Edinburgh University staff say management’s response to a boycott of grades poses a “serious threat” to the integrity of its degrees.
About 500 employees have signed a letter condemning plans to continue awarding degrees without “necessary expertise”.
The university said measures have been taken to minimize disruption.
The tagging boycott is the latest phase of industrial action by members of the University and College Union (UCU) at 145 UK institutions.
It started on Thursday April 20 and will continue until employers come up with an improved offer.
The members refuse to take over evaluation obligations. Work that is relevant to assessment, such as exam supervision or processing grades, is also avoided.
- “With the marking boycott we can find a common denominator”
- What salary claims do university employees have?
In response, universities are considering a range of measures, including changing assessment policies and setting final grades based on work already submitted.
The open letter to Edinburgh’s leadership team said staff were concerned about the impact on final year students, who may find that a “large proportion” of their final assessments are not counted towards their degree.
It said: “We all have an interest in the integrity of our assessments and financial statements. These changes pose a serious threat to that integrity.”
Emily Hannis, a fourth-year student, said the possibility that her dissertation might not count towards the placement of her degree felt like an “injustice”.
“I’ve put so much of my physical and mental energy into completing this and it just feels like it was for very little reward.”
“It’s really demotivating as we complete our final assessments,” she said.
Edinburgh University said it had taken “robust measures” to reduce the impact of industrial action.
A spokesman said: “We are making every effort to provide students with results, final results and progress decisions within the published timelines.”
It said there were “temporary variances” to allow for more flexibility in assessment assessments and “to ensure academic standards are not compromised”.
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