Credits, Grades, & Assessment

Examinations

Tutorial courses undertaken by Williams students in Oxford will often be concluded with a project, extended essay, extended problem set, or final examination. Examinations will normally be sat during 9th week of term; final projects or extended essays will always be due no later than 4 pm on the Friday at the end of 9th week of term. Extensions are not permitted.

Scheduled exams are taken at the WEPO complex at the times set by the Faculty Director. Students studying with the same tutor will be required to sit their examinations together at the time set by the Faculty Director. Exams typically last for three hours. Students with a documented disability who are entitled to extra time on exams should be in touch with the Dean of the College at Williams and provide documentation to the Faculty Director. 

Unless specifically stipulated by your tutor, computers or laptops may not be used in the writing of scheduled exams. Unless specifically stated by the tutor, all examinations are ‘closed book’. You may not have your phone, earphones, or other devices about you.

Grades

All tutors are required to assess students at the end of each term on a form provided by the Faculty Director. Grading is informed by a chart converting the Oxford grading scheme to a Williams letter grade. Please note that disputing a grade at Oxford is virtually unheard of.

At the completion of each term, students should submit a tutor evaluation form to the Faculty Director. All tutorial report forms filed by tutors will be distributed to students after grades are submitted. Tutorial report forms will also be made available to the Senior Tutor at Exeter College, who may wish to discuss them with students if their performance is unsatisfactory. All grades will be compiled by the Faculty Director and sent to the Registrar’s Office at Williams College. 

Extraordinary Tutorial Expenses

Additional costs incurred in order to meet the requirements of a particular tutorial course will also be reimbursed, within reasonable limits. Such costs might include required long-distance travel expenses and admission fees, membership fees, laboratory costs, or specialist protective equipment. Generally speaking, the purchase of textbooks for tutorials cannot be reclaimed. All book purchases by the Programme must be made through the Librarian. All receipts for reimbursement should be presented to the Director of Administration. If you're unsure whether an expense can be reimbursed, please check in advance with the Director of Administration.

Academic Credit at Williams

Upon satisfactory completion of the requirements for the Williams-Exeter Programme, students receive academic credit for a regular academic year. Each tutorial will be computed in the student’s GPA as if it were 1.6 semester courses at Williams. Tutorial courses at Oxford may be used towards fulfilling the divisional distribution requirement; a student may earn a year maximum of three distribution requirements, with no more than one from each division, for the year. Most tutorial courses at Oxford meet the Williams College ‘Writing Skills’ designation, except for those in which weekly works consists in something other than careful essay writing (for example: problem sets, visual art, musical composition, translation from a foreign language). 

While most tutorials will count as 300 level courses on Williams transcripts, some very advanced tutorials will count as 400 or 500 level courses. The course level will be determined by the Faculty Director, in consultation with the relevant tutor and the chair of the Oxford Faculty (department) in which the tutorial is taken. 

Tutorial courses in Oxford may also be used to meet major requirements. Students should be sure to check with their department chair(s) to ensure that their Oxford tutorial course counts toward the major.