Course Handbook - Faculty of History - University of Cambridge

linguistic shortcomings if appropriate. Linguistic shortcomings should be penalized, if their effect is
to make the work not clearly intelligible.
7. SELECTION OF EXAMINERS
All work is assessed by two independent examiners in the first instance. Examiners are nominated
by the MPhil Sub-Committee at the time that titles of essays are approved and any necessary
changes (e.g. due to refusals to serve) are made by the Academic Secretary subject to the approval
of the Sub-Committee acting as Board of Examiners. Dissertation supervisors may not act as
examiners of work they have supervised.
8. THE EXTERNAL EXAMINER
The External Examiner normally examines a representative cross-section of the written work which
is double marked, drawn from both options, and a cross-section of all dissertations within his/her
field of expertise. He/she does so as the second, independent marker and not in a moderating role.
The External Examiner also acts as a moderator elsewhere in the examination (including all
marginal fails and fails), and may be called upon to act as a third independent reader where
examiners have failed to agree. The External Examiner is also asked to write a report on the
examination processes and procedures, as for Tripos.
9. MARKING PROCEDURES
The two examiners must not confer before marking and there is no reconciliation of the two marks
into a single overall mark. The marks are registered separately by the MPhil Sub-Committee sitting
as Board of Examiners, and are used to determine pass or failure and reported separately to the
Degree Committee. However, for the purposes of calculating the final percentages for Parts I and II
all marks are averaged based on the weighting of each course element.
On the receipt of any pair of examination marks with manifest divergence (e.g. by at least 10
points), the External Examiner is automatically asked by the Secretary of the MPhil Sub-Committee
to read the piece of work and establish a third mark for it. The External Examiner normally provides
a third independent mark in those cases where the examiners have failed to agree. However, where
the External was one of the original examiners, the third mark will be provided by the Chairman. If
the Chairman was also one of the original examiners or the supervisor of the candidate concerned, a
third examiner will be appointed by the Chairman and Secretary, with the advice of the External. In
the case of dissertations, a third examiner who is not the External may be appointed by the same
process, if the External’s expertise in the particular area of the dissertation is not thought to be
sufficient. In case a third examiner has to be appointed, this person should first reach an independent
conclusion on the basis of the written work and only then look at the marks and comments of the
two examiners before giving a final mark.
The third marker will initially read the dissertation without reference to the two original examiners’
reports and provide an independent third mark, but may in his or her report comment on the relevant
areas of disagreement between the two original reports and the judgements reached therein.
Should they be members of the MPhil Sub-Committee sitting as Board of Examiners, neither the
supervisor nor any examiner (except the External Examiner) of a given piece of work shall vote on
any question arising about that piece of work.
10. MARGINAL FAIL MARKS IN PART I
The mark of 59 is a marginal fail mark. All work receiving one or more marginal fail marks will be
read by a third examiner (normally the External Examiner). The third reader will examine and award
marks independently, without reference to the marks already awarded. If the permutation of marks
results in a confirmed marginal fail in any one element of Part I, it is required that it be compensated
for by two marks of at least 63 per cent in the dissertation. Any candidate who has a marginal fail in
Part I will be notified through his/her supervisor that he/she is in the ‘danger of fail’ category and
therefore needs to achieve this level in the dissertation.
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