An important part of a student's professional education is to learn the correct method of presentation of research papers. The School produces a Style Guide which is a summarized version of the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers and should be consulted by students of the School (except for Art History & Linguistic students). It aims to provide guidance on the presentation of essays and covers matters such as the treatment of quotations, citation of references and other forms of documentation, preparation of lists of Works Consulted, and other matters of scholarly style.
Students should note that the recommendations made in the Style Sheet are often different from styles used in other disciplines, Schools and Departments. (Students will require the Adobe Acrobat Reader to read the file. It is available free online.)
All assignments submitted to the School for assessment must be accompanied by a Cover Sheet. This is available from the School Office (opposite the lifts, level 4 Michie). Students can also download a copy of the cover sheet, in Microsoft Word format, or Rich Text Format.
The guidelines below are shown on the back of the cover sheet. Students are advised to read these guidelines carefully before submitting any work.
The School office staff are required to handle up to 8000 assignments per semester. In order to facilitate the most efficient handling of these assignments, the following guidelines have been devised.
Presentation
Students should ensure they have consulted the assignment guide entitled School of English, Media Studies and Art History Style Sheet for the Presentation of Assignments. Copies are available either from the tutor or from the School Office.
Ensure that when presenting assignments they are firmly secured: i.e., stapled. (Paper clips or pins are not satisfactory.)
Assignments should be typed, or legibly handwritten, on one side of the paper only with double or one and a half spacing. Font size should be legible. An ample margin of about 3cm should be left on both sides of the page. Number all pages (except the title page) consecutively. Avoid italics, script or other fancy typefaces. A list of Works Consulted should follow every assignment. Miscellaneous attachments should be firmly secured to assignments.
Append a copy of the Assignment Cover Sheet to the front of the assignment.
Please do not use plastic sheet protectors -- especially not for individual pages of assignments.
Students may if they wish append their own individual title page after the Assignment Cover Sheet.
Submission
Assignments may be submitted either to the lecturer/tutor or deposited in the assignment slot opposite the elevators on the 4th floor of the Michie Building. Faxed assignments will not be accepted. When submitting an assignment always ensure that a copy is retained and keep this until the assignment is returned. Unless otherwise arranged by a course convenor, all assignments are due at 4.00pm on the due date. The School assignment box will be cleared at that time. Any assignments submitted after that time will be stamped as being submitted the following day.
Return of assignments
Assignments handed in and marked during the teaching period will be returned in class and those not collected in class will be left at the School Office. If you are unable to collect your work during these dates, you may attach a stamped, self-addressed envelope to any piece of assessment you wish to have mailed to you. As a guideline, a 10 page assignment (including the coversheet and attachments) will usually fit into a DL envelope. If more extensive than this, a larger envelope is required with postage of affixed. You are advised to check with a Post Office if using this method. After approximately the fourth week of the subsequent semester, assessment is archived for a period of 12 from the date of submission.
Results
Results for assignments and tests will not be given by telephone or email from the School Office.
Final grades will not be released prior to official University publication date and are made available by Central Administration (Examinations Section). They are not released to students at the School level.