How did you feel about failing your exam? It's such a personal experience that different people take it very differently. Were you

L depressed ? That wouldn't be surprising but it's important to remember that a failed exam is not a criticism of you personally and that there's no need to contemplate giving up completely.

L angry ? That again wouldn't be surprising if you feel you've been unfairly treated for any reason. In that case you should tell us. Contact your Counsellor, Regional Centre or query your result (see below).

L disappointed but not dejected ? It's not widely known that 60% of OU students fail or withdraw from courses at some point in their studies so it's a much more common experience than people suppose. So perhaps it's best to see exam failure as an occasional and natural hazard of being a student, understand that it's not something to be taken personally and resolve to learn from the experience.

This page is designed to help you work out the best way forward from your exam failure and to cover some administrative points that might be helpful.

YES - you may well have come out of the exam knowing you'd failed it and why. In that case go straight to the 'WHY DID IT HAPPEN ?' section below.

NO - if you came out of the exam feeling fairly confident you'd passed then perhaps there were three possibilities. Either you were not good at assessing your own exam performance - see 'Feedback' below, or a mistake has been made - see 'Querying your result' below, or there were special circumstances applying that you did not tell the University about - see 'Special Circumstances' below

Unfortunately the University does not currently offer you or your sponsors individual feedback about the exam (some courses offer general feedback). There are many people who think it should but it is a question of resources. If you feel that the University should prioritise feedback then write to the Pro Vice Chancellor for Presentation and Student Support at Walton Hall. What we can offer now is the possibility of your tutor going over the Exam questions with you (your actual script cannot be released). If you would like to do this then please contact your tutor to ask them if they can help. If they are willing and able to do so they will contact this office requesting a 'Special Session' for which they will get paid.

Mistakes are very rare in the Exams Procedures - but they do occur. If you think that an error has been made then you should appeal. The full procedure for querying your result is given in the Student Handbook Section 11 but, briefly, you should write to the Senior Assistant Registrar (Examinations and Assignments) at Walton Hall within 21 days of the date of your result letter. If after receiving a reply to your query you are still not happy then you can appeal to the Pro Vice Chancellor (Student, Tutorial and Regional Services) by writing to the The Head of Division (Course Presentation and Examinations) within 3 weeks of receiving your reply. But please note that these checks are only procedural: exam papers are not re-marked.

If there were Special Circumstances affecting your exam then you should have informed the University on Form E39 within seven days of the exam. If for very exceptional reasons such as hospitalisation immediately after the exam you didn't do so then it may still be possible to have your exam reconsidered up to 7 weeks after the last session in the examination period. You should send the E39 form to your Regional Director with evidence of the reason for late submission. But no special circumstances can be considered beyond that time.

There can be many reasons for failing an exam. Here are some that might have affected you together with ideas about how you might overcome the problems next time.

Inappropriate Exam Technique - such as not using time effectively, misunderstanding the questions, introducing irrelevancies and so on.

Inadequate Revision Techniques - such as revising the wrong material, not practising exam questions, not allowing enough time and so on. If either of the above apply you might find the following book useful.

'How to succeed in Exams & Assessments'. This can be ordered from the National Extension College, 18 Brooklands Avenue, Cambridge CB2 2HN. Tel. 01223-316644 - for current price.

Exam Nerves - anxiety about exams is very natural. But excessive anxiety can adversely affect performance. Have a look at 'Getting Through' which is especially for students who suffer exam anxiety.

You've now got various options to consider:

Resit the Exam. If you passed your Continuous Assessment and achieved a 15% threshold in the exam you will be offered a resit - i.e. the opportunity to retake the exam next time without having to repeat Continuous Assessment or Residential School. (You can ask to attend a School voluntarily if you think it would help you and places are available. Write to the Regional Centre). Resits are not an outside chance - more than 60% of the students resitting exams pass them.

Retake the Course. If you failed Continuous Assessment or missed the 15% exam threshold you can still retake the course. This means paying the full course fee, and repeating all the assignments as well as the exam. Technically you are also required to attend Residential School again if the course has one, although you can request excusal citing previous attendance - different courses have different policies on this.

Forget it. You don't have to do either of the above: some OU students simply put a failed course down to experience and move on. You should remember that failed or withdrawn courses do not appear on your 'Academic Transcript of Studies' - the final record of your OU studies.

If you find with any of the above choices that your Course Choice is unsuitable it may still be possible to get it changed. Write immediately to the Undergraduate or Associate Student office at Walton Hall to say what course(s) you want.

Bail out of the OU altogether. Obviously we hope you won't do this unless you're sure it's the right thing for you. Very few OU students fail exams because of inadequate ability. There are other factors involved which can be put right with help. If you do decide to bail out then we may still be able to help you. If you're interested in alternative courses that might suit you better, contact our Enquiry Service at this Centre and ask for their help.

Whatever you're thinking of doing, do contact your Counsellor as soon as possible and talk it over with him or her before finally deciding on your course of action.

Retaking the Course. If you're retaking the course ask your tutor for feedback on the paper as described above. Then nearer the exam ask for a Special Session on revision and exam techniques in the same way.

Resitting the exam. If you're resitting the exam then it will be important to plan the year.

J Tutorials - you are welcome to attend tutorials for your course(s) - we'll send you a tutorial programme for the year

J TV & Radio Programmes - current broadcast calendars for your course(s) can be obtained from the Student Enquiries Office, OU Box 71, Milton Keynes MK7 6AG.

J Specimen Exam Papers - will be sent from Milton Keynes if there is a change in exam format or course content. Past exam papers are obtainable from OUSA - phone 01908-654093 for details

J Tutoring and Counselling - contact your counsellor and/or last year's tutor for extra help as above. If you have any difficulty contacting your tutor please get in touch with the Regional Centre.

AN EXAM FAILURE IS NOT THE END OF THE WORLD.

YOU CAN GET THROUGH NEXT TIME - JUST ASK US FOR THE HELP YOU NEED.

We hope you've found this text helpful - if you have any comments on it or if you've got helpful suggestions of your own do post your comments to Ormond Simpson. If you have any problems or queries that need answer or solution do not mail him: refer directly to your own Regional Centre.