Master's Degree Expert

Close-up of a keyboard key reading "MASTER'S DEGREE" with a search bar above asking about the implications of failing a Master's degree program.

Let’s Talk About Failing on a Master’s Degree Programme

Introduction

Failure. Not a word many of us like talking about. But, in my experience as a university professor in the UK, lots of Master’s degree students think about that word – even if that consists of fearing failure. That’s so whether we’re talking about failing an essay, failing a module, or the Master’s degree as a whole. In practice, the fear of failure reaches a peak when the Master’s dissertation stage starts. Students have a bit more time/space to worry about things at the dissertation stage. Plus the dissertation counts for such a large proportion of all available credit that many students fear the consequences of not passing the dissertation. Could this, for example, mean they might not secure a Master’s degree at all (I’ll discuss this!)? So much rides upon this Master’s as an investment – that failure would be a terrible outcome.

If you’re worried about failing (something) – you’ll not be alone. The fear of failing the Master’s dissertation, for example, is very real and widely held. In this post I’ll tackle the topic of failure head on. I’ll look at what a fail really means at Master’s level, as well as how likely it is that a student could suffer a catastrophic or outright fail. Sounds like a bit of a gloomy topic? Think again! Look at this from a legal academic’s perspective (my perspective!) – us lawyers love checking out worst case scenarios! Why? Because looking at the worst outcomes helps us learn how to avoid those worst case scenarios. So that’s what I’m going to help you learn here. The posts I dedicate to the unpopular theme of ‘failure’ are designed to help you learn how to succeed – not just pass, but to achieve the very best result that you can. OK, let’s go!

Questions also addressed in this article

  • How do you pass a Master’s dissertation? 

  • Can you pass a Master’s if you fail a module?

  • Is it possible to fail a dissertation for a Master’s degree?

  • What are the consequences of failing a Master’s degree?

  • What happens when a student fails a Master’s dissertation?

Failing at Master’s Level – What It Means

What is a fail? A fail means a student has been awarded a mark that is less than a pass. Typically, the pass mark for assessments and modules stands at 50% at Master’s level. This can differ by institution and programme, so check your programme handbook. To secure module credit – so a recognition that you’ve successfully completed that module – you’ll need to have secured an overall pass mark on that module. In contrast, a fail on a module means that credit relating to that module hasn’t been awarded – yet.

On a typical UK Master’s programme, there are all sorts of point where one can ‘fail’ something. During the taught part of one’s Master’s degree, one could fail an individual essay, or one could fail an entire module. Or indeed, one could pass all the taught parts of a Master’s, but fail the dissertation – the final stage of the Master’s degree. It’s actually very common for Master’s students to fail something. It might be a small piece of formative work, an aspect of a broader portfolio that may or may not count towards the final mark. Or it could be something major like a summative/examinable piece of work like the dissertation.

While the term ‘fail’ sounds final, horrible, and disastrous, the consequences aren’t necessary as awful (or permanent) as you might expect. Bar unusual cases, most postgraduate taught programmes give students a second chance to collect the minimum credit necessary for an award of a Master’s degree. So in this sense, a ‘fail’ more often than not, prompts the giving of a second chance to pass.

While the term ‘fail’ sounds final, horrible, and disastrous, the consequences aren’t necessary as awful (or permanent) as you’d expect. …a ‘fail’ more often than not, prompts the giving of a second chance to pass.

So, let’s now turn to the different parts of a Master’s degree to assess the significance of a fail at different stages. We’ll start with the taught part of a Master’s degree, and then we’ll turn to the dissertation stage.

Failing on the Taught Master’s Stage

So on the taught part of a Master’s, one can fail a module or modules. For some modules, an entire module might be assessed through one extended piece of work like an essay. It is very unlikely that failing a module will mean a fail always and forever in this context.

It depends on the rules relating to your university and programme, but where students have failed a module in the first instance, it would be standard practice to afford them a ‘resit’ opportunity. A ‘resit’ is simply another attempt at an assessment. This might be an assessment, an exam, or part of an assessment portfolio. In normal circumstances, that second sitting opportunity would result in a mark capped at a pass and no higher. But check your programme handbook for the details.

There is one exception to this: extenuating circumstances, such as illness. If a student can evidence that they were placed at an assessment disadvantage different rules could apply. Where the student’s extenuating circumstances are accepted, one option for a judging panel can be to treat a resit as a first sitting attempt. A resit as a first sitting is where the student’s mark is not capped to a pass – so they have the opportunity to secure a mark across the full range. Check the rules relating to your programme to be sure what applies to you – and check with your personal tutor if any of the above has any application to you.

What Needs Passing to Secure the Full Master’s Degree?

What needs passing to secure a Master’s degree overall? It’s normal to need secure pass marks on a total of between 160-180 credits of modules, including the dissertation module, to secure that Master’s. As ever, check your postgraduate programme handbook to see what rules, and credit, apply to your programme.

Typically, students need to first secure a pass mark overall on the ‘taught’ part of the Master’s degree (this amounts to the vast bulk of the Master’s credit) AND to secure a pass on the dissertation stage.

In this context, just how important is a Master’s dissertation to the Master’s? It’s crucial. As noted above, passing the dissertation itself is often necessary to secure a Master’s degree. But there is another sense in which the dissertation is crucial. Because dissertations command a large proportion of available credit (equivalent to 2 taught modules or more), your performance on the dissertation will have a significant impact upon your final Master’s classification. So, the dissertation is not only a crucial thing to pass, but for those seeking a distinction overall, the dissertation matters a lot.

Most universities require students to have passed the first stage of their Master’s degree – the taught part – before proceeding to the second part, the dissertation stage. This is a positive thing. If you’ve passed the first taught stage of a Master’s, in my view, things are looking good for your chances of overall success. As I note in another blogpost, while students fear failure at the dissertation stage, this is in fact hard to fail.

