Advice please.

[lottiebunny]

I've done really badly this year at uni getting just over 40%. Uni is recommending I graduate with a 2.2 BSc rather than staying on for another year to get my MMath. If I do badly again I'm going to get a 3rd. If I manage to get about what I've got in my first and second year I'll leave with a 2.2 MMath.

I've already signed another 12 month contract on my house and don't have a job to go to.

The uni can't force me to graduate and I'm in a quandry as to what to do. I knew that I had done badly and was suffering from stress and RSI while taking exams. The uni know about the RSI but not the stress because I didn't realise just how stressed I was at the time. I got extra time in exams for the RSI (hows that supposed to help exactly, the problem is I couldn't revise properly?) but my marks weren't adjusted.

If anyone has any advice I would appreciate it.

Have you had advice from people other than your department or personal tutor? Would the RSI be grounds for retakes for this year, allowing you to graduate with a better BSc?

Sorry - that's not really advice, it's questions but the answers may lead to advice!

AFAIK, even if I were to resit the original marks still stand. I'm very lucky I didn't fail the year which I was very close to doing or I would have to retake and even if I got 100% the failure mark would still stand.

Why would the failure mark stand?

If you union has an advice centre it's worth booking an appointment. Different unis have different regulations obviously but when I worked in advice and welfare the rule was the a year which was retaken was the year counted in the degree calculation, although your transcript would show that you retook the year.

The failure mark stands because the department don't really care about their students, they just care about money and reputation. Because of this, students re-sitting a year almost always drop out.

That's so wrong! What's the point in resitting the year then?

Personally I'd go see the VP with responsibility for Academic, Education or Welfare in your union. Other than that your department are clearly telling you what they want and unless there's an option of appeal or the union will get on your side I'd take their advice - they don't sound like they're going to go out of their way to help you and I'd avoid putting their backs up even more.