HEAR

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What is an achievement report?

The Higher Education Achievement Report (HEAR) will provide a single comprehensive record of your achievements as a student at the University of Edinburgh.

The HEAR builds upon existing information incorporating an expanded academic transcript and the European Diploma Supplement. This will provide you with more detailed information about your learning and achievement than the traditional degree classification system alone, and will serve to support applications for employment and further studies.

The HEAR is not a replacement for a degree certificate, CV or job application statement. Instead it should sit alongside these as a complementary document, providing evidence of the range of verifiable knowledge, skills and experience you have developed at the university.

All students (with the exception of MBChB and Research Postgraduates) who graduate from summer 2012 onwards may receive an achievement report. This includes students achieving an undergraduate or postgraduate Certificate or Diploma.

What will it include?

Your HEAR will comprise the following sections:

1. Information about you - this section includes your name, date of birth, student identification number etc

2. Information about your qualification - degree title and subject, awarding institution(s).

3. Information about the level of your qualification - level of study, duration, entry requirements.

4. Information on the content of your studies and results gained - programme description/requirements (via a link to the degree specification document) and full academic transcript.

The transcript will include all courses where credits have been achieved and will show the overall Mark, Grade, Result, Level, Credits Achieved and Number of Attempts for that course. Courses with an overall Fail will not be shown. This information can be viewed via MyEd.

5. Information on the function of your qualification - access to further study, professional status.

6.  Additional Information - this is the section that allows the University to confirm information relating to your wider achievements. All activity recognised in Section 6.1 of the HEAR should be undertaken whilst a matriculated student, and should fit under 1 of 3 headings:

1. Additional Awards – in Edinburgh’s case, the ‘Edinburgh Award’.
2. Additional Recognised Activities – including volunteering, leadership and representative roles, and other significant, verifiable roles. (The additional activities currently recognised are detailed in the list below.)
3. University, Students’ Association and Sports Union Prizes and Awards – both academic and non-academic.

In addition, all activity should be:

• Substantial – the activity has impact, encourages reflection, and provides opportunities for learning development and ‘stretch’. It is likely to involve a substantial time commitment.
• Verifiable – the activity can be verified and is endorsed by the University.
• Equitable – the activity is available on an equal basis to a clearly defined group of students, and should be available to students on an ongoing basis eg. in successive years.
• Factual – information included is factual and non-evaluative.
• Additional – the activity is not required as part of the academic, credit-bearing curriculum.

The following ‘Additional Recognised Activities’ are currently approved by the University of Edinburgh:

(Proposals for adding categories or amending existing categories of achievement should be submitted to the Senate Education Committee,  using the HEAR Proposal form below. Please note that forms should be submitted by October 15th each year to allow Student Systems sufficient time to make required Systems changes and to ensure that any new or amended categories can be included in the HEARs of students graduating the following summer.)

7. Information on the national higher education system - description of higher education in Scotland, diagram of higher education levels.

How will I get it?

During your studies you can access much of the information which will be included in your HEAR via MyEd and the university website.

A HEAR is only available after a degree has been awarded.

Background to the achievement report

The HEAR was an initiative recommended by a Universities UK committee, the 'Burgess Group', in 2007. Their ‘Beyond the Honours Degree Classification' report concluded that the development of the HEAR would assist in a modernisation of the traditional degree classification system. The report is available from the link below.

Current Students

Current students; are able to view/download your HEAR from your MyEd portal via the Electronic Document Service.