
  • It is very important that enrolment is completed within three weeks of the course start date otherwise you will be withdrawn from your course.
  • If you feel that you cannot commence your course as planned, you should contact the Student Recruitment Team (or International Office if you are an overseas student). You may be able to defer your place to start the following academic intake.
  • You are not entitled to receive tuition or to use the University’s facilities until you have completed the enrolment process and have been issued with a student campus card.
  • It is your responsibility to ensure that your correct name has been recorded on the student records system in full (guidance on how to change your name is provided in the Personal Details section below).
  • No shortened versions of forenames or punctuations are acceptable.
  • The campus card is issued for the duration of your course and will be revalidated annually.
  • A £10.00 fee is charged for the replacement of lost cards.
  • You are required to carry your campus card with you at all times and to make it available to staff on request.
  • You can access information about enrolment on our Welcome to Huddersfield webpage

 

1.2 Re-registration

1.2.1 You are required to re-register for the next stage of your course on an annual basis. Normally this is completed via an online process, which can be done on or off campus during a limited period:

  • You must complete re-registration within three weeks of your course start date, otherwise you will be withdrawn from the course.
  • If you miss re-registration as your studies were interrupted you must complete re-registration within three weeks of when you return to study, otherwise you may be withdrawn from the course.
  • If you cannot continue your course as planned, you should contact your School Office. You may be able to interrupt your studies.
  • You are not entitled to receive tuition or to use the University’s facilities until you have completed the re-registration procedure.
  • It is your responsibility to ensure that your correct name has been recorded on the student records system in full (guidance on how to change your name is provided in the Personal Details section below).
  • No shortened versions of forenames or punctuations are acceptable.
  • Award certificates will not usually be re-issued in a different name to that recorded at the Course Assessment Board and/or on the student records system.
  • You can access information about re-registration on our Re-registration webpage

 

1.3 Late registration penalty

1.3.1 A penalty applies to students who fail to re-register during the official re-registration period. If you fail to re-register by three weeks of your annual re-registration date or when you return from a period of interruption, you will lose access to the University IT Systems, including your e-mail account and may also be withdrawn.

 

1.4 Administrative withdrawal and appeal process

1.4.1 You may be administratively withdrawn from your research degree if:

  • Your do not re-register within three weeks of your annual re-registration date or after returning from an interruption.
  • You do not submit work by the agreed deadline.
  • You continuously fail to engage with your research degree.
  • The University is no longer able to provide adequate supervision.
  • Without good reason, you do not attend either the progression monitoring or final examination viva.

1.4.2 Students who are withdrawn will lose access to their University accounts within 10 working days of the withdrawal being instigated. If the University notifies you that you are being withdrawn, you will be given 10 working days in which to save any documents or correspondence that you may need from your University accounts, before the University formally withdraws you.

1.4.3 If you are administratively withdrawn you can appeal if you can demonstrate:

  • That a material irregularity occurred during the process that led to your withdrawal; and / or
  • You have extenuating circumstances, which can be independently evidenced, which for good reason you could not tell us about at the time and before the decision was made.

1.4.4 To appeal, you should complete the PGR Withdrawal Appeal Form in full and email it, with your evidence, to registryresearch@hud.ac.uk

1.4.5 You must submit your appeal no later than 10 working days after the date you are contacted to confirm that you are being withdrawn. If your appeal is submitted later than this without a good reason, we will reject it. If you have a good reason for submitting your appeal late, you must provide independent evidence to support this.

1.4.6 We will consider your appeal and normally respond no later than 20 working days from the date of receiving your completed appeal form and associated evidence. We will send you the outcome by email and we will explain the reasons for our decision. This decision will be final and will bring to an end the University’s internal procedure. There are no further stages of appeal and we will issue you with a completion of procedures letter at this stage:

  • If your appeal is successful, we will notify you and your School of the outcome.
  • If your appeal is not successful, then the original decision made by your School will remain.

1.4.7 OIA Independent Review: Our appeal decision is final and there are no further appeal stages within the University. If you wish to request an independent review of our final decision, you should contact the Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OiA) within 12 months of the date of the completion of procedures letter.

 

1.5 Student ID card

1.5.1 You are required to carry your student ID card at all times and to make it available to staff upon request. If you wear any items of clothing, headwear, or anything else that obscures your face you may be asked to remove it for the purposes of identifying you against your campus card. If this is the case, all due care will be taken to do this in a discreet and sensitive manner.

1.5.2 You should only have one valid student ID card at any time. You should never have another student’s ID card in your possession.

1.5.3 A lost or damaged student ID card should be replaced immediately. There is an administrative charge for this. 

 

1.6 Email correspondence

1.6.1 You will be contacted primarily through your student email address and it is your responsibility to ensure that you check this regularly. 

