MZUMBE UNIVERSITY

(CHUO KIKUU MZUMBE)

MZUMBE UNIVERSITY BACHELOR DEGREE EXAMINATIONS AND STUDENTS’ ASSESSMENT

CRITERIA BY-LAWS, 2023

(Made under Article 34 of the Mzumbe University Charter, 2007)

Approved by the 125th University Council Meeting on 31st March, 2023

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 ARRANGEMENT OF PARAGRAPHS

Section
Title

GENERAL PROVISIONS
SECTION I
PRELIMINARY PROVISIONS
1 Citation
2 Interpretation
3 Application
SECTION II
CANDIDATURE, REGISTRATION AND ELIGIBILITY FOR EXAMINATIONS
4 Candidature
5 Registration for Examinations
6 Eligibility for Examinations
7 Attendance or absence from Examination
8 Dates of University Examination
SECTION III
SETTING, MODERATION AND PROCESSING OF EXAMINATIONS
9 Examination Setting and Submission
10 Examination Moderation
11 Examination Processing
12 Examination Leakage
SECTION IV
CONDUCT OF EXAMINATIONS
13 Instructions for Handling Examinations
14 Venue of Examinations
15 Examinations Invigilation
16 Conduct of Candidates in Examinations Room
17 Examination Irregularity
18 Examination Committee
19 Attendance to the Committee
20 Powers of the Examination Committee
21 Rights of the Candidate(s)
22 Functions of the Examination Committee
SECTION V
MARKING OF EXAMINATIONS, COMPILATION OF MARKS ANDRELEASING OF EXAMINATION
RESULTS
23 Coursework Compilation
24 Marking of University Examinations
25 External Moderation of Examination
26 Compilation of Examination Results
27 Board of Internal Examiners
28 Campus /School/Faculty/ Institute Board
29 Declaration of Examination Results
30 Progress Reports

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SECTION VI
ASSESSMENT, EVALUATION CRITERIA AND CLASSIFICATION OFDEGREES AND OTHER AWARDS
31 Students’ Assessment
32 General Assessment
33 Evaluation of Research Reports
34 Students Progression from One Academic Year to Another
35 Grading System
36 Degree classifications
37 Supplementary Examinations
38 Extended Supplementary Examinations
39 Special Examination
40 Field Work
41 Marking of Dissertations/Field/Research Reports
42 Oral Examinations
43 Score for Field Reports
SECTION VII
APPEALS AGAINST EXAMINATION RESULTS
44 Reverting Examination Decision
45 Appeal against Examination Results
46 Procedure for Appeal
47 Limitation Period
48 Extension of Time
49 Processing of Appeals
50 Appeal Results
SECTION VIII
POSTPONEMENT OF STUDIES, EXAMINATIONS AND TESTS/ASSIGNMENTS
51 Reasons for Postponement of Studies
52 Procedure for Postponement of Studies
53 Postponement of Examinations
54 Reasons for Postponement of Examinations
55 Procedures for Postponement of Examinations
56 Postponement of tests and assignments
SECTION IX
DISCONTINUATION AND DE-REGISTRATION FROM STUDIES
57 Grounds for Discontinuation from studies
58 De-registrations from studies
59 Readmission after Discontinuation or De-registration
SECTION X
TRANSFER OF STUDENTS AND CREDITS
60 Transfer of Students
61 Transfer of Grades
62 Inter-Campus Transfers
63 Transfer of Credits

SECTION XI
CONFERMENT OF AWARDS, ISSUING OR REPLACEMENT OF CERTIFICATES AND TRANSCRIPTS
IN CASE OF LOSS OR DESTRUCTION

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64 Awards
65 Issuance of Transcripts and Certificates
66 Lost and Mutilated Certificates and Transcripts
SECTION XII
ACCESS TO ACADEMIC RECORDS MANAGEMENT SYSTEM AND RESPONSIBILITY OF
STUDENTS
67 Cessation of Access to MU ARMS
68 Powers of the DVC - ARC
69 Student’s responsibility
SECTION XIII
MAINTENANCE AND DISPOSITION OF STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC RECORDS
70 Management of Students’ Academic Records
71 Quorum in Meetings

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 GENERAL PROVISIONS

SECTION 1

PRELIMINARY PROVISIONS

Citation 1. These By-Laws may be cited as “Mzumbe University Bachelor Degree Examinations
and Students’ Assessment Criteria By-Laws, 2023”.

Interpretation 2. In these By-Laws, unless the context otherwise requires:

“Abscondment” means absence from class sessions or not reporting for any scheduled
attendance, assessment or examination at the day, time and place specified without
prior permission;

“Academic year” means a two-semester period relating to any academic programme

offered by Mzumbe University;

“Act” means The Universities Act, 2005 (Act Number 7 of 2005);

“Agent” means any person authorised to act on behalf of another person;

“Assessment” means any mode or combination of modes of testing a candidate’s

academic performance in a particular programme of study;

“Award” means conferment upon a candidate who has successfully completed a given
programme of study;

“Board of Internal Examiners” means an organ established under paragraph 27 of these

By-Laws;

“Candidate” means any person dully registered in any programme of study of the
University and who is eligible for examination;

“Carryover” means an examination for a subject which a candidate is allowed to carry and
re-sit in the subsequent academic year after h a v i n g failed in the supplementary
examination;

“Charter” means the Mzumbe University Charter, 2007;

“Cheating” means being in possession of, using, giving, receiving or copying unauthorized
material during and/or after a test, examination, assignment, report, dissertation or
collaborating with another person to commit examination irregularity. It also includes any
form or kind of dishonesty or destruction or falsification/forgery or any evidence of
examination irregularity that may reasonably be linked with the examination in question,
irrespective of whether such act or conduct is discovered within or outside the examination
room;

“Core course” means a mandatory subject that a student must study to meet the
requirements of a respective academic programme;

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“Coursework” means any mode or a combination of modes of assessment used to test a
candidate’s academic performance during the semester except end of semester
examinations;

“De-registration” means withdrawal of the registration initiated by a student or the

University subject to conditions provided under these regulations;

“Degree programme” means the bachelor’s degree programmes offered by Mzumbe

University;

“Document” means a paper or set of papers with written or printed information including
but not limited to a text, picture or diagram that is written and stored as a hard copy or
softcopy or any retrievable system;

“End of semester examination” means a mode of assessment used to test a candidate’s

academic performance to be undertaken by a candidate at the end of a respective
semester;

“Examination Irregularity” means any act or conduct prohibited under these By-Laws and
includes possession of unauthorised material during examination process; unauthorised
absence from the examination room, cheating during the examination process, any act or
conduct designed to defeat or interfere with the smooth administration of the examination
on a particular subject;

“Extended supplementary examination” means an examination(s) that a finalist student

sits after failure to clear a respective supplementary examinations or carryover
examination during the period of his/her stay at the University;

“External Examiner” means an assessor appointed from outside Mzumbe University for
the purpose of examination moderation or as a third marker of the candidate’s
examination, research report or dissertation;

“Forgery” means making of a false document or identity with intent to defraud or to deceive;

“Graduation” means a ceremony after satisfying two conditions: a) a student completes

and passes all requirements of a programme and b) a student is presented in person or
absentia before the Chancellor for an award of a registered programme;

"Honours degree" means a bachelor’s degree conferred to a candidate who has obtained
a second-class level or above and completed studies within the prescribed period of the
programme without supplementing in any of the courses undertaken;

“Internal Examiner” means a member of academic staff involved in teaching or conducting

a particular course of study in a given semester or a member of academic staff appointed
from within Mzumbe University as a second examiner/marker of the candidate’s
test/assignment/ examination, research report or dissertation;

“Invigilation” means the act of monitoring or supervising candidate(s) sitting for

examinations;

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“Invigilator” means any member of academic staff given the responsibility (either sole or
shared) of supervising candidates sitting for examinations;

“Main Invigilator” means a member of academic staff who is given the responsibility (either
sole or shared) of supervising candidates sitting for examination(s) for the course(s) s/he
taught in a particular semester;

“Major Supervisor” means a member of academic staff involved in the guidance of a

candidate in his/her field work, research report or dissertation writing;

“MU ARMS” means Mzumbe University Academic Records Management System;

“Non-core Course” means an optional subject which is secondary to the vital course(s)
that student must study to meet the requirement of a respective academic programme;

“Oral examination committee” means an ad hoc Committee of three members of academic

staff, comprising of internal examiner and two other members in the respective
Department/ Faculty/School/Directorate/Institute or Campus College appointed for
purposes of conducting oral examination to candidates who have submitted field/research
report and dissertation;

“Oral examiner” means an assessor appointed to be part of a panel to examine

candidate’s oral presentation of field report, research report or dissertation;

“Re-sit Examination” means an examination undertaken by a student who had failed

supplementary examination, but allowed to carry-over the failed subject and sit for it
when next offered after having fulfilled the conditions stipulated under these By-Laws;

“Senate,” means the Organ of the University established by Article 23 of the Mzumbe
University Charter, 2007;

“Special examination” means an examination which a candidate is allowed to sit for, after
failing to sit for the end of semester examination after meeting the conditions provided in
these By-Laws;

“Student” means any person registered in any academic programme offered by Mzumbe
University lasting for three academic years;

“Supplementary examination” means an examination which a candidate is allowed to sit

for, after failing in the first sitting at the end of semester or special examination(s) subject
to fulfilling the conditions provided under these By-laws;

“Unauthorised absence from examination room” means leaving the examination room
temporarily or otherwise, or staying out of the examination room for an unduly long
period, without authorization or permission of the invigilator(s) for examination in question;

“Unauthorised material” means any hard, written or printed material as well as softcopy
retrievable through electronic/digital devices which one knows, believes, suspects or
reasonably ought to have known, believed or suspected that the same could be used to
assist him/her in cheating in the examination;

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 “Undergraduate programme” includes bachelor’s degree programmes, ordinary diploma
and certificate programmes;

“University Almanac” means a calendar or schedule of university activities approved by

the University Council;

“University examinations” means the end of semester, special, re-sit and extended
supplementary examinations.

