Suspension of academic activities at the UOC

At the end of July, the UOC Student Council formally called for a suspension of academic activities from 15 to 19 October, using the mechanism provided for in the Student Council's own regulations.

The university appreciates the constructive dialogue and the Student Council's willingness to engage throughout the discussions held since July. Unfortunately, the negotiations did not lead to the proposed action being called off, meaning that the Student Council is maintaining its call for a suspension of academic activities from 15 to 19 October.

The suspension of academic activities was prompted by developments in the university's digital assessment system, which incorporates online supervision systems during final assessments to verify the identity of students and the authorship of their assessments. These developments generated debate among students about the assessment model and, in particular, about the implementation and operation of online supervision systems.

Digital assessment at the UOC

At the UOC, assessment takes place in a digital environment and is based primarily on continuous assessment, although final assessments are also included in courses where required. For courses that include final assessments, a supervision system has been implemented to verify the identity and authorship of students during the assessment. This is a rigorous process with mechanisms to safeguard academic integrity, which is particularly relevant in the current context marked by the emergence of artificial intelligence.

The supervision system includes a simulation phase before the assessment to check that it is working correctly and verify that devices are correctly configured and positioned. During this phase, students receive support and feedback to resolve any issues and ensure that they have the necessary conditions to take the assessment and verify their identity and authorship.

In addition, the system does not use biometrics and validation is always carried out by a person, without automated processes being applied directly. This makes it possible to analyse any incident on an individual basis and make decisions on the validation of the assessment, with due regard for the specific circumstances of each situation.

The UOC's assessment model is a dynamic model that evolves to respond to new challenges in digital education. In the current context, marked by the emergence of artificial intelligence, universities need to be able to deploy mechanisms to verify the identity and authorship of students in digital assessment processes and safeguard academic integrity. At the UOC, this evolution pivots around our students, with supervision systems that incorporate human review and allow each situation to be analysed individually.

June 2026 final assessments

Reviewing last semester shows that final assessments with online supervision were conducted as normal. In 95% of assessments, authorship and identity were successfully validated, as students completed the assessment in compliance with all the requirements of the supervision system. In a small number of cases, however, we identified misconduct or situations where the required assessment conditions could not be verified, such as incorrect positioning of the second camera.

One of the demands raised by the Student Council during the negotiation period related to this very situation. The affected students feel that they should be allowed to retake the assessment and are calling for compensatory measures in cases where the assessment could not be validated. This request was one of the issues addressed in discussions between the Student Council and the university.

The university understands the students' concerns, but considers that any measures in this area must preserve the quality, rigour and fairness of the assessment system. Allowing only those students who were unable to demonstrate compliance with the required conditions to retake the assessments would mean establishing different conditions for the same assessment process. For this reason, the university cannot agree to this request, as it considers it necessary to guarantee the same assessment conditions for all students.

Improvements resulting from the negotiations

As a result of the committed and responsible dialogue held over the last few months, we are introducing a number of measures that, in line with the discussions held with the Student Council, will improve the student experience when undertaking learning assessments at the UOC.

●      Information resources such as videos and infographics will be expanded and improved, as will the information directed at students. This will ensure they have a clearer understanding of the assessment system and the different components and mechanisms intended to ensure its rigour and robustness.

●      Feedback from the simulation that students can complete before the final assessments will be improved. Students will be able to see a screenshot from the second camera, so that they can see if it is correctly positioned or needs to be repositioned. Furthermore, we will maintain the safeguards built into the simulation process in cases where there is a discrepancy between the simulation and the assessment. If the simulation result is satisfactory and the same conditions are maintained, the assessment will be deemed satisfactory and will be marked.

●      The necessary technical and human resources will be put in place so that students can receive information on the review of the second-camera component within 72 hours, which will be useful if they have assessments after that period.

●      Towards the end of the semester, the university and student representatives will work together to ensure that everything is working correctly.

●      Opportunities will be created to share and discuss the development of different aspects of assessment at the UOC.

●      Within the framework of the university's educational model, we will examine how an extraordinary opportunity to retake assessments could be made available.

Academic integrity

Academic integrity is a fundamental pillar to ensure high-quality university education and a trusting relationship between students and teaching staff. To coincide with the start of the new 2026/27 academic year, we published the Manifesto for academic integrity in teaching and learning at the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, which reaffirms our institutional commitment to a culture of integrity based on responsibility, honesty and trust. It recognizes that integrity is based not only on a set of rules, but on the shared responsibility of everyone involved in the learning process.

The manifesto proposes that we move from an approach centred on sanctions towards a culture based on self-regulation, trust and the shared responsibility of everyone involved in the learning process.

Flexible, rigorous and student-centred digital assessment

At the UOC, assessment forms part of the learning process and is designed to be continuous, formative and digital. Throughout the semester, students receive guidance and feedback on their progress through a series of assignments and assessments that allow them to apply their knowledge, identify areas for improvement and make progress in their learning.

This model functions in an online environment specifically designed for learning. The Virtual Campus, classrooms and digital resources allow students to study and complete assessment activities from anywhere and at different times, with support from the teaching staff.

Final assessments form part of this process and allow students to demonstrate the learning they have acquired during the semester. In this context, online supervision systems are designed to verify the identity of students and the authorship of their assessments, and ensure that the assessment is conducted with the same safeguards for all students.