 

1.7 Change of address

1.7.1 You should update your personal details electronically via the Student Portal and click on My Details. You must ensure that both your home address and your term time address are completed and up to date at all times; these should be your details and not those of an agent. You should not use the University’s address to receive mail on your behalf.

 

1.8 Change of name

1.8.1 It is your responsibility to ensure that your full legal name has been recorded on the University's Applicant and Student Information System (ASIS).  This will be the name which appears on your award certificate and transcript as these official documents can only be issued in your legal name. 

1.8.2 If you do change your name legally, we will update all our records and documents. Proof of the name change will be required. You should advise either the School Office or the Student Records Team of any change in name and must provide documentary evidence, for example a statutory declaration signed by a solicitor or Justice of the Peace, a Deed Poll, a marriage or civil partnership certificate or a passport. You should do this as soon as possible following the name change.

1.8.3 No shortened versions of forenames or initials are acceptable. If you prefer to be known by another name, you should advise the School Office or the Student Records Team so that this can also be recorded on ASIS. 

1.8.4 Award certificates will not be re-issued in a different name to that recorded on the University Applicant and Student Information system  (ASIS) at the time of ratification by either the Dean of the Graduate School or the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research, Innovation & Knowledge Exchange). Exceptionally, a certificate can be issued in a different name to that recorded inly where you provide evidence of either:

  • A change of identity due to participation in a witness protection programme.
  • Official documentation to verify gender reassignment. 

 

1.9 Change of research programme

1.9.1 If you wish to change your research programme, you must discuss this with your School who will advise on your options. If you sponsored by your employer or another organisation, you must discuss this with them first. 

1.9.2 If you receive financial support through a doctoral a loan, you are strongly advised not to change course without first checking that the loan provider (e.g. Student Finance England) is willing to continue to fund you.

1.9.3 If you are studying on a student visa, you must inform and obtain approval from the International Office if you wish to transfer course (or change research topics) - There will be visa and possibly ATAS implications for any course transfer. If you are sponsored by your government, you must also ask for their written permission before you change course.

 

1.10 Smoking on campus

  • You must not smoke within any University building or vehicle at any time.
  • You must not smoke at any location where second-hand smoke can enter a building, such as entrances and exits, windows, and air intake vents.
  • If you wish to smoke, you must do so away from building entrances, exits, windows etc.
  • The above prohibitions also apply to vapour cigarettes, electronic cigarettes and similar devices.

 

1.11 Parking

1.11.1 You cannot park on campus unless you have been confirmed as requiring a space through our Estates and Facilities Team or Disability and Wellbeing Services. If you are disabled and you need a parking space then you will need to apply for a parking permit using the application form available from Student Services, Level 4, Student Centre, Schwann Building. You can also refer to the University's Parking Regulations for further guidance.

1.11.2 If you are identified as parking inappropriately, in areas restricted for staff use or parking your car in a restricted area on campus grounds, without specified and approved permission, you will be subject to our Student disciplinary procedure

 

1.12 Students studying in partner institutions

1.12.1 If you study at a partner institution, the University remains responsible for the academic quality and standards associated with the University’s courses and qualifications. You are required to adhere to the University’s regulations in relation to its courses. You will be expected to follow any regulations which are local to the provider where you study; however, where an issue involves academic appeals and complaints relating to the academic standards and/or quality of the learning opportunity the University’s regulations will apply.

 

1.13 Allegations under the regulations for postgraduate research students and conferment of credit or award

1.13.1 If an allegation is made against you, under any of our regulations, the burden of proof lies with us, that is, the University must prove that you have done what you are accused of doing. You should not have to disprove the allegation. However, it may be to your advantage to help us by providing any evidence you feel supports your case.

1.13.2 Some circumstances, may require you to prove that you have or have not done something, or that something has happened. For example, if two students are accused of plagiarism, and one student provided evidence that the original work was theirs and the other student copied it, the other student will need to rebut that evidence.

1.13.3 If an allegation is made against you under any of our regulations, you also need to prove any mitigating factors that you rely on when we consider the penalty.

1.13.4 We work to the civil standard of proof, which can more commonly be referred to as the 51% test. This means that we will consider whether, on the balance of probability, we believe the case against you to be true. As such, we will need to be satisfied that, based on the evidence provided, an event is more likely to have occurred than not.

1.13.5 If a new allegation is raised during an existing investigation, this will be addressed as a separate matter through the appropriate procedure. If a different procedure is used, we will explain why.

1.13.6 If you have submitted all the work for your course but are being investigated under the Research Misconduct procedure, the conferment of any award will be withheld until the investigation has been concluded.  

