university of glasgow dissertation extension

We use cookies

Necessary cookies.

Necessary cookies enable core functionality. The website cannot function properly without these cookies, and can only be disabled by changing your browser preferences.

Analytics cookies

Analytical cookies help us improve our website. We use Google Analytics. All data is anonymised.

Clarity helps us to understand our users’ behaviour by visually representing their clicks, taps and scrolling. All data is anonymised.

Academic Policy & Governance

Policy, Strategy and Regulations
Good Cause FAQs

Good Cause - Information and FAQs for Students

Good cause - overview.

We understand that during your studies, events outwith your control (e.g., death of a family member, personal circumstances, physical and mental ill health) may impact your ability to perform well in or complete assessments. This could relate to an essay or other piece of coursework including dissertations and final project work, or to an exam, or to some other form of assessed work such as an assessed seminar or presentation.

The Good Cause process provides you with an opportunity to formally inform the University of adverse circumstances that you've experienced at the time of your assessment and allows us to take these circumstances into account. Possible outcomes include waiving late penalties, granting extensions, or allowing a resit or resubmission as a first attempt at the next available opportunity. Grades are never increased through a Good Cause claim.

Good Cause claims should be submitted via MyCampus. Further details are available in the MyCampus Good Cause Guide .

You must select from the following impact categories when making a Good Cause claim:

Request submission extension
Late submission of coursework
Missed Exam/class test
Affected performance
Non-submission of coursework
Late submission of online exam

A brief overview of how the Good Cause process works is available.

If you are affected by illness or other adverse circumstances when you should be completing coursework, you may wish to apply for a short extension (five working days [1] or fewer) of the submission deadline instead of submitting a Good Cause claim. Your School will have provided information on how to do this. You can apply through a Good Cause claim if you need more than five working days.

If you are in crisis, information about emergency support and how to contact the University Crisis Team is available.

Information about how to access a range of University support services is available.

The following FAQs cover a range of questions you may have about how Good Cause works, depending on your situation

What circumstances would be considered Good Cause?

The following examples could be considered as Good Cause:

Serious or incapacitating injury, illness, or medical condition or emergency operation.
Significant short-term mental ill-health.
A long-term or chronic physical or mental health condition which has recently worsened significantly. If you are affected by a long-term health condition, please consult the Disability Service as soon as you can so that we can put support and reasonable adjustments in place. You may also speak to your School to explore other options concerning your programme of study (e.g., moving from full-time to part-time study or taking a Fitness to Study Leave of Absence ).
A significant family or personal crisis (e.g., bereavement or serious illness affecting someone close to you such as a family member, friend or partner).
Jury Service or Court attendance.
Unforeseen events, such as being a victim of a crime which is likely to have significant emotional impact such as a sexual or other physical assault, being involved in a road traffic accident, an exceptional crisis of employment commitment beyond your control, or being immediately impacted by military conflict or natural disaster.
A financial or housing crisis, e.g., temporary homelessness or the unexpected requirement to move at short notice.
Severe disruption during your online exam, such as prolonged loss of internet connection or a sudden domestic crisis. If you do experience technical difficulties with an online exam you should immediately contact the IT Helpdesk either online or call +44 (0)141 330 4800. If you subsequently need to submit a Good Cause claim for late or non-submission due to technical issues, you should support your claim with reference to the IT Helpdesk Incident Number.
Extreme, unforeseen travel disruption on your way to an on-campus exam. You are expected to take reasonable steps to allow for some cancellations/delays.

The above list is not exhaustive, and we want to know about serious issues, beyond your control, that you believe have prevented you from taking an assessment or have significantly impaired your performance. If you are unsure whether your circumstances would be considered Good Cause, please contact your School for further advice and support.

Please see ‘ What do I need to include in my Good Cause claim’ for information about what you need to include when submitting your Good Cause claim on MyCampus.

What circumstances would not be considered Good Cause?

Good Cause regulations relate only to short-term issues that may have affected the taking of exams, submission of other assessments, or your performance in assessments. In other words, issues that have prevented you from demonstrating in your assessments what you have learned through your studies.

Students are expected to cope with difficulties, problems and minor illnesses that occur in normal life in the same way as everyone does at work or at home, and to manage competing demands on their time. Around exam time a certain amount of stress is natural.