Application 3. These By-Laws shall apply to all persons and/or bodies dealing with matters relating to
Mzumbe University Bachelor’s Degree Programmes.

SECTION II

CANDIDATURE, REGISTRATION AND ELIGIBILITY FOR EXAMINATIONS

Candidature 4 The candidature period for students shall be five years.

Registration for 5 There shall be registration of candidates for all types of examinations:
Examinations
a) Such registration shall be done on MU ARMS.

b) Registration for examinations shall be done within seven (7) days prior the
commencement of examinations.

c) Retrospective registration for examinations shall be allowed in exceptional

circumstances to be determined by the Heads of Department based on submitted
evidence.

5.1 Any candidate who fails to register within the prescribed time shall be barred from sitting for
the relevant examination (s).

5.2 Any candidate sitting for any examination except end of semester and special
examination(s), shall pay TZS. 30,000.00 examination fee for all subjects.

Eligibility for 6 A student pursuing bachelor’s degree shall be allowed to sit for examinations on the
Examinations condition that the candidate:

a) Has completed registration as a bona fide student within stipulated time;

b) Does not owe the University any dues;

c) Has completed registration for examination(s);

d) Has attended not less than 60% of class sessions in that particular semester;

e) Has completed coursework for the subjects being examined in that semester; and

f) Is not barred from sitting for examination(s) by any lawful order.

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 6.1 Any student who contravenes the provisions of this paragraph will not be allowed to sit for
examination(s) and shall be liable for deregistration from studies.

6.2 It shall be the duty of any student to make follow up and ensure that s/he has been duly
registered and that s/he has fully complied with any procedure of registration designated for
that purpose.

Attendance or 7 Every candidate registered for examination shall be required to appear and sit for
Absence from examination on the scheduled day, time and place.
Examination
7.1 Each candidate shall be duty bound to make follow up on any changes made in the
examinations timetable as may be communicated from time to time.

7.2 Any candidate who is unable to sit for examination(s) shall follow the procedures for special
examinations as provided under these By-laws.

7.3 It shall be a duty of the student who requested for postponement of examinations or studies
to collect the response of his/her application from the relevant office.

Dates of 8 The University examinations timetable shall be as indicated in the University Almanac
University approved by the University Council.
Examinations

SECTION III

SETTING, MODERATION AND PROCESSING OF EXAMINATIONS

Examinations 9 Each Member of academic staff who taught the subject(s) in a semester shall set the
Setting and respective University examination(s).
Submission
9.1 Where a member of academic staff is unable to set the relevant examination for any reason,
the Head of respective Department shall appoint another person of requisite expertise to set
the examination for the subject.

9.2 The deadline for submission of draft examination questions shall be indicated in the
University Almanac.

9.3 Each member of academic staff who taught the subject(s) or any person appointed to set the
examination shall submit to the Examinations Coordinator the soft and hard copies of the
draft examination questions together with approved syllabus used in teaching the respective
subject.

9.4 All examination papers submitted shall comply with examination question paper format (see
Appendix 1).

9.5 Submission of examination questions shall abide to the deadlines indicated in the Almanac.

9.6 Any examiner who fails to comply with the deadline or format for submission of examination
questions without a good cause, shall be liable for disciplinary action.

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Examination 10 There shall be Examination Moderation Committees in each academic Department.
Moderation
10.1 Upon receipt of draft examination questions, the Examination Coordinator shall submit the
same to the respective Head of Department for moderation.

10.2 The Examination Moderation Committee shall be composed of:

a) The Head of Department, who shall be the Chairperson;

b) Two subject experts appointed by the Head of Department on ad hoc basis;

c) Examination Coordinator of the respective Campus College/ School/ Faculty/

Institute who shall be the Secretary.

10.3 The functions of examination moderation Committee shall be to ensure the following:

a) The examination is set in the required format;

b) Examinations’ instructions are correct and clear;

c) The rubric of every question is clearly worded;

d) The marks are distributed properly and equitably to reflect the weight of every
question;

e) The examination is appropriate according to students’ level of studies;

f) The examination is error-free, and addresses the learning outcomes for the
subject.

g) The questions are set as per the subject submitted syllabus (course outline).

10.4 Where the Examination Moderation Committee forms an opinion that the examination has
shortfalls or any other observations, the Head of Department shall inform the internal
examiner to address the shortfalls within a prescribed time.

10.5 Any member of academic staff who unreasonably fails to comply with the directive of the
Head of Department without good cause shall be liable for disciplinary action.

10.6 Every examination moderator shall be required to observe utmost confidentiality before,
during and after the moderation exercise. Failure to maintain confidentiality shall make
him/her liable for disciplinary action.

10.7 All examinations offered by the University shall bear instructions stating categorically which
materials are authorised to be brought and used during the examination. These instructions
shall be shall be read together with the instructions in the examination answer booklets,
which are to be provided during examinations.

10.8 Any examination having no provision for aid materials shall be strictly interpreted so.

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Examination 11 The processing of examinations shall be made under maximum confidentiality and integrity.
Processing
11.1 The processing of examination questions in terms of typesetting, printing, photocopying,
packing and sealing shall be done by the Examinations Coordinator assisted by member(s) of
academic staff appointed by the Head of Department on ad hoc basis.

11.2 The Principal/Dean/Director shall be the custodian of the processed examination question
papers and written examination scripts.

Examination 12 All examination question papers shall be handled with high degree of care. No mishandling
Leakage shall be entertained/tolerated.

12.1 Where a leakage of examination is detected, the University shall nullify the respective
examination and require the candidates to sit for a fresh examination.

12.2 Disclosure or leakage of examination(s) by any person shall be liable to disciplinary action.

SECTION IV

CONDUCT OF EXAMINATIONS

Instructions for 13 All examinations offered by the University shall be administered in accordance with these
Handling By-Laws and any instructions which may be issued by the DVC-ARC/ Principal/ Dean/
Examinations Director in consultation with the Heads of Departments, provided that the instructions do
not breach the By-Laws.

Venue of 14 All University examinations shall be administered at the University, its Campuses or such
Examinations other place as may be determined by the DVC-ARC after consultation with the Vice-
Chancellor.

14.1 The Director of Estate Management Unit and the Examinations Officer shall ensure
readiness of examination venues before commencement of the examinations.

14.2 Principal/Dean/Director shall ensure availability of transport for invigilators and scripts to
distant located examination venues.

Examinations 15 The invigilation of university examinations shall be in the following manner:

Invigilation
a) Every internal examiner shall be the main invigilator of the examination(s) for the
subject(s) that s/he had taught in a particular semester.

b) In the event the internal examiner is unable to invigilate for any reason, the Head
of Department shall appoint another member of academic staff to invigilate the
examination.

c) The Head of Department shall appoint other invigilators to assist the main
invigilator considering the size of the venue and number of candidates.

d) It shall be the duty of Departmental Coordinator to prepare the invigilation

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 roster before examinations and notify the invigilators accordingly.

e) Any invigilator who fails to appear for invigilation without a prior notice to the
Head of Department shall be liable to disciplinary action.

f) The main invigilator shall collect from the Principals/ Deans/ Director’s Office as
the case may be, a sealed envelope of examination questions, answer booklets
and attendance sheets and shall sign a special form. S/he shall sign another
form upon returning the booklets at the end of the examination.

g) Invigilator(s) shall enter the examination room at least 30 minutes before the
examination starts.

15.1 The main invigilator shall collect from the respective Principals/Deans/Director’s Office as
the case may be, a sealed envelope of question papers, answer booklets and attendance
registers. S/he shall sign a special form according to the given instructions. S/he shall sign
again on returning the booklets at the end of the examination.

