Oxford Brookes degree -Grading & Graduation Questions

Hi, What level does this degree represent in the UK qualification structure, level 5 or 6? Is this degree capable of being used go gain higher academic qualifications?

@Raveen - at least level 6. Yes provided you get a 2.1 you can use it to gain entry on a Masters course but if you have your ACCA qualification you may find that this + a 2.2 degree together will be sufficient for a higher course

An average of 59.66667 is under which honours classification ?

@airguys - read the posts to and from Tommy as it depends on what grade you will get for your RAP. You should look at the table in the Info Pack as it sets out the possible honours classification according to the combination of the average mark and grade. By the way don't work to 5 d.p. in your RAP it will drive your marker insane!

Hi trephine, to be specified, my question is do they actually round up or down. It could either be a 59 or 60. For a 2.1 classification, a pass grade in the RAP would suffice. However, either A or B grade will be needed to achieve the same classification if your average is 59 marks.

Thanks. Any ideas on the new masters by acca and uol. Do you think its worth the 4k+? Or are we better of doing a cheaper mba ?

@airguys - got it! All those decimal places now make sense! :-) I think you will find they will round it up to 60, which is good news for you.

@Raveen - I have no exact experience of this and the actual teaching methods involved but for anyone else who is considering pursuing their studies further I offer the following comments and advice. I would expect it to follow the 'usual' online teaching model. That is it will be modular (perhaps with some choice of options), and modules are delivered online. Normally you are given assignment essays to write, the marks for which cumulatively go towards your Masters degree classification (pass, merit, distinction) and have to produce a quality dissertation at the end. There may be some level of online tutorials or Skype sessions organised by tutors. The university arranges that during your course you have online access to a virtual library that includes thousands of journals and electronic books so that you can research. Like any course you have to be disciplined. My own experience of doing a Masters via this method was that 2 assignments each year were due in January - which for most accountants is the busiest time of the year so not ideal :-( understatement! This was then coupled with the fact that there were no modules available from July to Sept - so effectively the online course lacked flexibility and was organised around normal university teaching years! I found this (particularly the January assignments ) very frustrating and felt the course had been designed for the convenience of the staff rather than the students! Maybe the world has moved on now and the courses offered are more flexible however you should check on this and also availability of all the modules as one module I particularly wanted to do was only available to on campus students (conveniently I was only informed of this after enrollment :-( ) With all these things do your homework - you usually get what you pay for and cheaper sometimes (but not always) means they cut back elsewhere (less online access to fewer journals, modules not updated regularly, high student to tutor ratio etc). Research what courses are available too as you may find something that is more specific to your own career path plans. GBP 4k sounds fairly reasonable as I paid about that to do an MSc about 5 years ago (with the above frustrations thrown in) and possibly as ACCA is behind this particular course they may not pull the 2 assignments in January 'trick'.....

Thanks for the reply. I must say , its the best peice of advice that I got so far. Yep I must do some more research on the masters and the point about modules in january is good food for thought. Thanks again.??

hello, I wonder, what happens after resignation from ACCA Student Register? Does your gained certificates/diplomas (ethics certificate, diploma in accounting and business) or OBu degree become void? Or they remain in effect and you can use them?

Did any one knows people with only OBU degree secured a place for masters straight with accredited universities?

Hello, Your qualifications, once gained, will not become void. If you leave the organisation you will no longer be a member but you would still be a qualified accountant and would still have a relevant degree.

thanks

Hi, Just wanna ask if is it possible to attend UK graduation ceremony, given that the regional ceremony for me should take place in Dubai.

@hussainsabt92 - you would have to write to the OBU office (address in the Info Pack). There won't be another UK ceremony until next Spring /Summer at the earliest whereas the Dubai graduation is normally February.