The following are examples of circumstances which would not normally be considered Good Cause:

A long-term or chronic physical or mental health condition which has not significantly worsened recently. If you are affected by a long-term health condition, please consult the Disability Service as soon as possible so that we can put support and reasonable adjustments in place. You may also speak to your School to explore other options in relation to your programme of study (e.g., moving from full-time to part-time study or taking a 'Fitness to Study' Leave of Absence).
A minor short-term illness or injury (e.g., a common cold) which would not reasonably have had a significant adverse impact on assessment.
Personal/domestic events that could have been planned for and choices in personal life (e.g., attending weddings or holidays).
General worry about financial difficulties over a period of time. Please note that advice is available on the Cost of Living Support Pages .
Failure or theft of your computer or other equipment being used to produce the work to be assessed, including work not being backed-up. For exams taken on your own device, please see the online exams checklist for advice on steps to take in advance. The Reach Out Exam Helpdesk is available throughout the exam period at the following times: Monday-Friday (excluding bank holiday Monday) 08:00-23:00; Saturdays 08:00-15:30. All help requests received outside these times will be logged for a response as soon as a technician is available. Keep the web address and telephone number to hand throughout the exam diet.
Poor management of time or misunderstanding of deadlines/dates (including failure of others to submit group assignments).
Regular commitments to paid or voluntary employment.

You should therefore take appropriate steps to minimise the impact of such events as these are unlikely to be accepted as valid claims under Good Cause.

We understand that exams are often associated with a degree of stress and anxiety, and would encourage all students to refer to the self-help resources:

, in particular the and resources.

How long do I have to submit my Good Cause Claim?

You have five working days [1] from the assessment date (e.g. exam date or coursework submission deadline) to initiate your Good Cause claim on MyCampus, otherwise it is deemed to be late and will not be accepted without there being a good reason for not submitting it on time.

We do recognise that, occasionally, this may not be possible (e.g. if you are in hospital and therefore unable to access the system). In such cases you should still try to make contact with your School or Adviser to let them know that you have missed the deadline but intend to make a claim as soon as you can.

You can, in extreme circumstances, ask a friend or family member to pass a message on if you are unable to make direct contact. This will also help us to understand your current difficulties and advise you of any support that may be available.

If you are prevented from initiating your claim within five working days for good reason, you must detail this in your claim.

Evidence to support your claim can be uploaded later, but the claim MUST be STARTED on MyCampus within five working days. This applies both to assessments that you have missed, and to exams that you attended or coursework that you submitted but where you believe your performance was significantly affected. Please see the MyCampus Good Cause Guide .

You will receive an acknowledgement on MyCampus when you submit, and your School will be able to provide you with more information about when you should expect a decision. Your claim can be retracted up to five working days after the assessment date.

When your Good Cause claim is considered, you will receive an email to check MyCampus for the outcome.

What do I need to include in my Good Cause claim?

You will need to tell us about the impact of your circumstances on your ability to complete or perform well in your assessment. You will also need to provide evidence to support your claim.

Your evidence must include your name (or the relevant other person's name if the claim relates to their circumstances, e.g. the illness of a relative) if applicable , must cover the date(s) of the impacted assessment(s) (e.g., if your essay is due 3 July, the evidence must cover that date), and a translation of the document if it is not in English .

The following are examples of evidence that is normally accepted:

Bereavement. You could provide a letter from an independent person (usually not a family member) giving a view on the closeness of the relationship to you. A death certificate, funeral notice, or order of service are other forms of acceptable evidence.
Medical matters. Documentation from hospital, clinic, GP, consultant, counsellor, therapist, or carer. This could include: a hospital report; a doctor or other medical professional's report; a doctor's 'Fit Note'; a formal notification of a hospital or clinic appointment, or hospital discharge letter. Please note that you should only make an appointment with a GP if you require advice and/or treatment in relation to a medical matter. The University does not expect Good Cause claims to be supported by GP letters in relation to minor matters that did not require advice and/or treatment. It is therefore not appropriate to make an appointment with the purpose of obtaining a doctor's letter in such circumstances. For supporting a Good Cause claim, there is little value in a letter from a GP saying that you told them that you recently had an illness such as a stomach upset or flu. It is also not a good use of a busy GP surgery's time to be asked for such letters. In those cases, the following may be considered:
Letter from a member of University staff such as your tutor or Adviser of Studies.
Letter from a leader/manager or senior colleague of a group or club that you belong to, an organisation where you volunteer, or a place of employment.
Someone who saw you when you were unwell (e.g., personal friends, flatmates or family members). Letters of support from them may be submitted, but these carry less weight. You should explain why this is the best evidence available to you.

