I've made a horrible mistake

[Moominfan]

So due to finish my degree employers have agreed to fund a masters all is looking well. Had my final module result and it's a fail. I've submitted my draft not my actual assignment. I can resit but grade will be capped which will drag my entire degree down outside of threshold for a masters. 6years of part time study.

Can you please tell me about your awful mistakes? I can't believe I've done something so stupid. Don't whether to laugh or cry

How is the marker supposed to distinguish between poor/incomplete work and someone's draft? I mark dissertations and sometimes people hand in really poor or incomplete or incoherent stuff. I can't return it every time saying 'is this what you intended to hand in?' It's marked as what it is- which is a fail. Otherwise everyone could keep working on their work after the deadline and claim that was the one they meant to hand in!

If it only contained a heading and a few paras, I might question it but otherwise, poor/draft-like work isn't unheard of as the final effort unfortunately.

I hope you get this sorted though, and the Masters course leaders are sympathetic, my guess is they will be if the rest of your transcript is strong.

Lesson learned. Call a draft a draft in the title of the file.

Sorry it happened though x

I did the exact same thing. I tried to appeal using mitigating circumstances, I emailed the course tutor etc, but no luck.

I'm so sorry OP. It happened 2 years ago and it still makes me feel sick. I got a lower grade to the one I deserved ):

How long is it since you submitted?

I could see it if you'd realised the day after or something, but if it was handed in (say) weeks ago they can't let you resubmit because they don't know that what you're handing in is the actual work you did at the time xx

Op didn't say it how long it was - I had assumed it was a plan.

I even sent screenshots of my draft and final report showing the last time/date I edited the document, so they knew I hadn't edited the document after the submission deadline, thus it had been completed before the date etc.

I too only noticed when I checked my result and saw 16% or something. I was in a lecture at the time and immediately left and went straight to student services.
I remember sitting at the library at 3 am writing this report. Absolutely mortified!

You'd be best to take the advice of the SST and redo the module so it's uncapped. It is a shame but not worth missing out on a masters for the sake of one year. OUSA doesn't do individual representation so wouldn't be able to help you in the event of an appeal meeting and it's not mitigating circumstances so I doubt it would be upheld. If finances are an issue there is help available.

DO NOT purposefully fail the resit. A retake of the module WILL DEFINITELY BE CAPPED. Read the Academic Regulations about module retakes. The Academic Regulations will be available on your University's webpage. The support worker gave you terrible advice.

This seems really unfair. I would go all guns blazing, speak to as many people as possible ( personal tutors, course leaders, the module leader etc)and explain the issue. Don't give up yet.

If you have the final version saved and the date is recorded as before the due date this is evidence that you intended to send the final version but just made a genuine error( especially as the files have the same name). Send them a screen shot of the document saved on your memory stick and offer to bring in the memory stick for them to verify if needed. The fact that your other grades are higher and you were expected to get a high grade overall will count in your favour surely?

I'm sure it can be sorted out xx

Thanks for the suggestions. Ousa said they've had Students in similar circumstances and they've gone down the route of failing resit to then take another module. That's going to be a back up plan. The assignment was handed in may. Sent it off and didn't look back until I received my module result so a lot of time has elapsed. I've sent a complaint on the basis that the consequences out weigh the action, along with screen shots of documents/times ect, can take up to 10working days for a response

Br1256 I already work full time this is a part time degree. I've not gone down the mitigating circumstances route although considered it to avoid being penalised for a human mistake that isn't unheard of in the world of work.

Im sorry this happened but there is no grounds for mitigating circumstances. Not checking your work before submitting is not a valid reason. I doubt you could appeal either as there is no grounds for it.

I know it is harsh but thats how it is. You can still resubmit and get the capped mark so it is not all lost.

When did you realise that you had sent the wrong file just after you sent it or when the results were issued?

I'm really sorry OP, but even on the TMAs, the warnings are very clear for you to check and recheck that you have uploaded the final version, and the university give you the chance to download your submission and check it another time after you've sent it in to confirm it's the right version. You have to tick the box to agree that you understand this before you submit.

If I were you, I would proceed on the assumption that you will have to take another, different module to complete the degree with the grade you need

This is awful and just the sort of thing I’m capable of doing. Really hope it gets sorted for you.

Ignore me as you have answered this already.

If you do the module again please save each your EMS each time like this

EMA - 2018-07-18 12-15

EMA - 2018-07-18 15-30

That way when you get your receipt from the OU stating that they have received your EMA you will see straight away that you have sent the wrong one and can rectify it there and then.

Another good reason for saving the file with a different name each time is that if anything goes wrong with a file (corruption, data loss) then you will have your previous version as a back-up

@Demiguise Are you a fellow OU student??

Just know you're not alone and I did this too

English Lit/Creative Writing @PersianCatLady

I shall take your excellent advice re: file names for my next module, thank you!

Sorry but I think complaining was a mistake and I would be surprised if it got you any where.

I would be really pissed off if someone complained to me because they had made a mistake.

I think complaining was a mistake.

@Demiguise I graduated in December with BSc (Hons) Computing & IT

I sat my M250 exam with two broken ribs and I came home and thought I had done brilliantly and I had got great marks throughout the year so I was surprised to get an overall mark of 32% (fail)

I didn't even think about mitigating circumstances but I went to take the capped resit a few months later and I just couldn't get my brain together and knew I had really messed it up. I was not surprised to get an overall mark of 23%

I started the whole module again the next year, did all the TMAs again and sat the exam again. Funnily enough I can't remember my actual % but I got a Grade 2 overall so fair enough.

The moral of the story is don't take Oramorph and diazepam before a programming exam.

I had blank lines in my post to make it easier to read and they have vanished

In my case it was the final assignment though not the EMA. My average had been 83 and my notes got 65. Which kept me in the same grade boundary.