Queen's University Belfast says all students impacted by exam marking dispute will graduate this year

The situation has been impacted by ongoing industrial action by staff over pay, working conditions and pensions.

The action, led by the University and College Union (UCU), included strikes earlier this year and a boycott of marking final exam papers and assessment.

On Tuesday Queen’s said all students will graduate, following work to reduce the impact of the UK-wide marking and assessment boycott (Mab) by the UCU.

In a statement the university said an estimated 750 students across law, history, anthropology, politics, architecture, psychology, music, environmental planning, archaeology, sociology and criminology will have their degree classification pending.

However Queen’s said any student with a pending classification wishing to continue to a postgraduate course at the university can do so.

“We are prioritising applications from our students who have been impacted and will consider all applications based on the academic information currently available,” they said.

“We are also working closely with employers, encouraging them to continue progression towards graduate employment for these students until their degree classification can be confirmed. We have received a positive response from employers.

“We also held an employer briefing this morning to explain the situation, address any questions or concerns, and encourage them to work with those students who are holding conditional offers of employment.

“For those students impacted, Queen’s will provide a signed letter of explanation and accompanying transcript that provides evidence for employers that the student is in good academic standing and has completed their studies.”

The statement added: “We are doing everything we can to resolve the situation but, given this is a UK-wide action, we are limited in the scope of our response.

“We can understand the reasons for the strike but are disappointed that the people suffering most from this action are the students.

“The university has reached out to unions and made offers to reach a local agreement in relation to the marking which our staff representatives have been unable to accept.

“We will continue to engage in the hope that we can find resolutions to resolve this specific issue and aim to meet local representatives of UCU this week so we can deliver the best outcome possible for our students.”