Note: As soon as you become a student at the University you should register with a local doctor (within the postcode area of your term-time home) who will be responsible for your medical care whilst at the University. This does not mean the relationship with your home doctor is broken. You may still consult them when on vacation.

The above information about evidence would also apply if the medical circumstances you are reporting relate to a close relative or friend. In such cases you would need to explain in your claim why you were affected and, in the case of a hospital appointment, why it was essential that you accompanied that person. Before submitting any evidence in relation to a third party you must have their consent.

Disability. For cases where there has been a short-term worsening of a long-term (chronic) condition you can seek a supporting letter from any relevant service you have already been registered with for support for the long-term condition, such as your Disability Adviser, Counsellor (e.g. from Counselling & Psychological Services [CAPS]) or GP, mentor or other support worker.
Personal Circumstances which are not health related. You should provide a letter or document from an independent responsible person (or organisation), with their contact details provided, who can vouch for the circumstances you are reporting, such as:
Letter from a support service (e.g., Citizen’s Advice Bureau, social worker or other support organisation).
The Police (e.g. crime report or accident report with reference numbers).
Legal documentation from the Court, Crown Prosecution Service or a solicitor.
Documentation from an insurance company (e.g. in relation to a road traffic accident).
A member of University staff who was alerted to the circumstances at the time.
If you experienced technical difficulties with accessing, completing, checking or submitting an online exam, you should support your Good Cause claim with reference to an IT Helpdesk Number.

Letters of support from personal friends or family members may be submitted in relation to any circumstances, but these carry less weight in supporting a Good Cause claim. In your claim you should explain why this is the best evidence available to you.

We understand that obtaining evidence before submission may be difficult. You must initiate your Good Cause claim within five working days [1] of the assessment date even if you do not yet have evidence. Evidence can be added to your claim at a later date.

You must obtain consent to share information or documents relating to third parties (e.g., family members), and by sharing it on MyCampus the University assumes you have received that consent. Photographic evidence is allowable (e.g., pictures of documents), but please avoid sending us graphic or distressing images of illness, injury, or death as they are not appropriate evidence.

We understand that some circumstances are extremely sensitive, such as sexual assault, pregnancy termination, or family crises. In rare cases, there may be highly sensitive personal information that you believe is pertinent to your case, but which you might be reluctant to disclose. You should contact your Head of School in the first instance, and they will assign a member of staff (such as your Adviser of Studies) to discuss arrangements for sufficient but restricted information to be passed to appropriate colleagues so that your circumstances can be considered. In such cases, you must still submit a Good Cause claim in MyCampus, indicating who you have contacted with the details, but you would not need to submit the evidence, on the basis that you have already shared this with the staff member supporting your claim. If you have discussed your circumstances with a member of staff, please provide an email address for them so that when the claim is being considered, they can provide confirmation that there are significant adverse circumstances relevant to the claim.

Remember that a request for an extension of up to five working days [1] does not need a good cause claim. Use the local process, as described in your course documentation, giving an explanation of why you need extra time. You do not need supporting evidence.

What happens to my Good Cause claim and who will see it?

We understand that you may share with us some very personal details in support of your Good Cause claim, and Schools have systems in place to hold that information securely and will only use it to consider and respond to your claim. Data will be stored and shared using the University’s standard hosting services and software applications such as Outlook, OneDrive/SharePoint, its IT Helpdesk system (‘Ivanti’), its virtual learning environment (‘Moodle’) and its student records system (‘MyCampus’), with access limited to those either administering and/or contributing related information for consideration by the relevant decision making individual or committee.

When your claim is submitted, this will be accessed by those responsible for coordinating the provision of your programme or assessing your progress, or by the staff from your School or Subject area with designated responsibility for considering Good Cause claims.

We understand you may find it difficult or embarrassing to reveal information about your personal or medical circumstances, and, for some students, it may not be usual to disclose the details of some of these kinds of circumstances outside of immediate family. There may also be situations where you may be pressured not to reveal your personal circumstances.