15.2 Invigilator shall ensure the following before commencement of the examination:

a) A candidate shall appear in the examination room at least fifteen minutes before
commencement of examination;

b) A candidate admitted into the examination room shall possess the following clean
and un-annotated items;

i) The University student identity card;

ii) An authorized examination card issued for that particular sitting;

and

iii) Authorized working tools relevant to the examination in question

such as calculators, statutes, tables, and any other tool, as may
be stipulated in a particular examination.

c) Forgery of an examination card, identity or any other document like bank pay-in-
slip shall amount to deregistration from studies.

15.3 There shall be a security guard located at a reasonable distance from each examination
venue or at a place where s/he can reasonably be accessed to ensure maximum security
during examination.

15.4 Before commencement of an examination, the invigilator shall make the following
announcements to candidates:

a) To check and confirm that they are in possession of the right examination
question paper as scheduled in the examination timetable;

b) To carefully read instructions on the answer booklets and on the examination

question paper;

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 c) To remove all unauthorised materials from their pockets, body parts and
examination room;

d) To note the starting and finishing time of the examination;

e) To avoid committing examination irregularities; and

f) To sign the attendance sheets.

15.5 During the examination, the invigilator shall ensure that:

a) No candidate will be permitted to enter the examination room after the lapse of
thirty minutes from the commencement of the examination and no candidate will
be permitted to leave the examination room until thirty minutes have expired.

i) A student denied admission to the examination under the paragraph

above, may apply to the Campus College/ School/ Institute/ Directorate
or Faculty for a special university examination; such application shall
however be subject to scrutiny of the veracity of the claim and
confirmation by the Senate.

b) No candidate shall be allowed to appear in the examination room while dressed

indecently, and where necessary enforce a search, or expel, or order the
candidate to dress decently before entering the examination room;

c) Candidates shall observe the University examination sitting arrangement in such

a way that there is a reasonable distance between one candidate and another;

d) Candidates do not borrow or share working tools/documents from one another;

e) No candidate leaves the examination room before 30 minutes have expired from
the beginning of the examination unless it is deemed necessary;

f) No candidate leaves the examination room without a permission from the

invigilator;

g) Any candidate who fails to comply with the conditions set out under sub-
paragraphs (b-f) above, shall be removed from the examination room and be
barred from continuing with the examination in question followed by any other
appropriate disciplinary action.

h) A candidate who is barred to continue with the examination in paragraph (g) shall
be deemed to have failed in the examination in question and shall, therefore, be
allowed to sit for supplementary examination in the respective course of study
subject to fulfilling conditions for supplementary examinations; and

i) The Invigilator shall prepare a detailed report about the candidate who has been
barred from attempting the examination under the provisions of this paragraph.

15.6 During the conduct of the examination, the invigilator shall:

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 a) Not leave the examination room without a replacement;

b) Record attendance by circulating an attendance sheet on which each candidate

shall sign against his/her examination number, 30 minutes after the
commencement of the examination;

c) Not communicate by mobile phone or chat in the examination venue/room during

invigilation unless it is deemed necessary;

d) Not mark scripts in the examination venue/room; and

e) Determine and report to the Principals/Deans/Directors and propose appropriate

action in cases of unforeseen events.

15.7 At the end of the examination, the invigilator shall ensure that the candidate;

a) Hands in the used and unused answer booklet (s);

b) Signs the attendance sheet upon submission of the answerbooklet(s);

15.8 Upon completion of examination, all invigilators shall fill in the invigilator’s report and sign a
special examination form upon returning all examination materials, used and unused, to the
respective School/Faculty Dean or Institute’s Director or Campus College Principal or Head
of Department as the case may be.

15.9 Any invigilator who is irresponsible during invigilation shall be liable for disciplinary action.

15.10 No person shall be allowed to enter in the examination room once the examination has
commenced except Quality Assurance and Examination Officer(s).

Conduct of 16 The conduct of a candidate in the examination shall be in the following manner:
Candidates
in Examinations 16.1 No candidate shall be allowed to communicate with another candidate in the examination
Room room once the examination has commenced;

16.2 No candidate shall take into the examination room in person or by agent any
unauthorised material(s). It shall not be a defence that one did not intend to use the
unauthorised materials;

16.3 No candidate shall omit, neglect or in any way fail to follow lawful instructions or orders
issued by the invigilator;

16.4 No candidate shall take out of examination room any answer booklet(s), used or unused;

16.5 No candidate shall copy from any other candidate or exchange answers with another
candidate in the examination room/hall;

16.6 No candidate shall assist another candidate to copy from examination script or booklet of
another person;

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 16.7 No candidate shall intimidate, coerce, scare, terrorise, bully, assault, beat or do any other act
to embarrass or mortify or humiliate the invigilator(s) or any University official involved in the
conduct of examination during the examination process.

16.8 a) No candidate shall scribble in the examination question paper, body parts, or any
other tools allowed in the examination room.

b) Where the question paper has been scribbled, and reported to the Examination
Committee, the Committee shall determine the seriousness of the matter and the
extent to which it has defeated the purpose of examination.

16.9 No candidate shall engage in any disruptive conduct such as shouting, assault of another
student, using abusive and/or threatening language, falsification of any evidence of
irregularity, destruction of university property or the property of another student around
examination premises during examinations.

16.10 No candidate shall leave the examination room at any time without permission from the
invigilator.

16.11 No candidates shall stay out of the examination room for an unduly long period without
authorisation of the invigilator

16.12 In case of impersonation, the impersonator and the personated shall both be deemed to
have committed examination irregularity.

16.13 Any candidate who is found guilty of any of the acts prohibited under this provision shall be
disqualified from continuing with the examination(s) and shall be deregistered from studies
after hearing by the Examination Committee and subject to the approval by the Senate.

Examination 17 Where a candidate commits any examination irregularity as defined by these By-Laws, the
Irregularity invigilator shall stop the candidate from continuing with the respective examination and ask
the candidate to get out of the examination room after filling the examination irregularity form.

a) If the irregularity relates to unauthorised material, the invigilator shall ask the
candidate to sign on the materials to confirm that they are his/hers.

b) Provided that, where a candidate refuses to sign on the material, the invigilator
shall request another invigilator to witness and counter sign stating that the
candidate has refused to sign the material.

c) A candidate who commits examination irregularity shall be required to sign

examination irregularity form detailing the nature of irregularity, candidate’s
signature and signatures of other two candidates sitting closer to him/her.

17.1 Upon completion of the examination, the invigilator shall immediately report in writing to the
respective Principal / Dean /Director of any examination irregularity detected.

17.2 The Invigilator’s report shall be detailed enough, explaining the nature of the irregularity in
full. The invigilator shall also attach anything tangible, if available, to clarify the issue, where
necessary.

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 17.3 Upon receipt of the irregularity report the Principal/Dean/Director shall convene a meeting of
the Examination Committee to determine the matter within three (3) days after commission of
the alleged irregularity.

Examination 18 The Examination Committee shall comprise the following members on ad hoc basis:
Committee
a) The Principal/Dean/Director who shall be the Chairperson.

b) The University/Campus Examinations Officer who shall be a member

c) The Head of the respective Department who shall be a member.

d) One member from the academic staff co-opted by the Principal /Dean/Director
who shall be the Secretary to the Committee.

e) A representative from Mzumbe University Students’ Organization (MUSO).

Attendance to 19 The Chairperson of the Examination Committee shall issue a notice of a meeting to the
the Committee accused candidate, the candidate’s representative, respective invigilator(s) and all
Committee members, detailing the nature of irregularity alleged to have been committed and
invite the candidate to make a defence before the Committee if s/he so wishes.

Powers of the 20 The Examination Committee shall have the following powers:
Committee
a) To summon any invigilator, candidate or any person or officer in relation to an alleged
examination irregularity that took place during examinations;

b) To question or interrogate any candidate, invigilator or any person in relation to the

examination irregularity;

c) To impose a sanction on the candidate(s) found responsible for or guilty of such

irregularity.

20.1 The penalty imposed by the Committee shall be pending for deliberation by Board of Internal
Examiners, Campus/ School/ Faculty/ Institute Boards, Senate Undergraduate Studies
Committee (SUSC) and approval by the Senate.

Rights of the 21 The accused candidate/person shall have the following rights during determination of
Candidate(s) examination irregularity:

a) During the hearing by the Committee, the candidate accused of examination

irregularity shall have the right to be accompanied by any fellow student of the
accused candidate’s own choice in the examination committee;

b) A candidate shall have the right to express his/her opinion against any member of
the Committee and the Chairperson shall decide on that opinion;

c) A candidate who is dissatisfied by decision of the Committee shall have the right
to appeal to the Senate Chairperson in writing within seven (7) days after
approval by the Senate.