Failing at the Master’s Dissertation Stage

So we’ve looked at the taught aspect – the next and final stage is the dissertation. It’s here that you’ll have a bit more space to get on with a project that you designed and chose, and with some supervisory oversight to guide you. These factors – more space, a chosen project, and supervisory oversight – are significant. These point to the odds increasing in favour of you passing, rather than failing, the Master’s dissertation.

Passing the Master’s dissertation

To pass the Master’s dissertation you’ll need to meet the expectations set out in the assessment criteria. You’ll find these expectations detailed by reference to different grades across the spectrum. Let’s assume this spectrum starts at a simple fail, moves through pass, merit to distinction at the far end.

Before you get your teeth into your dissertation, it’s a good idea to check out the assessment criteria relating to your dissertation. Here you’ll get a good idea of the kinds of factors that will help you to pass and better than that, perform well above a pass category. Equally so, you’ll also be able to identify the kinds of factors that lead to students failing a dissertation). In turn, you’ll also be able to identify what the pass mark is for a Master’s dissertation for your programme. Please check your programme handbook; a mark of 50% is the typical pass threshold for Master’s degree level modules in most universities in the U.K.

Failing the Master’s Dissertation

Is it possible to fail a Master’s dissertation? Yes. People do fail. How many people fail a Master’s degree dissertation? We don’t know. There’s no pan-higher education statistics that speak to Master’s failure rates or Master’s dissertation fail rates. But, in my experience at different U.K. institutions, it’s not a high percentage of people that fail the dissertation. And even then, what it means to ‘fail’ is far more provisional than you might realise. Can some people fail full stop and not secure their Master’s degree at all? Yes, but this will be a tiny number of people. The big message here is that a student can fail an aspect of their Master’s – such as the dissertation – but later pass it and graduate with a Master’s degree. Let’s look at this in more detail.

Why Failing a Master’s Dissertation is Hard

I expect most Master’s students to succeed at the dissertation stage overall. Really crucial factors that are there to help you succeed should be present. Students not only have their own supervisor/guide, but also get a good period of time to concentrate on a project that interests them. All things considered, it should be hard to fail! Of course there are challenges to the dissertation; it’s a big project that requires organisational skills. But a student who possesses some organisational skills and treats this project like a job, is very likely to succeed.

In another of my posts entitled, ’10 Top Ways to Fail a Master’s Dissertation’, I highlight the kinds of reasons why students might fail the dissertation stage first time around. One of the main reasons is poor organisation. The gift to succeed on the Master’s dissertation lies in your hands. The moral of the blogpost, however, is this: it’s difficult to secure an outright fail on a Master’s dissertation.

What happens when a student fails a Master’s dissertation?

But, it’s not impossible. So let’s look at that worst case scenario – failing the dissertation. At most universities, a student who fails the dissertation first time would get the opportunity to rewrite to secure a bare pass. Again, check the rules that apply to your Master’s programme, but the majority of programmes will provide a resit opportunity. Some programmes even provide a student who’s failed with a copy of the dissertation examiners’ report. This will highlight what the student did well and what they needed to do better to achieve a pass. In general terms the presence of a report detailing what the student needs to do to pass, is most helpful. Most students will encounter few problems in revising their dissertation to achieve a pass. The exception would be those students that have failed to engage with their Master’s dissertation or their Master’s.

What happens if a student fails their Master’s dissertation… again?

Failing the dissertation twice – well, it doesn’t happen often, but I do know of cases where it’s happened. In theory, if a student fails again following resubmission, a student might only graduate with a diploma at most. Again, this depends on the rules and the context, so check your programme handbook for the rules that apply to your situation. But, the cases I know of where students have failed twice in a row was where the students in question were experiencing difficult personal circumstances. In such cases, I have seen students apply for extenuating circumstances and secure a further resit. And what we find in these cases, is that most will finally secure a pass unless there is something else quite different going on (e.g., cases of plagiarism, total disengagement, etc.).

So across the board, the message I want to send out is that failing – as the final result – for a Master’s dissertation, is a statistically unlikely situation. It is also a situation which is avoidable and should be avoided. After all you’re investing a year into a specialist Master’s programme and a lot of money – so you want to secure a Master’s degree! Check out my other post, ‘10 top reasons students fail a Master’s dissertation’. That post not only highlights how it’s hard to fail your dissertation, but also the simple things you can do to make sure that YOU PASS!

Conclusion

A fail in the context of a Master’s degree is not as disastrous as many students believe. And, across the board, it’s actually pretty hard to 100% fail an entire Master’s degree. It’s not just anyone that is accepted onto a Master’s programme; the academic and other standards an applicant must demonstrate, are high. So that in principle, any student who is accepted onto a Master’s programme has satisfied the admissions officer that they have the academic abilities to succeed at Master’s level.

In my view, one has to be pretty disengaged from the Master’s to fail in a major way. In many situations I suspect personal problems that might be best addressed by an interruption of study than soldiering on. But in my experience, if you’ve been accepted onto a Master’s programme, you CAN do this. You can thrive at the taught stage, and you can thrive at the dissertation stage.

Keep in mind that universities are there to help you succeed. And even if one fails some crucial aspect of the Master’s – most universities typically have a system in place to afford students a second chance to pass. So in this respect, a ‘fail’ as an outcome isn’t as dramatic or awful as it might first seem. It is, of course, best to achieve your best result at Master’s level. So if you’re keen to learn the kinds of factors that lead to Master’s dissertation success (or failure), then check out my How Not to Fail Your Master’s Dissertation Countdown. This points you to simple habits and orientations that will maximise your chances of success across your Master’s degree as a whole! All the best with your Master’s degree!