 1.13.7 If you have completed all assessments for your course but are being investigated under the Student Disciplinary procedure, the conferment of your award would not normally be withheld and the investigation would close. However, if you applied to return to the University at a later stage for further study, the investigation would need to be completed prior to your admission.  

 1.13.8 If you have been withdrawn or permanently excluded from the University and you are studying on a student visa, we will report this to the Home Office once the relevant procedural appeal period has passed. 

 

1.14 Procedural Investigation Meetings and Student Union representation 

1.14.1 All procedural investigatory meetings and panels will be held on Microsoft Teams unless an in-person meeting is required. This will usually be arranged to manage a reasonable adjustment as set out in a Personal Learning Support Plan (PLSP). The recording of these meetings is not permitted, a note taker will be present to ascertain an accurate record. You will be given a copy of these notes to check along with your outcome.  

1.14.2 Student Union Officers or their nominee sit on some of our student panels. and will have been given training and support from the Students’ Union and Registry in the University.

 

1.15 Revocation of Award or Credit

1.15.1 Awards made by the University are conferred in good faith, however, there may be reasons where an award or credit is required to be revoked. They are normally under the following; conditions: 

  • There is satisfactory evidence to prove an administrative error contributed to the decision to award. 
  • It is found that the student provided false information through the admissions process which, if known, would have resulted in them not being admitted onto the course.  
  • An Research Misconduct hearing issues a decision upholding evidence of academic misconduct following an allegation(s).  

1.15.2 Recommendations for revocation will be referred to the Vice Chancellor or a nominee from the Senate membership for approval. If your award or credit has been revoked under this regulation, the reasons for the decision will be clearly outlined to you. As part of the process, you have the right to appeal the decision under the following grounds;  

  • There was an irregularity in how the decision to revoke your award or credit  has been reached; 
  • There was bias or a reasonable perception of bias in how the decision to revoke your award or credit has been reached; 
  • You have submitted evidence that would have materially affected the decision 

1.15.3 You must submit your reasons for appealing to studentconduct@hud.ac.uk within 10 working days of receiving notification of the revocation.  

 

1.15.4 As part of the appeal process, the University will decide, based on the condition for revocation, if a hearing panel should be convened in order for you to further present your case. This will not usually be required if the revocation was due to administrative errors. If a panel is required, it the panel will consist of;  

  • A member of Senate (Chair) 
  • A senior member of Registry  
  • An SU Officer 

1.15.5 If a panel is not required, your appeal will be considered by a member of Registry staff who has not been involved in the process and their decision will be approved by a nominee of Senate. 

 

1.15.6 You will receive an outcome within 20 working days of submitting your appeal/attending your panel hearing. The decision of the Pro-Vice Chancellor is final and you will be issued with a completion of procedures letter.  

 

1.15.7 OIA Independent Review: You can request an independent review of our final decision. You will need to send your completion of procedures letter to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OIA) within 12 months of the date of the completion of procedures letter. 

1.16 Fit to Sit and Fit to Submit Policy  

 

1.16.1 It is your responsibility to attend vivas and submit the correct work for the assessment in the specified format, by the agreed submission date. The University operates a Fit to Sit and Fit to Submit policy, which means that if you undertake any assessment activity you are declaring yourself well enough to do so.  

 

1.16.2 It is your responsibility to follow the University’s procedures for extensions where it is believed that your performance or ability to meet a deadline will be affected. The following regulations apply to all research students; 

 

  • By attending a viva, you are confirming that you are fit to sit that viva 
  • By submitting any element of an assessment, you are declaring yourself fit to submit the assessment.  

 

1.16.3 The Fit to Sit and Fit to Submit regulations may affect your ability to make a claim for an extension. This can apply if you have submitted a claim which has been approved prior to submitting the work or attending the viva, or if you try to submit a claim after the work has been submitted or viva has been attended.

1.17 Emergency regulations 

 

1.17.1 There may times, because of exceptional circumstances beyond our reasonable control, when the University needs to apply its emergency regulations. The introduction, duration and termination of the Emergency Regulations will be recommended by Graduate Board then approved by University Research Committee and Senate. 

 

1.17.2 The Emergency regulations are available on our website (see Section A5).  

 

1.18 Covid-19

1.18.1 During the academic year 2023-24, it is unlikely that the University will need to impose additional obligations on our students, in order to comply with government guidance on the management of Covid-19. However, should the University need to do so, these requirements may be likely to include, but are not restricted to, social distancing measures and additional hygiene protocols. You would be expected to observe these requirements at all times and if you do not, you will be subject to our Student disciplinary procedure

 

1.19 Additional relevant policies

1.19.1 In addition to these regulations, you should also be aware of and comply with the following policies:

Regulations for Postgraduate Research Students

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