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Functions of the 22 The Examination Committee shall have the following functions:
Examination
Committee a) To analyse evidence submitted, deliberate and provide provisional decisions on
any examination irregularity reported in the Campus College/ School/ Faculty /
Institute;

b) To prepare detailed reports of the proceedings and submit the report containing
the Committee’s findings and decision to the Board of Internal Examiners,
Campus/School/Faculty/Institute Boards and Senate Undergraduate Studies
Committee (SUSC) for deliberation and final approval by the Senate;

c) To receive invigilator’s report on unforeseen events that might have affected

negatively the examination process, determine and propose appropriate actions.

d) To recommend a disciplinary action to be taken against any person or university

official involved in or responsible for examination irregularity.

SECTION V

MARKING OF EXAMINATIONS, COMPILATION OF MARKS AND RELEASING OF EXAMINATION

RESULTS

Coursework 23 All tests, assignments and other forms of assessment conducted during the semester shall
Compilation be marked by the internal examiner(s).

23.1 The coursework answer papers shall be returned to students before commencement of
respective end of semester examinations.

23.2 Every member of academic staff teaching during the semester is obliged to give each
student his/her aggregate coursework marks, one week before the commencement of the
University Examinations.

23.3 It shall be an obligation of every student to verify the accuracy of his/her coursework results
before the commencement of the University Examinations.

23.4 If a student notices any error in coursework results; s/he shall consult a member of
academic staff who handled the subject during the semester for discussion and possible
rectification before the commencement of the University Examinations.

23.5 The following procedures shall be followed once a student notices any error before approval
of the results by the Senate:

a) Where the student notices the error before approval of the examination results by
the Senate and there is proof that s/he had no prior knowledge of the error due to
reasonable circumstances, s/he shall report the error to the respective
Principal/Dean/Director.

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 b) In case the error is noted after approval of the examination results by the Senate,
the matter shall be dealt with in accordance with provisions of these By-Laws
governing the change of examination marks after the Senate has approved the
results.

Marking of 24 The marking of university examinations shall be done by the internal examiner(s) of the
University respective subject in accordance with the academic almanac approved by the Senate.
Examinations
24.1 Notwithstanding the generality of paragraph 24 above, the marking process shall
operate as stated below:

a) The examination script(s) shall be marked by the internal examiner or someone

else appointed by the relevant Head of the Department in case the former is
unable to discharge that responsibility;

b) Any anomaly/irregularity or any matter raising a reasonable suspicion noted in

the course of marking shall be reported in writing to the respective Head of
Department without undue delay. The Head of Department shall communicate
such anomaly/irregularity to the Principal/Dean/Director as the case may be, for
immediate action in accordance with these By-Laws;

c) After marking the University examination(s) the internal examiner shall prepare
and submit to the respective Head of Department, marked scripts together with
copies of the following documents:

i) Coursework results;
ii) University examination results (mark sheets);
iii) Question paper;
iv) An elaborate marking guide showing the detailed distribution of marks for
each part of each question; and
v) Detailed internal examiner’s report highlighting the candidates’
performance in that examination.

d) Each internal examiners are obliged to upload students’ marks into Mzumbe
University Academic Record Management System (MU ARMS) within the
schedule approved by the Senate.

e) In case the internal examiner is working as a Part-time Lecturer, the Head of

Department shall upload the results on MUARMS.
f) Failure to discharge obligations under this provision shall constitute a breach of
these Examination By-Laws.

g) Change of examination marks on MU ARMS after the Senate has approved the
examination results shall be done after written permission of the Senate
Chairperson. Permission of the Senate Chairperson shall be sought through the
following pattern:

i) Supported with evidence, internal examiner writes to the Head of

Department;
ii) The Head of Department recommends to the Principal/Dean/Director;
iii) The Principal/Dean/Director recommends to the DVC-ARC;

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 iv) The DVC-ARC recommends to the Senate Chairperson;
v) The Senate Chairperson approves/rejects and directs the DVC-ARC
about the decision on the request to change marks;
vi) The DVC-ARC directs the Senate Secretary accordingly.
vii) The Senate Secretary uploads the marks and informs the
Principal/Dean/Director about the decision.

h) If a change of marks already uploaded onto MU ARMS is necessary, before the

Senate has approved examination results, the following process to be followed:

i) If it is before declaration of examination results by the Board of Internal

Examiners, the changes should be done after the directives of the Head of
Department and the internal examiner concerned shall keep the reason for
such alteration in a file;

ii) If the change is after declaration of the results by the Board of Internal
Examiners, but before the Faculty, School, Campus or College Board, the
change shall be made as directed by the Board of Internal Examiners and
in case they involve alteration of marks of the candidate(s), the internal
examiner concerned shall keep the reason for such alteration in a file after
consultation with the concerned Head of Department and keep agreement
in writing;

iii) If it is after the College/ School/ Faculty/ Institute Board and the SUSC
deliberations, the changes shall be made under the directives of the DVC -
ARC and in case they involve alteration of marks of the candidate (s), the
reason for such alteration must be kept in a file after consultation and
agreement in writing by the internal examiner concerned.

iv) For avoidance of doubt, in case the Head of Department,

Dean/Principal/Director, Deputy Vice Chancellor or the Vice Chancellor is
the internal examiner for the course(s) whose results need to be
changed or altered, consultation must be made to any immediate authority
within the relevant Faculty /School /Campus /College and upon
agreement, the reason for such alteration must be kept in a file;

v) v) The alteration approved by relevant authority shall be affected forthwith

by the internal examiner or the Head of Department as the case may be,
and where they have no power to re-upload the results, the request shall
be made in writing to the Senate Secretary to effect such changes.

External 25 External moderation of the University examinations shall be conducted once in every
Moderation of academic year.
Examination
25.1 An external moderator shall be a competent academician/professional in a discipline
approved by the Senate. Where appropriate, external moderator from outside the country
may be used.

25.2 The purpose of external moderation of examinations shall be to ensure that assessment
policies are fairly operated, and that the principles of clarity, equity, consistency and

19
 transparency are observed.

25.3 Where the difference between the internal and external examiner’s marks exceeds five (5) in
a given question or 10% in a script, the external examiner shall furnish a written report
describing the basis/justification for the variation.

25.4 External examiners’ reports shall be considered at the meetings of the internal examiners
focusing on the key issues raised in external examiners’ reports and matters calling for the
attention of the University Management.

Compilation of 26 The Head of Department assisted by departmental coordinator shall compile examination
Examination results from the MU ARMS.
Results

Board of Internal 27 There shall be a Board of Internal Examiners for each Academic Department in the Campus
Examiners College/School/Faculty/Institute, that shall deliberate on the examination results and make
appropriate recommendations to the Campus College/ School/ Faculty/ Institute Board.

27.1 The Composition of the Board of Internal Examiners shall be:

a) The Head of Department who shall be the Chairperson;

b) The Campus College/ School/ Institute or Faculty’s Human Resource Officer who
shall be the Secretary;
c) All members of academic staff in the respective Department;

d) All members of academic staff from other Departments/ Schools/ Faculties/

Institutes/ Campus Colleges or any other person who taught in the Department in
the respective semester;
e) Quality Assurance Coordinator of the respective Faculty/ School/ Institute/
Campus College;
f) The Faculty/School/Institute/Campus College examinations coordinator; and

g) Any other person who may be invited by the Chairperson.

27.2 Each Academic Department in the School/Faculty/Institute / Campus College with academic
programmes shall prepare the following documents to be discussed during the meetings of the
Board of Internal Examiners, School Faculty/ Institute/ Campus College Boards, SUSC and
the Senate:

a) A memorandum of examination results of the candidates in the programmes within

the Department showing the number of candidates who passed, declared to do
supplementary/ special examinations, de-registered, discontinued, postponed
studies and overall examination results;

b) A spreadsheet showing the raw marks of each candidate against each subject
attempted during the semester and end of the semester examination;

c) External examiners’ comments and recommendations on each examination paper

where the examination was externally moderated;

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 d) Comments and suggestions by the Board of Internal Examiners, School/ Faculty/
Institute/ Campus College Board, Committee of Principals, Deans and Directors on
the examinations results; and

e) Any other document that may be relevant for the purpose of the meeting.

Campus/School/ 28 There shall be for each Campus College/School/Faculty/Institute a Campus College/

Faculty/Institute School/Faculty/Institute Board.
Boards
28.1 The composition of the Campus College/School/Faculty/Institute Board shall be:

a) Principal/ Dean/ Director who shall be the Chairperson;

b) Deputy principal of a Campus College;

c) The Campus College/School/Institute or Faculty’s Human Resource Officer who

shall be the Secretary;

d) All Heads of academic Departments in the Campus College/School/

Faculty/Institute;

e) Six members elected to the Board by students in the Campus

College/School/Faculty/Institute from amongst themselves, at least two of them
must be females;

f) Two members nominated by the Faculty Academic Staff from amongst

themselves;

g) Not more than two external members to the University appointed by the Senate
from the list of stakeholders; recommended by the Dean, Director or Principal as
the case may be.

