Hi everyone,

In August I asked for details of payment rates for External Examiners,
as the Open University is reviewing its rates. Thank you to everyone who
responded. I promised to collate these responses. I've found it
difficult to do that as the systems are all so different, differing from
flat rates, points systems taking in numbers of modules, in one case
numbers of students (not a system the OU would care to adopt!), varying
the numbers of External Examiners against the number of students (we do
do this), and adding different amounts for extra meetings.

 So I'm just going to post them out as a collection beginning with ours.
I've put email references in case people want to know more. Any more
contributions should be posted to the list.

One response remarked that they don't do it for the money. I would
agree. What do they do it for? To find out what other institutions are
up to, for CV purposes and to become known, reciprocity ( you can't take
out of the pot if you never put anything in). Any other suggestions?

Open University

60 point course   370 stlg
30 point course   227 stlg
15 points or less   210 stlg
2nd presentation or version   add 50 stlg (eg Singapore version of same
course)
extra day   add 80 stlg
Resit   83 stlg
Programmes
PGCE   525 stlg
CPDE   788 stlg
MA in Humanities/Literature    788 stlg

Goldsmiths College    ([log in to unmask])
Basic fee of 300 stlg for degree programmes, that is for entire degree
programme
Smaller fee of 150 stlg for smaller programmes with only a handful of
students on

Liverpool John Moores      ([log in to unmask])

External Examiners appointed to courses/programmes (groups pf modules)
rather than individual modules. Number of them varies with student
numbers

Rates 1997/98:

Undergraduate/taught postgraduate   310 stlg
Chief External Examiner (with coordinating role)   add 80 stlg
Other programes (eg certificate)186 stlg
PhD     102 stlg
MPhil   69 stlg

Southhampton Institute     ([log in to unmask])

400 stlg pa
Degree or Professional course   350 stlg
Institute course of degree equivalent   350 stlg
Sub-degree course    300 stlg
Short course (eg Gateway - 4 weeks)   180 stlg

University of Luton      ([log in to unmask])

New system pays on a basis of the number of modules an External has
responsibility for within subject areas of the Modular Credit Scheme. On
a sliding scale:
1 module pays 50 stlg
2 modules pays 60 stlg
increasing by 10 stlg up to 5 modules
6 or more modules pays a flat rate of 250 stlg
If you are invited to attend an exam board add 50 stlg

South Bank University     ([log in to unmask])

has a new 2 tier system of examination boards:
Subject Area (Unit) Board - 400 stlg
Award/Progression Board - 200 stlg

Externals are asked to attend the first tier board or both boards

Some single tier boards are still in existence and for these the payment
is 400 stlg

The above fees are paid annually as a flat fee. Externals are not paid
per module

Phd   fee is 100 stlg

Aston University     ([log in to unmask])

Payment is for a whole programme not modules

appointment fee is 90 stlg irrespective of the number of programmes a
person is External Examiner for
plus 10 stlg per final year UG student or Diploma student
        15 stlg per Masters student

If there is more than one examiner for the same programme, the candidate
fee is split between them (either equally or as advised by the
Department).

If the programme is part-time or distance learning, the candidate fee is
paid in equal instalments for the duration of the programme (eg for a
3-year Masters programme, 5 stlg for each student in each of years 1 to
3)

Also pay 4 stlg per oral examination for languages programmes.

(Aston is about to go modular and change this)

University of Bradford      ([log in to unmask])

2 kinds of External Examiners - course unit (module) examiners and
course examiners. Regs say that course examiners should also be unit
examiners for a "reasonable proportion" of units making up the course,
so you can be a unit manger without being a course manager but not vice
versa.

Fee formula is intended to take a balance account of both parts of the
task.

(The basic course unit is a 10-credit module)

Module points = Total number of credits examined
Student/module points = weighted student numbers for each of the units
examined (eg 5 students on a 20 credit unit = 10 points)
Course points = (Number of courses examined) x 50
Student/course points = (Total number of students registered for the
course) x 0.5

The sum of these components gives an overall points total which falls
into a band (1-250, 251-500, thereafter at 300-point intervals).
Payments are multiples of 158 stlg (started at 100 stlg a while ago and
has been index-linked over a number of years) up to a maximum of 1264
stlg for 2000 points or more.

The biggest group receive 316 stlg pa

Additionally, examiners receive 41 stlg per half day for attending
project presentations, language orals, etc., and examiners to taught
master's courses receive 30 stlg for each dissertation.


That's all folks!
Mitzi



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