However, it is crucial to provide all the relevant information when making a Good Cause claim, despite the discomfort or pressure you might feel, so that we can fully consider your circumstances. This helps us to understand the situation’s severity and assess the best solution. In rare cases, there may be highly sensitive personal information that you believe is pertinent to your case, but which you might be reluctant to disclose. You should contact your Head of School in the first instance, and they will assign a member of staff (such as your Adviser of Studies) to discuss arrangements for sufficient but restricted information to be passed to appropriate colleagues so that your circumstances can be considered. In such cases, you must still submit a Good Cause claim in MyCampus, indicating who you have contacted with the details, but you would not need to submit the evidence, on the basis that you have already shared this with the staff member supporting your claim. If you have discussed your circumstances with a member of staff, please provide an email address for them so that when the claim is being considered, they can provide confirmation that there are significant adverse circumstances relevant to the claim.

Sometimes, if the staff reviewing your claim think that the information you have provided suggests you would benefit from further support, you may be referred to a member of staff in your College (e.g. Adviser of Studies, Student Support Officer), who may then offer you support and/or suggest referral to support services provided by the University (such as Counselling & Psychological Services , Disability Services, Financial Aid team), or other external support agencies that may be able to help you.

What are the possible outcomes from my Good Cause claim?

There are two stages in considering a Good Cause claim:

a) A judgement on whether the circumstances themselves should count as Good Cause.

And, in cases where you have submitted a claim for affected performance in an assessment:

b) A judgement on whether the grade you achieved in your exam or coursework has been “manifestly prejudiced” i.e. significantly out of line with your normal performance (e.g., if you normally get marks of A and B but receive a D for the affected assessment).

Step b) will only happen if Good Cause is accepted at Step a).

If your Good Cause claim is accepted in relation to work that you completed (e.g., an exam that you sat, a piece of coursework that you submitted) the grade that you achieved will NOT be increased to reflect the difficulties that you were facing.

What happens if my Good Cause claim is approved?

Depending on your programme and circumstances, outcomes could be:

Resit or resubmission as a first attempt at the next available opportunity.
A rearranged deadline for longer than five working days. [1]
The removal of late penalties.
For Senior Honours/final year integrated masters students there may also be scope to remove the affected assessment from your final course or degree calculation.

The most common outcome for an accepted claim (whether for completed assessment or missed assessment) is that you will need to complete the assessment at a later date. This later opportunity will be treated as your first attempt (unless the discounted attempt was already a second attempt). This will usually be at the resit diet, which takes place during the summer vacation. PLEASE NOTE: that if it is judged that your performance has been significantly affected, the assessment(s) will not be counted even if your performance was good enough to allow you to progress or achieve a grade you find acceptable .

It is slightly different for Senior Honours/integrated masters students. Depending on the stage you are at in the Honours or integrated masters programme and on how much assessment you have missed, you may not be required to complete the missing assessment at a later date.

At the end of Senior Honours or of the final year of an integrated masters programme, where Good Cause is accepted, a limited amount of assessment could be set aside (i.e. the grade not counted and the assessment not required to be completed at a later date).

What happens if my Good Cause claim is declined?

If your claim is declined, the grade for any assessment you have completed will stand, and any missed assessments will be treated as a non-submission.

We may not approve your claim if:

It was submitted later than five working days after the assessment deadline, and you have not given a good reason for this.
It does not include legitimate circumstances that would count as Good Cause.
You did not sufficiently explain how your circumstances disrupted your assessment(s).
There is insufficient evidence to support your claim.
In the case of a completed assessment, it is judged that your performance has not been significantly affected.

We may contact you after initial submission of your Good Cause claim to ask for further evidence or information.

If you wish to challenge the outcome of a Good Cause claim, you may submit an academic appeal following the formal publication of your course results. Information for students about the relevant timescales and the Academic Appeals procedure is available on the website. You may also wish to read the Academic Appeals FAQs.

Good Cause has affected my coursework

I am unwell and have a piece of coursework due to be submitted.

If you are affected by illness or other adverse circumstances at the time when you should be completing coursework you may wish to apply for an extension of the submission deadline. (See ' I am unwell. Can I request an extension of my coursework submission deadline?' )

However, if the circumstances have been so severe that you feel unable to complete the work at this time then you may wish to apply for Good Cause.