Declaration of 29 The School/Faculty/Institute/Campus College Board shall endorse, declare and release
Examination provisional examination results pending deliberation by the SUSC and approval by the
Results Senate.

29.1 Final examination results shall be approved and released to students by the Senate within
48 hours after the Senate meeting.

Progress 30 Any student may request for a progress report from his/her respective Department after
Reports approval of examination results by the Senate.

SECTION VI

ASSESSMENT, EVALUATION CRITERIA AND CLASSIFICATION OF DEGREES AWARDS

Students 31 Every bachelor’s degree student in the University shall be assessed during each
semester in terms of his/her performance in the programme of study s/he has

21
Assessment registered.

31.1 The assessment of performance for bachelor’s degree students shall be in the
form of coursework, end of semester examinations, field or research reports,
dissertation and oral examinations

31.2 Field work for bachelor degree programmes shall be as follows:

a) Candidates undertaking Bachelor’s degree programmes shall be required to

undertake fieldwork and/or produce a field report or research report/dissertation in
accordance with the provisions of these By-Laws.

b) Field reports and/or research reports shall be submitted to the Head of

Academic Department of the respective Campus College/School/ Faculty
/Institute one month after completion of fieldwork except for students pursuing
Bachelor of Laws (LL. B) degree.

c) For students pursuing Bachelor of Laws (LL. B) degree, the mini- dissertations
shall be submitted before end of teaching week of the first semester in the second
year of studies.

31.3 Class tests and written (individual and/or group) assignments shall be conducted during the
semester in accordance with the Mzumbe University Almanac approved by the Council.

General 32 The general assessment shall be as follows:

Assessment
a) The final/ end of semester examination shall carry the weight of 50% and
coursework shall have a weight of 50% (in every subject examined).

b) The pass mark for a candidate in bachelor’s degree shall be 40% of the total
marks.

c) The distribution of coursework marks in each subject during the semester shall
be as follows:

i) Bachelor’s degree programmes other than Bachelor of Laws: Test I (15

marks), Test II (15 marks), Individual assignment (10 marks) and Group
assignment (10 marks): Total marks: 50.

ii) Bachelor of Laws (LL. B) degree programme: Individual Assignment (15

marks), Group Assignment/Seminar presentation (15 marks) and Test (20
marks): Total marks: 50.

Evaluation of 33 A research report for all undergraduate programmes shall be evaluated in accordance with
Research the provisions of paragraphs 40-42 of these By- Laws.
Reports

Students 34 There shall be an end of semester university examinations at the end of every taught
Progression semester.

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from One 34.1 Each student enrolled in a particular programme of study shall be required to sit for all
Academic Year subjects offered during the semester in the end of semester university examinations
to Another provided that, s/he has complied with the provisions of these By-Laws regarding eligibility for
examinations.

34.2 Progression of students shall be determined at the end of the academic year.

34.3 A candidate pursuing a degree programme shall be declared to have passed and allowed to
proceed to the next academic year upon scoring a minimum of 120 credits and a GPA of at
least 2.0.

34.4 A candidate who fails in any examination and having scored a minimum GPA of 1.8 shall be
declared to have failed, but shall be allowed to sit for supplementary examination(s).

34.5 A candidate who fails a supplementary examination, but has an overall minimum GPA of 2.0
from courses examined at the end of the academic year shall be allowed to carryover the
failed supplementary examination and re-sit when next offered within the candidature period.

34.6 All carryovers shall be cleared within the registered period of theprogramme.

Grading System 35 A five-point system shall be used in averaging the final grades in degree.

35.1 The grading system for bachelor degree programmes shall be in terms of letter grades
indicating points range of 0 – 5 as follows:

Percentage Range 70%-100% 60%-69.9% 50%-59.9% 40%-49.9% 35%-39.9% 0-34.9%

Letter Grade A B+ B C D E

Points 5 4 3 2 1 0

PASS FAIL

Degree 36 The degree classification shall be as follows:

Classifications

GPA Range Degree Classification

4.4 – 5.0 First Class
3.5 – 4.3 Second Class- Upper Division
2.7 – 3.4 Second Class – Lower Division
2.0 - 2.6 Pass

Supplementary 37 To qualify to sit for supplementary examinations, one must have completed two semesters.
Examinations
37.1 Supplementary examinations for all bachelor degree programmes shall be conducted after
the end of semester two examinations and prior to the commencement of the new academic

23
 year as it will be provided in the University Almanac.

37.2 A candidate sitting for supplementary examination(s) shall be assessed on the basis of
his/her supplementary examination(s) results only and his/her course work scores shall not
be taken into account in his/her assessment.

37.3 The recorded grade for supplementary examination shall be C for any score of 40% and
above.

Extended 38 A final year student who fails in supplementary examinations shall be allowed to sit for
Supplementary extended supplementary examinations as external student during subsequent examination
Examinations sessions for two allowable years provided that, it is within his/her candidature.

38.1 If the candidate who has sat for extended supplementary examinations does not clear within
his/her candidature, s/he will be discontinued from studies.

Special 39 Where a candidate pursuing any bachelor’s degree programme at the University fails to
Examination attend the whole or part of an examinations under circumstances which are beyond his/her
control, such a student may, subject to production of authentic evidence and prior to written
approval of the Head of Department and the ratification by the Senate, be allowed to sit for
special examination in the subjects the examinations of which s/he did not complete.

39.1 Retrospective approval for special examination shall only be granted by the Senate
Chairperson upon authentic proof by the candidate of exceptional circumstances that
prevented him/her from sitting for the examinations.

39.2 Special examinations for all undergraduate programmes shall be conducted at such time,
concurrent with supplementary examinations.

39.3 Notwithstanding any provision of these By-Laws, no candidate shall be allowed to sit for both
special and supplementary examination(s) at the same examination session.

39.4 Any candidate, who sat for special examination(s) and failed shall be allowed to proceed to
the next academic year and be allowed to sit for the failed examination(s) when next offered.
Provided that, s/he has a GPA of 2.0

39.5 For the avoidance of doubt, any student who requested for postponement of the end of
semester examinations for any reason, shall not be allowed to sit for any re-sit examinations
offered in that particular semester for the same reasons that apply to such a request for
postponement of all end of semester examinations.

39.6 Any student, who postponed end of semester examinations in all or some of the courses but
failed in other courses in the same academic year, shall be allowed to carry-over the failed
subjects and sit for re-sit examinations when next offered subject to passing special
examinations to the required minimum GPA of 1.8.

Field Work 40 Unless stated otherwise, all students pursuing bachelor’s degree programmes, shall undergo
practical training or field attachment which shall constitute one of the components to be
assessed during the semester. All students shall observe the following:

24
 a) Students shall conduct a fieldwork at the station as scheduled.

b) Students shall register for semester studies prior to commencement of field

attachment;

40.1 Field attachment for bachelor’s degree programmes other than Bachelor of Laws, Computing
Science and Education programmes shall be for a duration of 17 weeks covering the period
of the first semester of the third year of studies.

40.2 The field attachment for Bachelor of Laws Programme shall for a duration of 10 weeks
covering the period of their long vacation after the end of the second year of studies.

40.3 Field attachment for Bachelor of Education Programmes shall be for a duration of 14 weeks
divided into two phases; covering the period of 6 weeks after the end of first year and 8
weeks after the end of the second year of studies to be referred to as first and second field
attachments respectively.

40.4 Field attachment of Bachelor of Science in Computing Science (ICT) shall for a duration of
16 weeks divided into two sessions (8 weeks covering the period of their long vacation after
the end of their first and second years of study) to be referred to as first and second
practical training respectively.

40.5 The output for field attachment for bachelor’s degree programmes (except Bachelor of
Education and Bachelor of Science in Computing Science disciplines) shall be a
field/research report or mini-dissertation.

40.6 The output for field attachment for Bachelor of Education programme shall be teaching
practice assessment together with field report in the second field attachment.

40.7 The output of the field attachment for Bachelor of Science in Computing Science (ICT) shall
be a technical report. Each field session shall carry a total of 10% marks; 5% from host
supervisor’s evaluation and 5% from technical report as marked by the department. The 10%
marks shall contribute to the third-year projects.

40.8 Each student in bachelor’s degree programmes (except Bachelor of Education and Bachelor
of Science in Computing Science) attending field attachment shall be assigned a field
attachment supervisor as per the Operational Policy on Field Attachment for Undergraduate
Programmes.

40.9 Students are obliged to pass their fieldwork or technical projects and no student shall be
allowed to re-sit or supplement his/her fieldwork.

40.10 A student pursuing Bachelor of Science in Computing Science (ICT) who fails in his/her
technical projects shall be given a maximum of one academic year extension to accomplish
after which if s/he fails shall be discontinued from studies.

