AIBU to think a word limit is the actual word limit?

[iloveruby]

I'm currently doing an MSc and (perhaps naively) thought that the word limit was exactly that - the point where the examiner would stop reading the assignment.

However, when talking to other students it would appear that in past assignments they have exceeded the limit by approximately 10% without comment or it being reflected in the mark.

I'm going to clarify the rules tomorrow but AIBU to have assumed that the word limit was to be strictly adhered to? Interested to hear what others who are academics / students or who have experience in this area think.

AIBU - i am being unreasonable to think essays and assignments should not exceed the word limit and that it isn't unusal for there to be leeway.

AINBU - word limits are there to be followed.

10% is standard I believe

I would've taught the same.

but maybe it's more like a deadline nowadays & you can have an extension on it?

Yep on my course (Open Uni) you can be 10% over or under the word limit without being penalised.

I couldn’t go over the word count without failing in my msc. It’s not that the examiner would stop reading, it’s that I would fail if I did
It’ll be in your course handbook

I was always taught that there was a 10% allowance either way of the limit.

10% was standard many years ago when I studied. Looks like it still is. There must be a good reason

10% over is the norm.

I did an ou degree and it was 10% over or under the limit.

10% over or under has always been the standard.

The word limit is a target length which is there to guide you as to the level of depth and complexity to which you need to describe your topic. The people examining your thesis are genuinely interested in what you have to say and want to nurture emerging new talent in their field. They aren't usually hung up on legalistic mark schemes when examining at MSc level in the same way that you need to be used to understanding when studying for A-level, because there are fewer possible grade outcomes from an MSc course (usually just pass/merit/distinction). The skill of being able to hit a word limit exactly being neither over nor under is not a particularly valuable talent and therefore shouldn't be particularly rewarded, nor should lack of it be penalised. There should be a policy statement somewhere to clarify the university's position though.

I did an MA a couple of years ago. For the majority of the assignments it was a word count and it was acceptable to be +/- 10%. However for my dissertation it was a definite 10,000 word limit and you could only be -10%, this was pointed out very clearly several times. I do not know if they would stop reading or if it would have been a fail for exceeding.

I think they used different words, limit was definitely a limit and it could have been “count” for everything else. I will check in the morning if I remember.

Yes + or - 10% is our very clear word limit policy (University). The marker must stop reading once they get to the +10% cut off so the student won't earn any marks for the work after that point.

Yeah it was always the 10% rule when I was in uni.

At my uni, undergraduate essays etc allowed for a 10% leeway. For my masters thesis I was told they would not read anything after the word limit was reached.

They won't stop reading at 10,000 words because they have no idea where that word limit ends. Their software (most of them) will tell them total word count for the document but it'll include title pages and any references/appendices which don't typically count towards your word limit. Some courses/unis might ask you to put the word count on the assignment.

Ive studied in a couple countries and did 2 degrees in UK, in 1 of those unis in UK i had the 10% allowance people are talking about here, the other one didn't.

I've never had a problem. I've handed in 1600 word count assignments when it was supposed to be 2000 and still got a good mark without the marker talking about my low word count. I've gone a bit over as well but I'm not one to typically go over.

Being able to write concisely is a critical skill in the real world so even if they don't care if you go over you should try not to.

Some of my lecturers were 10%+- and some were 15% . So it can all depend on the departments standards.

Sorry yeah for thesis they may actually only take 10,000 words and stop reading as they will spend more time with a thesis than they would with a typical assignment.

What does the handbook say? When I was at uni you had a 10% allowance but it will vary from course to course.

As others have clarified- general rule of thumb is 10% under or over doesn't get penalised

Yes, that’s standard, but how would you know if you hadn’t been told in the guidance?
I mark Masters essays and wouldn’t know where the word limit is reached.

(Your voting request is a little confusing).

Currently in the middle of a thesis. +/-10% here, but that's clearly stated in the marking scheme. Any deviation from this and you lose marks. You're expected to put word count on the cover page. Appendices, titles and references don't count.

I went to a russell group uni and it was always 10% over/under.

@Cloudninenine

What does the handbook say? When I was at uni you had a 10% allowance but it will vary from course to course.

Yes this. There shouldn't be any ambiguity, it should be clear from the handbook what the rule is. Have you checked?

In my Master's the word count is absolute, but I think that's unusual.

My MSc thesis had a page limit rather than a word limit with font size and margin sizes specified. You could be under but in no way shape or form could you be over. It was a fail if you were.