Laura Walker reports on a major overhaul in the delivery of degree classifications for The National Student:

Universities are going to provide Higher Education Achievement Reports alongside traditional degree classifications, helping students’ employability when they graduate.

The HEAR consists of individual module marks and details of extra-curricular activity performed while at university, such as participating in societies, sports and volunteering.

The report will be held in electronic form and updated during the student’s degree, allowing the student to discuss with the university what should be included. The documents, which can be up to six pages in length, cannot be changed after graduation, and will remain a fixed record of the student’s time at university.

45,000 HEARs have already been produced in an extensive pilot scheme and are endorsed by Universities UK and Guild HE – however, while it is expected most universities will use HEARs, they do not have to take up the scheme.

It is believed that the HEAR is necessary in a climate when 2:1s and firsts seem to the golden standard of employability, and concerns there are too many students attaining these grades are growing.

Full article here.