If you have submitted the coursework but feel that your performance was affected by the adverse circumstances you may wish to apply for Good Cause. Bear in mind that it might be better to apply for an extension than to submit an incomplete or poor piece of work on time.

If you do not submit the coursework or if you submitted the coursework, but feel that your illness has affected your performance:

Seek evidence to support your Good Cause claim. (See 'What do I need to include in my Good Cause claim?' )
Submit your Good Cause claim on MyCampus within five working days of the submission deadline. If your evidence arrives later you can add this to the claim, but the claim MUST be started within the five working day period. Please see the MyCampus Good Cause Guide .
In your claim, you must explain how events have impacted on you and your preparation for the assessment.

Before you submit a claim, make sure you understand the possible outcomes from such a claim. Note: grades are NEVER increased through a Good Cause claim. (See ‘ What happens are the possible outcomes from my Good Cause claim?’ )

I am unwell. Can I request an extension of my coursework submission deadline?

You should always plan your various assessments carefully, taking particular note of where a number of deadlines fall around the same time. Try to complete assessment in good time so that you will still be able to submit by the deadline in the event of an unexpected disruption to your ability to study. Before submitting a request for extra time, consider carefully whether this would really be in your best interests. By submitting on time your marked work will be returned to you promptly and you will avoid creating a later bottleneck of deadlines.

If illness or other adverse circumstances mean that you will be unable to submit your work on time, you may request an extension.

Extensions of up to five working days : [1] If you think that you need an extension of up to five working days, you should use the relevant process in your School, explaining the situation. (Your course documentation will provide the details of this process.) There is no requirement to provide supporting evidence for an extension request of up to five working days. If it is accepted that you will be prevented by circumstances beyond your control from submitting the work on time then you will be granted an appropriate extension, up to a maximum of five working days. You should request an extension as soon as you become aware that it may be necessary. If you submit the request after the submission deadline, and there is no good reason for not having requested the extension earlier, then late submission penalties may be applied.

Extensions of more than five working days : If you think you need an extension of more than five working days, you must submit a Good Cause claim:

Seek evidence to support your Good Cause claim. (See ' What do I need to include in my Good Cause claim ?')
Submit your Good Cause claim on MyCampus as soon as you become aware that you may need an extension. If your evidence arrives later, you can add this to the claim, but the claim MUST be started within the five working day period. Please see the MyCampus Good Cause Guide .
In your claim, you must explain how events have impacted on you and your preparation for the assessment and say how much extra time you think you need.

You are advised to bring the claim to the attention of a member of staff such as your Adviser of Studies or Honours Convener to ensure that it is responded to promptly. As soon as your claim has been considered you will be told whether an extension has been approved and, if so, what your new submission deadline is.

Good Cause has affected my Dissertation or Independent Project

I've been dealing with difficulties and my dissertation/project has suffered. can i make a good cause claim.

As soon as you experience difficulties that may affect your dissertation/project you must alert your supervisor or other relevant member of staff e.g. Honours convener or PGT Programme Lead. They will be able to advise you about how best to manage the circumstances so that you will still be able to complete the work. If appropriate, they will be able to refer you to other sources of support.

If illness or other difficulties suddenly arise or become more serious very close to the submission date for the work, you may request an extension of up to five working days [1] in the normal way (by using the local process, as described in your course documentation). If you think you will need more than five working days, you can request a longer extension by submitting a Good Cause claim and explaining the circumstances.

Where you are facing very challenging circumstances, you should discuss your circumstances with staff. The length of extension that can be granted to a Senior Honours student is limited by the tight turnaround time for marking before graduation. In some cases, there may be an option to complete the dissertation/project over the summer but that would result in your graduation being delayed until the winter. You should therefore be sure to discuss your situation with a member of staff as soon as you become aware that there is a difficulty, to ensure that you understand your options and their consequences. If you submit a Good Cause claim for an extension, a decision will be made on the claim and this won’t necessarily involve any further discussion with you about the consequences so it is much better to discuss these fully before submitting any claim.

I'll be submitting my dissertation/project but difficult circumstances mean that I expect it's going to get a poor grade. What can I do?

For both an Honours degree and a PGT masters degree you must achieve a grade of at least D3 in the substantial piece of independent work, that is in your dissertation or project. This requirement cannot be set aside through Good Cause and a claim for affected performance would never result in a grade being increased. It is not appropriate for examiners to speculate on what level of performance you may have achieved in better circumstances.