40.11 A student pursuing any other Bachelor of Science programme, than Bachelor of Science in
Computing Science (ICT), who fails in his/her field work shall be given a maximum of six (6)
months extension to re-work their field work after which if s/he fails shall be discontinued
from studies.

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 40.12 Fieldwork for Bachelor’s degree programmes (except Bachelor of Education and Bachelor of
Science in Computing Science) shall be assessed as follows:

a) Research Report 70% (Major supervisor shall award a maximum of 40% and
internal examiner shall award a maximum of 30%)

b) Oral Presentation (20%)

c) Host Supervisor (10%)
d) Total Marks, 100%.
40.13 Field work for Bachelor of Education shall be assessed as follows:
a) 1st Year Teaching Practice Assessment
i. Assessment done by MU Instructor 50%
ii. Assessment done by Host Supervisor 50%
Total Marks 100%
b) 2nd Year Teaching Assessment
i. Assessment done by MU Instructor 25%
ii. Assessment done by Host Supervisor 25%
iii. Field Report 40%
iv. Oral presentation 10%
Total Marks 100%
40.14 Technical Project for Bachelor’s degree in Computing Science (ICT) shall be assessed as
follows:
a) Semester One
(i) 1st Practical Training 10%
(ii) Oral Presentation 30%
(iii) Project Report 60%
Total Marks 100%
b) Semester Two
(i) 2nd Practical Training 10%
(ii) Prototype Presentation 60%
(iii) Project Report II 30%
Total Marks 100%
40.15 A student pursuing bachelor’s degree programme who scores less than 40% in the
field/research report or technical project, or a student in the Computing Science who fails
after the extension period, or who for no apparent reason fails to do fieldwork or submits
plagiarised work shall be discontinued from studies.

40.16 Campus Colleges/Schools/Faculties/Institutes may regulate fieldwork as indicated in the

University’s Operational Guidelines for Field Attachment.

40.17 Fieldwork for Undergraduate students in School of Public Administration and Management
shall be assessed as follows:

a) Host supervisor 10%

b) Students’ daily logbook 30%
c) Research report 50% (Major supervisor shall award a maximum of 25% and
internal examiner shall award a maximum of 25%)
d) Oral presentation 10%
e) Total Marks 100%
Marking of 41. The Head of Department shall identify internal examiners for the purpose of marking

26
Dissertations/Fie dissertation/field/research reports as the case may be.
ld/Research
Reports 41.1 Each internal examiner shall be served with an appointment letter accompanied by a
research report together with an evaluation form.

Oral 42 Each bachelor’s degree candidate who has duly submitted a dissertation, research/field
Examinations report shall be required to sit for oral examination before the Oral Examination Panel.

42.1 The Oral Examination Panel shall comprise a major supervisor, internal examiner and oral
examiner. Where a supervisor or internal examiner is not in a position to attend oral
examination for any reason, the Head of Department shall appoint a suitable person for
replacement.

42.2 A candidate shall defend his/her field/research report work during oral examination.

42.3 Oral Examination for bachelor degree candidates (except Education programmes which is
10%) shall constitute 20% marks. Where a candidate scores below 50% of the oral marks
s/he shall be declared to have failed in the field report and he shall be required to reappear
for the same within one month after the results have been so declared by the Senate; and if
s/he fails again, s/he shall be discontinued from studies. Any student who re-appears for oral
examination and pass, shall score a maximum of C grade in the final mark.

Score for Field 43 The score to be recorded for field report in bachelor’s degree programmes shall be computed
Reports as in Paragraph 40 of these by-laws.

SECTION VII

APPEALS AGAINST EXAMINATION RESULTS

Reverting 44 Any change of examination results after approval by the Senate shall be authorised by the
Examination Senate Chairperson on behalf of Senate.
Results

Appeals against 45 Any candidate who has failed at any end of semester examination/ special examination/
Examination supplementary/ research report / dissertation may appeal against such results.

Procedure for 46 A candidate who desires to appeal against examination results shall register his/her appeal
Appeal using the prescribed forms in the register maintained by the appellant’s Head of Department
accompanied by payment receipt of a non-refundable appeal fee of TZS 20,000 (Twenty
Thousand Tanzanian Shillings only) per each subject or as may be prescribed by the
University from time to time.

46.1 The appeal fee may be reviewed by the University f r o m time to time without prior notice
to students.

Limitation Period 47 Appeals shall be lodged within seven (7) days from the date of release of examination
results by the Senate.

47.1 Failure to comply with the procedure for lodging an appeal shall result in rejection of the

27
 appeal by the respective Head of Department.

47.2 Upon receipt of the appeals, the Head of Department shall examine them to confirm that they
have complied with all prescribed requirements and transmit them to the
Principal/Dean/Director, as the case may be.

Extension of 48 A Candidate requesting to appeal out of time shall write to his/her respective
time Principal/Dean/Director advancing the reasons for the delay.

48.1 Upon receipt of the request for an extension of time, the respective Principal/Dean/Director
shall evaluate the reasons and inform the Senate Secretary accordingly, who shall seek
approval of the DVC – ARC to process the appeal out of time.

48.2 A Candidate whose application for appeal out of time has been granted shall be required to
lodge his/her appeal within seven (7) days from the date of the decision.

48.3 The Principal/ Dean/Director shall submit all marked examination scripts whose candidates
have appealed together with copies of filled in appeal forms to the Senate Secretary for
further actions.

Processing of 49 Only appeals received by the Head of Department for processing shall be submitted to the
Appeals Senate Secretary for processing.

49.1 All appeals shall be marked externally by a person who has not been an external examiner of
the examination in question.

Appeal Results 50 The Senate Chairperson shall approve examination appeal results on behalf of the Senate
and the appellant shall be informed about the outcome accordingly.

50.1 Approved examination appeal results shall be presented to the subsequent Senate meeting
for endorsement before uploading them into MU ARMS.

SECTION VIII

POSTPONEMENT OF STUDIES, EXAMINATIONS AND TEST/ASSIGNMENTS

Reasons for 51 A student may be allowed to postpone studies for reasons of proven continued ill health
Postponement supported by a medical certificate, financial problems supported with evidence from the
of Studies sponsor, imprisonment supported by court order or for any other reason which is considered
strong enough to prevent one from pursuing studies effectively. Postponement of studies
may be allowed only if requested at least three weeks before the end of teaching.

51.1 A student who postpones his /her first semester of studies shall be deemed to have
postponed the whole academic year and if s/he has postponed his/her second semester of
studies, s/he shall be required to resume studies in the second semester of the next
academic year.

Procedure for 52 A student who intends to postpone studies shall apply in writing to his/her respective Head of

28
 Postponement Department.
of Studies
52.1 An applicant for postponement shall be deemed to have secured permission for
postponement of studies after receiving a written communication granting his/her application
from the respective Principal/Dean/Director.

52.2 The postponement letter shall be copied to the Directorate of Undergraduate Studies.

52.3 When considering a request for postponement of studies, the Head of Department shall
consider the following:

a) The application is lodged at least three weeks before the end of teaching in the
particular semester;

b) The student is still a bona fide student of Mzumbe University;

c) The student has not postponed studies for more than once in previous years;

d) Any other factor which makes the application inevitable as the student cannot, by
reasons beyond his/her control, be able to complete studies in the particular
semester;

e) Postponement of studies shall be for a maximum of one academic year. If

necessary, a student may seek for a second and final postponement afresh; and

f) Any postponement of studies must be within the student’s prescribed period of

studentship.

52.4 Postponement of studies shall be approved by the Senate.

52.5 A student requesting for postponement of studies shall sit for supplementary examinations in
all subjects s/he is entitled to uponresumption of studies.

52.6 Failure to comply with the procedures for postponement of studies shall result to
deregistration from studies.

Postponement 53 Any student may apply for postponement of examinations at any time before commencement
of Examinations of examinations.

Reasons for 54 Any student may be allowed to postpone examinations for reasons of proven continued ill
Postponement health supported by a medical certificate, financial problems supported with evidence from
of Examinations the sponsor, imprisonment supported by court order or any other reason which is considered
strong enough to make the student unable to attempt the examination(s) in question.

Procedures for 55 Procedures for postponement of examinations shall be as follows:

Postponement
of Examinations a) Students shall apply for postponement of examination provided that s/he has
completed coursework assessment for the subject (s);

b) If a student is required to sit for special examinations during special/

supplementary examinations session and s/he requests to postpone any of the

29
 special examination(s), s/he shall be deemed to have postponed studies in that
academic year until when s/he sits for such special examinations;

c) A student who intends to postpone examinations shall apply in writing to his/her

respective Head of Department stating the reasons and attaching evidence for
postponement;

d) An applicant for postponement shall be deemed to have secured permission for

postponement of examinations after receiving a written communication granting
his/her application from the respective Principal /Dean/Director/. The
postponement letter shall be copied to the Director of Undergraduate Studies.

e) Postponement of examinations shall be done at any time prior the

commencement of examinations;

f) A student shall be duly registered for studies in a particular semester and

complete his/her coursework before s/he applies for postponement of
examination(s);

g) A candidate who shall ask for postponement of examination(s), s/he shall not be
allowed to sit for any examination(s) s/he asked to postpone.