I have graduated in period 30. i am invited to attend graduation ceremony in Dubai . Can i change it if i want to attend it in UK

I have completed my F-level papers and I passed my f4 in December 2014. Since I completed my f4 exam after June 2014 and I did not provide ACCA any English proficiency before completing F7, 8,9 so I would not be eligible to do OBU (although OBU has been opted in myACCA ) So I was wondering if anyone could explain to me the importance and use of OBU as an advantage for employment purposes? ( Does it really affect me if I do not hold any degree and only depend on my ACCA certificate for getting employed) Best of regards

Have you actually checked with the OBU Office on this one? I know the rules on English language are now more complex but your English comes over as fairly proficient to me so it may be worth an email to them. Regarding whether it is worth it: Big accountancy firms tend only to take on graduates and insist on a 2.1 If you want to get on some educational courses you will have to hold a degree See also my answer to elsie2009 on p.2 of this forum topic where I answered a similar question

@Jahnvi - well done for thinking ahead. You have highlighted a problem area - the OBU degree is not recognised everywhere and neither is ACCA in the USA and most of Canada. Obviously you don't really want to spend time and have to re-study the same subjects to just get the North American equivalent of what you already have. So this may call for an 'out of the box' solution. I think you really need to stand back and ask yourself where realistically do you see yourself career-wise in 5 or 6 years time? What do you really want to do with your life and career? I don't want to be a scaremongerer but I found the attached quite interesting https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-34066941 The inevitable fact is that many who are currently training as accountants will find themselves in the Western world at best struggling to find work and at worst replaced by artificial intelligence. The real survivors will be those with specialisms that artificial intelligence will find hard to replicate. So my advice is to develop new skills and qualifications rather than mere alternatives that are basically the same as what you have or hope to have in a year's time. The other thing to remember is that just because you intend to live in Canada doesn' t mean you have to physically study there unless your mind is firmly set on being a CPA. Personally I think an MBA or other appropriate masters degree would advance your long term career prospects and this could be done distance learning. Choosing a distance learning Masters from a UK University solves the recognition problem. Another recommendation is going for the CFE (Certified Fraud Examiner) qualification. ACCA is recognised by ACFE and if you wanted to do a Masters subsequently you could choose one that include aspects of criminology such as forensic accounting, fraud management or financial investigations. These types of specialist investigative roles are likely to increase going forward and unlikely ever (at least in the foreseeable future) to be replaced by machines

Good Morning, I need help in formulating question 2 self reflection. I don't think I have done it correctly in the pass and I want it to be correct this time. Thank you

Please select an appropriate forum or give your problem a more accurate title when posting a query - this whole forum is 'Oxford Brookes'!! The SLS is about looking at your learning and development and Q2 should be approached by considering what the challenges were in doing your work. Reflect on what were your strengths and weaknesses and what went well, what you could have done better, what you might do differently in future or have changed with the benefit of hindsight. Was your approach appropriate what else you feel you could have done / have liked to have done? What has it taught you about project work and consider if you think your skill set was sufficient or deficient when it came to meeting your objectives

hello, trephena i would want to determine the class of degree i would end up with, i got exempted from paper f4, my question is would my class of degree be based on my scores from papers f5-f9 or be based on scores from paper f7-f9, thank you.

It is based on the average of papers sat and passed so rather than the normal 6 papers it will be based on the average of F5-F9. The actual class of honours can also be determined by the grade from the RAP - the higher the average exam mark the less the actual impact of the RAP grade itself though. All this is explained in the Info Pack.

I just received my BS Degree certificate together with a letter, but the transcript is NOT in it. I wonder if anyone else has received transcript yet.

Hi. I wasn't aware of the graduation ceremony.When and where is it held??

I wanted to ask what happens if I get a pass grade in my RR (A, B or C) but I fail my SLS (skills and learning statements) then will I be awarded the OBU degree or pass my RAP? Or what will happen? And will I need to resubmit the RR and SLS all again or just the SLS will have to be resubmitted?

This is covered in both the OBU Information Pack and the OBU Resubmission Guide. So please consult those

@Gabriel As Trephena said, it is covered in information pack. For your help, please note as per information pack, if you fail SLS, you will just be required to submit SLS again in your re-submission and similar rule for research report if anyone fails. Remember, for any area, requirement or section of RAP, if you fail it, you will be required to adjust, correct or rectify that particular area only. Regards, Hammad Ahmed Qureshi - OBU RAP MENTOR.

Dear Moioi, you have to send request for your transcript. I guess you have to pay GBP 20 to get your transcript. for further information, contact OBU directly. Regards, ALI FAROOQ – ACCA Member USA Chapter, CPA USA & OBU Registered Mentor

@moioi Please email your issue(s) at [email protected]. They will be dealing with it first. Regards, Hammad Ahmed Qureshi - OBU BSc. RAP Mentor.