If the difficulties arise close to the submission date, meaning that you will not be able to complete the last stages of the work, you should apply for an extension rather than submitting an incomplete piece of work on time. You may request an extension of up to five working days [1] in the normal way (by using the local process, as described in your course documentation). If you think you will need more than five working days, you can request a longer extension by submitting a Good Cause claim and explaining the circumstances.

Good Cause applies to health issues or other adverse circumstances that are acute. Given that the work on your dissertation or project takes place over a long period, it’s unlikely that an acute set of circumstances occurring sometime before the submission deadline will have a significant impact on that work. If a short illness or other short-term difficult circumstances have interrupted your work on the dissertation/project at any earlier stage, you should discuss with staff whether you might need some additional time at the end in order to manage all your other submission deadlines and make up for lost time.

Good Cause has affected my Exams

I am unwell for my exam.

You need to decide whether you feel well enough to sit the exam.

Some exams take place online, but for on campus exams please do not attend if you are in the infectious stage of an illness, e.g. chickenpox.

If you are unsure, you are advised to seriously consider taking the exam as you may still submit a Good Cause claim afterwards if you believe that your performance was affected due to the illness.

If you miss your exam or take your exam, but feel that your illness has affected your performance:

Seek evidence to support your Good Cause claim. (See ' What do I need to include in my Good Cause claim? ')
Submit your Good Cause claim on MyCampus within five working days [1] of the exam. If your evidence arrives later you can add this to the claim, but the claim MUST be started within the five working day period. Please see the MyCampus Good Cause Guide .
In your claim, you must explain how events have preveneted you from taking your exam or impacted on you and your preparation for the exam.

Before you submit a claim, make sure you understand the possible outcomes from such a claim. Note: grades are NEVER increased through a Good Cause claim. (See ‘ What are the possible outcomes from my Good Cause claim?’ )

I have been unwell during revision time

If you feel that being unwell during revision time affected your performance in an exam, you may wish to submit a Good Cause claim.

You should take your exams if you feel well enough on the day. If you are too unwell to take your exam, see 'I am unwell for my exam' .

If you take your exam, but feel that having been unwell during the revision time affected your performance:

In your claim, you must explain how events have impacted on you and your preparation for the exam.

I have suffered a bereavement

If someone close to you has sadly passed away, we understand that this could disrupt your exam revision, or the exam itself.

In most cases we would advise you to try to take your exams, although only you can decide whether you feel able to, and if there is a funeral at the time of your exams, we understand that you will want to be there.

If you miss your exam or if you take your exam, but feel that your bereavement has affected your performance:

In your claim, you must explain how events have either prevented you from taking your exam or impacted on you and your preparation for the exam.

A close relative/friend has been seriously ill, and it has affected my exam prepration - what should I do?

If you feel your exam preparation has been compromised by these difficulties (perhaps you have been needed to care for that person or take over caring responsibilities for others), you may wish to submit a Good Cause claim.

If you are able to, you should take your exam.

If you miss your exam or if you take your exam, but feel that your circumstances affected your performance:

Seek evidence to support your claim. This could include medical evidence relating to your relative/friend. (See ' What do I need to include in my Good Cause claim? ')

Before you submit a claim, make sure you understand the possible outcomes from such a claim. (See ‘ What are the possible outcomes from my Good Cause claim?’ )

I had to attend a family crisis at the time of my exam - what should I do?

If you have missed an exam due to a significant family crisis, you may wish to submit a Good Cause claim.

Seek evidence to support your claim. (See ' What do I need to include in my Good Cause claim? ')
You must submit your Good Cause claim on MyCampus within five working days [1] of the exam. If your evidence arrives later you can add this to the claim, but the claim MUST be started within the five working day period. Please see the MyCampus Good Cause Guide .
In your claim, you must explain how events have prevented you from taking your exam.

I missed a lot of classes due to ill health but feel better now and sat the exam. Can I make a Good Cause claim so that this can be taken into account?

No. Good Cause regulations relate only to short-term issues that have affected the taking of exams, submission of other assessments, or your performance in assessments. In other words, issues that have prevented you from demonstrating in your assessments what you have learned through your studies.

If you have been unable to fully engage in your studies during the semester, you should speak to your Adviser of Studies about the best course of action.

What if I am unwell but do not have a doctor's letter?