Postponement of 56 A student may be allowed to postpone tests and assignments for reasons of proven
tests and continued ill health supported by a medical certificate, imprisonment supported by court order
assignments or for any other reason which is considered strong enough to prevent one from pursuing
tests and assignments effectively. Postponement of tests and assignments may be allowed
only if requested before the release of coursework results.

56.1 A candidate wishing to apply for postponement of tests or assignment shall apply to the
Departmental Coordinator through the respective course instructor.

56.2 Any student whose request for postponement of assignment/test has been granted, shall be
required to sit for postponed assignment/test at any such prescribed time before the start of
end of semester examinations.

SECTION IX

DISCONTINUATION AND DE-REGISTRATION FROM STUDIES

Grounds for 57 Discontinuation of a candidate in the bachelor’s degree programme on the basis of
Discontinuation academic performance shall be as follows:
from Studies
a) A candidate who fails to score minimum credits of 120 and a GPA of at least
1.8.

b) A candidate who fails to obtain an overall minimum GPA of 2.0 after taking
supplementary examinations from courses examined at the end of academic
year.

c) A candidate who fails in the extended supplementary examination(s) after expiry

of his/her candidature;

30
 d) A candidate who is found guilty of examination irregularity as provided in these
By-Laws.

e) A candidate who is found guilty of plagiarism or cheating in examinations, tests,

assignments, and/or dissertation, field work or research report.

f) A candidate who is found guilty of plagiarism; and

g) A candidate who attempts to do examination(s) without meeting examination

eligibility criteria.

De-registration 58 A student shall be de-registered from studies under the following circumstances:
from Studies
a) Abscondment from studies;

b) Abscondment from any test, assignments, examination(s), fieldwork and/or from

writing field/research report, oral examination or failure to submit field/research
report anddissertation in time without a compelling reason;

c) Where a candidate applies to withdraw from studies.

Readmission 59 A student who was discontinued or deregistered from studies on academic grounds may be
after re-admitted to the same or any other programme offered by the University at any admission
Discontinuation season subject to having satisfied the applicable entry requirements.
and De-
registration 59.1 No student who was discontinued or deregistered from studies due to disciplinary
misconduct shall be readmitted to the University before the expiry of three (3) years from the
date of discontinuation or deregistration.

SECTION X

TRANSFER OF STUDENTS AND CREDITS

Transfer of 60 A student transferring from any University to Mzumbe University and vice versa to study in
Students one of the programmes of study should comply with credit transfer policy, which is stipulated
in Section 5 of the University Qualification Framework 2012 (Tanzania Commission for
Universities).

a) A first-year student duly admitted and registered in any programme within

Mzumbe University, may request to:

i) Transfer from one programme to another within the Campus

College/School or Faculty;
ii) Transfer from one Campus College/School or Faculty to another in the
same or different programme of study.

b) A continuing student may request for credit-transfer from one campus to another
campus or from any accredited university to any equivalent programme within
Mzumbe University.

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c) Any application for credit transfer shall be lodged to the DVC - ARC at least 30
days prior to the commencement of a new academic year and the application
shall contain:

i) A letter of application for credit-transfer;

ii) An introduction letter from the transferring institution;
iii) A signed and duly stamped academic progress report which should not
have any failed subject that is pending supplementary/re-sit examination.

d) Any application for credit-transfer, subject to the guidelines issued by regulatory

authorities, shall be considered and approved if the subjects undertaken by the
applicant in the previous year of study are substantially similar to the subjects
offered in the equivalent programme for which transfer is sought.

e) All first year Inter-University or Inter-Campus Transfers shall be approved by the

DVC - ARC after the application has been lodged and processed through the
system designated and coordinated by the Admissions Office.

f) All transfers shall be dealt with subject to:

i) Guidelines issued by TCU in respect to the programme in question;

ii) Payment of prescribed fee equivalent to the application fee used in admission
of new students in the respective programme which the student is requesting
for a transfer;

iii) Meeting the minimum entry qualifications and cut off-point used in the
selection for admission in the particular programme in that academic year;

iv) The programme to which the transfer is sought has slots as per capacity
allocated in that academic year;

v) Deadline set for receiving and processing of transfers as per the particular
academic year.

g) A request for transfer from one programme to another at Main Campus shall be
approved by the Director of Undergraduate Studies.

h) A request for transfer from one programme to another in campuses other than the
Main Campus, shall be approved by the Principal of the respective campus
college.

i) A student whose request for transfer has been rejected by the Principal or the
Director of Undergraduate Studies, may appeal to the DVC-ARC whose decision
shall be final.

j) The Admission Office shall coordinate and process all transfer requests in
accordance with the guidelines issued by TCU and these By-Laws and
recommend the applications to the relevant approving authorities.

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Transfer of 61 The Senate shall regulate on the transfer of grades.
Grades
a) The Director of Undergraduate Studies may consult any relevant office when
considering applications for programme transfer.

b) The Director of Undergraduate Studies shall prepare a report concerning all

approved transfers to be submitted to the Senate for noting.

Inter- Campus 62 A student may transfer credits from one Campus College to another within the University to
Transfers study the same programme at the beginning of the semester, upon furnishing sufficient
grounds backed with relevant evidence.

a) Any approved transfer request shall be provisional subject to the verification and
approval by the TCU.

b) Any prescribed fee that shall be paid during the application for transfer shall be
non-refundable.

c) The University shall retain power to revoke any approved transfer in the event that
it is discovered subsequently that the transfer was mistakenly granted

62.1 A student who wishes to transfer credits from one Campus College to another shall apply in
writing to the Director of Undergraduate/Campus College Principal through his/her Head of
Academic Department and the respective Principal/Dean/Director. The Principal/ Director/
Dean shall transmit the application to the Director of Undergraduate Studies who shall seek
approval of the DVC-ARC.

62.2 After consultation with the Principal/Dean/Director of the Campus College/ School/Faculty/
Institute to which the student is to be shifted and upon being satisfied with the
grounds/reasons for requesting for transfer, the DVC - ARC should grant permission on
behalf of the Senate Chairperson.

Transfer of 63 The Senate shall regulate the transfer of credits.

Credits
a) The Director of Undergraduate Studies may consult any relevant office when
considering applications for programme transfer.

b) The Director of Undergraduate Studies shall prepare a report concerning all

approved transfers to be submitted to the Senate for noting.

SECTION XI

CONFERMENT OF AWARDS, ISSUING OR REPLACEMENT OF CERTIFICATES AND TRANSCRIPTS IN CASE OF

LOSS OR DESTRUCTION

Awards 64 Faculty/School/Institute/Campus Board upon being satisfied that the standard required under
relevant provisions of these By-Laws or any other applicable law for the award of degree has
been attained by a candidate in university examinations applicable to him/her, may
recommend to the Senate through the relevant School/ Faculty/ Institute/ Campus College

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 Board that such degree be conferred upon to such successful candidate.

64.1 The Faculty/School/Institute/Campus Board may recommend a candidate to be conferred

honours degree where such a candidate passed all courses of a particular programme
without supplementary examination(s).

64.2 The Senate may recommend for conferring of degrees or any other award of the University
on the candidates who qualify and are recommended in accordance with the provision of
paragraph 64 of these By-Laws.

64.3 A Student who has completed part of his/her course assessment and failed to complete all
requirements for a particular degree programmes shall be awarded a diploma in that
discipline.

64.4 Mzumbe University shall award a posthumous qualification to a student who had died
before graduation, but had completed all academic requirements for the ward of a degree.

Issuance of 65 The Senate shall issue academic certificates for degrees or other award to such
Transcripts and candidates as shall be declared to have satisfied the appropriate Board and shall have been
Certificates recommended to and approved by the Senate for the conferment of such degree or other
awards.

65.1 Any candidate who is desirous of obtaining academic transcript shall apply in writing to
his/her respective Department and attach a clearance form for the preparation of transcript.

65.2 The respective Principal/Dean/Director shall sign transcripts on behalf of the DVC-ARC.

65.3 Original certificate shall be issued only once for the same degree or award.

65.4 The Vice Chancellor or the DVC-ARC shall sign the University certificates.

65.5 Certificates and transcripts shall be issued in the names of the candidates as they appear in
the candidate’s certificate of secondary school education examination.

65.6 The Original Transcript shall be issued free of charge.

Lost or Mutilated 66 Where it is proved to the satisfaction of the office of the Vice Chancellor that a certificate has
Certificates and been lost or destroyed or that there is other sufficient cause thereof, he may, after taking
Transcripts such precautions as he may consider necessary, and giving at the expense of the applicant,
such public notice in local newspapers and in such other manner as shall appear to him
sufficient in each case, issue a copy of the certificate.

