Lecturers’ strike could scupper graduations
STUDENTS may not be able to graduate this summer and face uncertainty about job prospects after unions urged lecturers not to do any external marking.
This could prevent many final year students from receiving degree grades because it will be impossible to finish marking their exams.
Students could end up receiving their grades only after the dispute ends – potentially in the autumn or winter. In the meantime, the action will also hold up students keen to apply for jobs starting once they graduate.
It is the latest move in a dispute between the University and College Union (UCU) and vice-chancellors over proposed cuts to pension benefits.
Sally Hunt, general secretary of the UCU, said: ‘We are calling on external examiners to resign their positions at those universities in dispute over plans to slash staff pensions. External examiners ensure the rigorous quality standards in our universities.
‘No student or university will want the quality of their degree called into question, so we advise universities’ representatives to get back round the table with us as soon as possible.’
Exams are usually graded internally, then moderated by external staff to ensure marking is fair.
External markers are always lecturers at other universities who take on the work in their spare time to earn extra money.
A 14th day of strikes over the pension cuts is being organised by the UCU today, with lecturers due to return to work on Monday. Leaders are planning a further 14 days of strikes over the summer exam period to cause the maximum amount of disruption.
Members will refuse to invigilate or mark on those days, meaning some exams will be cancelled and others will not be marked. Those exams that do take place and are marked are now unlikely to be checked externally – making the papers invalid.
The action could also cause problems for any papers not yet written, as it is often external examiners who write the ques- tions. Universities are putting together contingency plans to replace external markers, but any reduction of the labour force will inevitably lead to long delays.
The dispute, across 65 universities, centres on plans to slash the benefits of Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS) pensions.
The UCU says this would leave a typical lecturer almost £10,000 a year worse off in retirement than under the current system.
Yesterday 400 students staged a mass protest at Sussex University, ‘occupying’ a multi-million pound construction site in solidarity with the strikers.
However, not all students were as enthusiastic about the continuing disruption to their studies. Charlie Collard, who is reading European Studies at King’s College London, said: ‘Now the UCU try to threaten the ability of finalists to graduate by aiming to have fresh strikes around exam time… yet you do this for our education. Pull the other one.’
Lizzie Whittingham, a third year history student at Manchester, added: ‘Words cannot express how angry I am that strikes will continue at my university over dissertation hand-in and exams.
‘If these lecturers want to still call themselves educators, then they need to be doing all they can to help students. But they are doing nothing.’
‘Need to do all they can to help’