Please note that you should only make an appointment with a GP if you require advice and/or treatment in relation to a medical matter. The University does not expect Good Cause claims to be supported by GP letters in relation to minor matters that did not require advice and/or treatment.

If you don't have any documentation from your GP, there may be another independent person who can provide a letter of support - either from having seen you or from having spoken to you at the relevant time. While they will not be able to provide a professional opinion or diagnosis, they can advise us of any observations they had regarding your physical and/or mental wellbeing at the relevant time. Again, the letter must provide clear information relating to the date or dates relevant to the circumstances being reported. People who can provide such information could be:

Someone you know in the University such as your tutor or Adviser of Studies.
The leader/manager of a group or club that you belong to, or of an organisation where you volunteer, or a senior colleague in your place of paid work.

Sometimes the only people who will have seen you at the time when you were unwell will be personal friends, flatmates or family members. Letters of support from them may be submitted, but these carry less weight in supporting a Good Cause claim. In your claim you should explain why this is the best evidence available to you.

Could my marks be improved to take into account my circumstances?

Marks cannot be awarded on the basis of undemonstrated performance as it is not appropriate for examiners to speculate on what level of performance you may have achieved in better circumstances.

Where illness or other Good Cause has impaired your performance in an exam or coursework, you will usually be given another opportunity to take the examination or assessment at a later date (e.g. at the resit diet which takes place during the summer vacation). This later opportunity will be treated as your first attempt (unless the discounted attempt was already a second attempt). In limited circumstances some work may be “set aside” and you will not be required to complete it.

Can I cancel my Good Cause claim?

Good Cause claims can only be cancelled up to five working days [1] after the assessment date (e.g. exam date, coursework submission deadline).

[1] For the purposes of this Code, Monday to Friday are counted as working days except when the University is closed for a public or other Holiday . Saturdays and Sundays are not counted as working days.

Skip to main content
Accessibility information

Enlighten Enlighten

Enlighten Theses

Latest Additions
Browse by Year
Browse by Subject
Browse by College/School
Browse by Author
Browse by Funder
Login (Library staff only)

In this section

Depositing Your Thesis

Before depositing your thesis you should ensure that you do the following:

In advance of handing in your 'Intention to Submit' form to your Graduate School:

Ensure that you have made best efforts to seek permission to include any 3rd party copyright material in the electronic version of your thesis. If you have been unable to gain all necessary permissions, decide if you want to make an edited version publicly available.
Discuss with your supervisor whether or not there is a reason for restricting access to your thesis .

After handing in your 'Intention to Submit' form to your Graduate School (i.e. before your viva):

Complete the Thesis Access Declaration form. This must be signed by your supervisor to show that they agree with your decision with regard to making the thesis publicly available.
Return the Thesis Access Declaration to your Graduate School at the same time as you hand in the required number of soft bound copies of your thesis (the number of copies required may vary by Faculty - if you are not sure, check with your Graduate School).

Following the examination and completion of any required corrections:

Convert the final version of your thesis to a single PDF file (see Thesis Format for further information)
Ensure that your file is named according to the convention yearnamedegree.pdf (e.g. 2007smithphd.pdf)

Once you have done this, follow the steps below to deposit your thesis.

Instructions for theses that are to be made available immediately (no embargoes, no copyright restrictions)