66.1 A copy of the certificate issued shall be deemed to replace for all purposes the certificate
previously issued, and any person discovering the certificate previously issued shall
surrender it to the office of the Vice Chancellor for cancellation.

66.2 Where any original academic certificate has been lost or total or partial destructed or
otherwise rendered illegible, the Vice Chancellor may in his/her absolute discretion, at the
expense of the owner, issue a copy of the certificate. The Vice Chancellor may destroy a
total or partial destructed or otherwise rendered illegible certificate so replaced.

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 66.3 The replacement of lost certificate shall not be issued until a period of 12 months has elapsed
from the date of such loss. The mutilated or damaged certificate may be replaced within a
shorter period.

66.4 A copy of the certificate issued under this paragraph shall be marked “COPY” across it.

66.5 The replacement of lost or damaged academic certificate fee shall be TZS 50,000/= (Fifty
Thousand Tanzanian Shillings Only). This fee is subject to review by the Council from time to
time.

66.6 The replacement fee for lost or damaged transcript shall be TZS 20,000/= (Twenty Thousand
Tanzanian Shillings Only). This fee is subject to review by the Council from time to time.

SECTION XII

ACCESS TO ACADEMIC RECORDS MANAGEMENT SYSTEM AND RESPONSIBILITY OF STUDENTS

Cessation of 67 Assigning, handling and cessation of Academic Record Management System access
Access to MU powers shall be as follows:
ARMS
a) The Principal/Dean/Director shall have power to recommend to the Information
and Communication Technology Unit (ICT Unit) to assign or dismiss certain
limited rights to various persons within Campus College, Schools, Faculties,
Directorates, Institutes, or Centers for the purposes of ensuring smooth operation
and administration of the Mzumbe University Academic Record Management
System (MU ARMS);

b) Where any matter has emerged and which is not addressed by these By-laws in
respect of the management, operation and administration of the MU ARMS, the
DVC-ARC, after consultation with the Principal/Dean/Director or any relevant
authority, may issue directives or guidelines on how to address the matter;

c) Any person who has been assigned certain access powers in MU ARMS, shall
have the sole responsibility of preventing such powers from being exercised or
abused by any unauthorised person;

d) Any person who intentionally or negligently allows or facilitates unauthorised

access to MU ARMS data, alteration of such data, unlawful disclosure or
publication of such data commits a misconduct and shall be subjected to
disciplinary proceedings and, if found guilty, be punished in accordance with
relevant University Rules and Regulations;

e) Where a person who has been assigned certain access powers in MU ARMS is
no longer holding a post that enabled him or her to be assigned such powers, that
person shall, within seven (7) days from the day he or she ceases holding that
office report, in writing to the Principal/Dean/Director and request for dismissal of
such assigned powers.

f) Any person who fails to report to the Principal/Dean/Director and continue to

exercise or access any powers assigned to him/her after leaving a post that

35
 entitled him or her to hold such powers commits a misconduct and disciplinary
proceedings may be instituted against him/her and punished accordingly in
accordance with relevant University Rules and Regulations.

g) Any staff who is leaving for a special assignment, work or further studies for a
period of more than one year shall report to the Principal/ Dean/ Director to be
relieved of any powers which s/he was holding in relation to MU ARMS.

h) The relevant appointing authority shall communicate in writing to that person who
ceases to have access powers to MU ARMS informing him/her of his/her
cessation to hold the said office as soon as such cessation occurs.

i) For the avoidance of doubt, the Principal/Dean/Director, after consultation with

the Director of Human Resource or any other relevant authority, may ask the
Director of ICT Unit to dismiss all access powers to ARMS to any person who, by
any reason, is no longer an employee of the Mzumbe University.

j) The Director of ICT Unit shall be responsible in ensuring the security of the
system, effecting changes as recommended by the Principal/Dean/Director and
recommend to the latter any necessary improvements that need to be done in
the system subject to approval by the DVC-ARC.

k) The Director of ICT Unit shall be responsible and accountable to the

Principal/Dean/Director in respect of access powers, administration and
management of MU ARMS.

68 The DVC-ARC shall have power to appoint a team to conduct a special audit of the MU
Powers of the ARMS once in every academic year to verify the accuracy or validity of the transactions and
DVC-ARC in case any anomaly is discovered, the team may advice on the steps to be taken to rectify
the anomaly and improve the MU ARMS.

Student’s 69 Every student shall have the duty to observe the following in respect of records relating to
Responsibility examination results:

a) Each student shall have the duty to keep confidential his/her MU ARMS account
and prevent any unauthorised person from accessing or making an alteration to
the details, which are within the control of the account holder; and

b) Each student, regardless of the status that is displayed in his/her MU ARMS

account, shall have the duty to make follow up of his/ her true studentship and
academic performance status throughout the period of studies. It shall not be a
defence for any student that s/he did not know that s/he has not attained the
minimum GPA, and that s/he has been discontinued from studies.

SECTION XIII

MAINTENANCE AND DISPOSITION OF STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC RECORDS

Management of 70 Unless otherwise retained by MU Library for reference and record purposes, all used
Students’ examination answer books, field report/dissertations shall be destroyed after the expiry of

36
Academic 36 months after graduation.
Records
70.1 At the end of the retention period, the generating unit shall seek an approval for destruction
from the Vice Chancellor. The destruction of academic records shall observe the following
procedures:

a) Examinations Officer in consultation with the respective Principal/Dean/Director

concerned shall, with respect to examination answer books, field
report/dissertations falling under their Campus College/ School/Faculty/ Institute:

i. Create and maintain adequate records of actions and transactions

affecting examination answer books, field report/dissertations, ensure that
those records are properly maintained while waiting for any appeal or final
disposal;

ii. Initiate the disposal procedures of those examinations answer books, field
report/dissertations for which there is no further need;

iii. Initiate disposal of used examination answer books, field report/

dissertations that have been stored by their Campus College/ School/
Faculty/ Directorate for more than 36 months following respective Senate
decision;

iv. Identify and safeguard those examination answer books, field

report/dissertations which are of enduring value and which should be
preserved as archives and made available to the library for research and
public consultation;

v. Assist the MU Library in selecting examination answer books, field

report/dissertations designated for archiving purposes;

vi. Assist the MU Library in selecting examination answer books designated

for archiving purposes;

vii. Seek expertise from MU Library to assist in the sampling answer books
ear-marked for archiving;

viii. Designate a place or room as storage area for examination answer books
awaiting appeals or final disposal;

ix. Seek permission from the Vice Chancellor to dispose the examination
answer books, field report/dissertations through DVC-ARC. The request
shall indicate the courses (including the sat session and academic year)
whose scripts are to be destroyed; and

x. Witness and keep close control over final disposal of examination answer
books, field report/dissertations to ensure the confidential nature of
contents of answer books remain inviolate.

b) Pending final disposal, Principal/Dean/Director shall ensure all information

contained in examination answer books, field report/dissertations remain inviolate

37
 and is protected from misuse or abuse.

Quorum in 71 All meetings to be conducted under these By-Laws shall demand the physical presence of
Meetings fifty percent (50%) of all members.

Tenure of the 72 These By – Laws shall be reviewed after every five years
By–Laws

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 Appendix I: Examinations Format

UNITED REPUBLIC OF TANZANIA

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION, SCIENCE AND
TECHNOLOGY

MZUMBE UNIVERSITY

CAMPUS COLLEGE/SCHOOL/FACULTU/INSTITUTE…..

End of Semester…. Supplementary/Special Examinations; Month., Year…

Subject Code:

Subject Name:

Programme(s):

Date:

Time Allowed:

Venue:

INSTRUCTIONS

i) ….
ii) ….

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 Appendix II: Examinations Irregularity Declaration Form

UNITED REPUBLIC OF TANZANIA

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION, SCIENCE AND
TECHNOLOGY
MZUMBE UNIVERSITY

Tel: +255 023 2604380/1/3/4 P.O. Box 1,

Fax: +255 023 2604382 MZUMBE
E-mail: [email protected] MOROGORO
Website: www.mzumbe.ac.tz TANZANIA

In the event that a candidate has committed any examination irregularity in the examination/tests, an invigilator
should write a detailed report indicating the nature of the irregularity and student’s declaration regarding the event.
Main Invigilator’s Statement

Student’s Declaration

Main Invigilator’s Name………………………………………………. Signature………………………………..

Student’s Name………………………………………………… Signature……………………………….
Programme………………………………………………………. Date……………………………………

Witnesses:
Name of the student’s neighbour on the left side of the examination room……………………................
Reg. ………………………..
Name of the student’s neighbour on the right side of the examination
room……………………............................................Reg………………………..
Programme…………………………………………….Date…………………………………………….

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