Go to http://theses.gla.ac.uk
Register to deposit from the My Theses option in the left hand column. Click on Create Account . Follow the instructions provided.
Once you have registered, log-in with the username and password you selected by clicking on Create Account .
Click on Begin a new item
On the Core Bibliographic Information page select the appropriate Thesis type
Enter the full Title of your thesis into the appropriate box following the guidance on the page
Enter your Name in the format shown (e.g. Smith, James Peter] and an e-mail address you will continue to use once you leave the University.
Enter your Registration/matriculation number
Click on Next
On the Publication information page select your Faculty and Department . You can select more than one department it your thesis was jointly supervised. To do this select a department, press the Control key on your keyboard, and select a second department with this key held down.
Select the appropriate Qualification level
Enter the Year in which your degree will be awarded (leave month and day blank).
On the Status of item page indicate if there is any third party copyright material contained in your thesis that you have not gained permission to include in the electronic version by choosing yes or no. If you are depositing the full text online you should select No, as your thesis should not contain any uncleared third party copyright material. If necessary, use the next box to provide any relevant information about 3rd party copyright material within your thesis.
Indicate whether you have been granted an embargo . If you are depositing the full text of your thesis online you should select No, as only theses with no embargoes should be deposited online.
If an embargo has been granted, select the date three years from the date on which you are depositing. If your thesis will not be embargoed do not complete this field.
On the Abstract and keywords page copy and paste in the text of your abstract. Note that special formatting is not possible.
Enter the keywords or terms that best describe the content of your thesis using single words or short phrases. Separate words using commas. You can include as few or as many keywords as you like.
Select up to three subject categories that best describe your thesis. Select one main heading and up to two sub-headings. To select a subject click on Add . If you are unsure what to select you can opt not to choose any subjects - Library staff will select appropriate subjects for you.
On the Additional Information page enter your main supervisor's name and e-mail address in the format indicated.
If there is any other information about your thesis, e.g. if you want to provide details of any sections of it that have been published do so in the Additional Information field.
If you are not depositing the full text of your thesis online skip to alternative instructions.
If you are depositing the full text of your thesis online click on Upload full text of thesis
Select PDF and click on Next . You will have an opportunity to upload associated multimedia files at a later stage.
Under Upload a file from your PC click on Browse , select your saved PDF from wherever you have stored it and click on Open
Click on Upload file
If you need to upload more than one PDF file simply repeat this process. You may upload additional PDF files if e.g. your thesis is very large and you have had to split it up into several files. You should convert any separate elements to PDF in advance of uploading them.
If you need to upload associated multimedia files , click on Upload another version of full text . This time choose Multimedia file and then Next . Follow the same procedure for uploading the file or files.
Click on Finished
On the Edit item: verification page check that the information you have provided is correct. If you need to change anything use the Previous button to move back to the relevant section and make the correction
Read the declaration and click on Deposit item now . If you wish to return and do this at a later point click on Deposit item later . To return and deposit you will need to log-in again select edit next to Undeposited item . Use the Next button to move through the different stages of the deposit process. Note that until you click on 'Deposit item now', the record you have created will remain in your work space, and will not be visible to the Theses Services staff. You must choose 'Deposit item now' once you are happy that everything is correct in order to complete the process.
You have now completed the deposit process. Your College/School will be informed that you have successfully uploaded your thesis.

You should hand in the hard bound print copy of your thesis to your Graduate School.

Instructions for theses where access is to be restricted, either due to an embargo or due to the inclusion of 3rd party copyright material

If you have been granted an embargo or if your thesis contains third party copyright material you do not have permission to include within the electronic version you should not deposit a copy of the full text of your thesis online . Instead you will provide a copy on a CD or memory stick. However, you do need to provide information about your thesis using the online deposit form:

Follow the instructions above up until you reach the page where you are asked to Upload full text of thesis
Do not choose this option, but simply click Next .
Read the declaration and click on Deposit item now .
Hand in the electronic copy of your thesis on a CD or memory stick to your Graduate School along with the hard bound print copy. Ensure that the CD or memory stick is labelled with your name and thesis title. Ideally it should be provided in a suitably labelled envelope . Staff in your Graduate School will check to ensure you have provided a suitable copy. If you are providing an edited version with third party copyright material removed please include both files on the CD/memory stick. Files should be named according to the conventions outlined in the section on Thesis format . If you are providing additional multimedia files you must include a separate file giving details of the additional files you have provided i.e. name of file, what type of file it is, what the file consists of. If this information is not provided the files will not be made available online.
You have now completed the deposit process.

What happens once you have deposited the thesis

Theses Service staff will check the information you have provided and add further details. If you have chosen to make your thesis available immediately with no embargoes it will appear in the repository shortly after deposit (assuming there are no problems with the file you have deposited - if there are you will be contacted). If you have been granted an embargo the full text of your thesis will not appear publicly until after this period has elapsed ; however, the details about your thesis, e.g. author, title etc. will be made publicly available at the point of deposit. If access to your thesis has been restricted for copyright reasons it will not appear in the repository at all unless you have also provided an edited version. A link will be created between the record for your thesis in the repository and the record for the print version of your thesis in the Library Catalogue. Finally, your College/School will be informed that you have undertaken all the necessary steps in the process.

The University of Glasgow is a registered Scottish charity: Registration Number SC004401