Foundation Certificate Course Administration

Update posted on Wednesday 24 August 2022

First of all, I would like to say a huge thank you to the majority of you who have been patient while I dealt with the marks and returned the scripts. I really do appreciate it. I would also like to apologise for the delay in getting some of the marks out. Every year I unfortunately have the same issues with the same modules, so it is probably time for change. I realise that will not necessarily affect you, but I do want you to know that we try and run a tight ship with our courses at INSOL.

I would also like to congratulate all those candidates who have already passed the certificate - well done on your achievement! I sincerely hope that you have found the course beneficial.

As far as Module 7E (UAE) is concerned, the marker did us a huge favour by marking the 21 scripts with the use of a model answer. She will be the first person to admit that she is not a specialist in UAE insolvency law, and marking with the use of a model answer is not always easy. INSOL is extremely grateful to the marker for having turned the scripts around so quickly in difficult circumstances. If there is anyone amongst you who feels that their script was not properly marked, I would be happy to make the model answer available to you. Please e-mail me if you want the model answer sent to you. I am really struggling to find someone reliable to take this module on, so I may have to make the decision to cull it from the programme altogether. I obviously don't want to do this as it is a popular module.

As far as Module 8E (Singapore) is concerned, I did notice that the markers started lagging at the end, probably in an attempt to complete the marking, which was two days late. I apologise for the lack of proper feedback in some of the scripts, but there is not much I can do about it. Going forward there will be a new lecturer for this module.

Course Summaries

By now those of you who have passed outright will have received your course summaries. Please check your spam folder if you think you have completed but did not receive an e-mail with your results. Tomorrow (Thursday 25 August) I will start sending out course summaries to those who have not completed. This is quite a time-consuming process, so I would appreciate your patience while I get these e-mails out. I need to follow up each course summary e-mail setting out the options available to each candidate. Please wait for my follow-up e-mail before contacting me.

Resit Examinations / Assessments

For those candidates who qualify for resit examinations / assessments, please note that these will be written in September and may flow over into October, depending on circumstances. As previously stated, I am quite flexible with the resit exams, although we do need to get these done as soon as possible. I will contact each person who qualifies for a resit separately by e-mail in order to make arrangements.

Certificates for Successful Candidates

Please note that the certificates for successful candidates will only be printed once the resit examinations have concluded. This is so that we only have to have one print run with the printers. All successful candidates will be provided with one, secure high quality PDF electronic certificate (password protected) and one hard copy certificate printed on high quality paper. 

Prior to the certificates being printed, you will receive an e-mail from us asking you to verify your address to which the certificate must be posted (by normal mail). You will also be asked to confirm the manner in which your name must be printed on the certificate, and the correct spelling of your name. Please check your spam folder regularly, as these e-mails often end up in spam folders. Please note that we cannot absorb the cost of couriering your certificate to you. If you want to make use of a courier service, you will have to pay for it yourself (this can be arranged with us as far as I know).

The next Foundation Certificate course starts next week Thursday, so please bear this in mind before communicating with me by e-mail. This is easily the busiest time of the year for us in the Education Team. I would be happy to help anyone with queries from the week commencing 5 September 2022.

My best wishes to you all!

David Burdette (Course Leader)

Update posted on Monday 22 August 2022

This post is an update on the processing of results on the Foundation Certificate, so please read the following very carefully.

As you all know, INSOL International is reliant on persons external to the organisation for making the Foundation Certificate course work. The persons who act as lecturers / markers on the Foundation Certificate do this mostly as pro bono work as there is no way INSOL can remunerate them in terms of the hours they put in on the course. While I have received most of the scripts back, I am still waiting for some results, as follows:

Module 6E (Netherlands) - I am waiting for one script to be returned;

Module 7A (Israel) - the lecturer for this module informed me a short while ago that he cannot mark the two scripts that came in. I will have to do that and will attend to this on Tuesday 23 August 2022;

Module 7E (UAE) - the person who would have marked the 21 scripts for this Module has not delivered. I have found someone else to mark these scripts, but please note that this will take a day or two to complete;

Module 8D (India) - the lecturer for this module has indicated that he is ill, but I expect to receive the seven scripts back on Tuesday 23 August 2022.

Module 8E (Singapore) - I have e-mailed the lecturer twice today for an update, but I have not received a response. I have an earlier undertaking from the lecturer that the marking will be completed on time, so hopefully I will receive the 39 marked scripts back on Tuesday 23 August 2022.

I do apologise for the delay in returning all the marks on the course - I hope you will understand that there is very little I can do when lecturers do not return the scripts to me on time (except to replace them, which I will likely do this year). 

I am doing everything I can to get the marks finalised. I can only start sending course summaries out when I have processed all the marks, so my request to you is to exercise a little patience before e-mailing me about the results. 

As soon as all the marks are in, I will start sending out the course summaries setting out your results for the year. Before e-mailing me, please look at the FAQ section of the Course Handbook, where it is explained in which circumstances you qualify for a resit assessment (or not).

Many thanks for your patience!

Best wishes,

David Burdette (Course Leader)

Update posted on Monday 1 August 2022

Congratulations to everyone who managed to submit their elective assessments on time, ie 11 pm BST on 31 July 2022. The purpose of this post is to explain how the remainder of August will play out, when you can expect your results, when and how resit examinations will take place (for those who qualify) and how enrolments will be rolled over to Year 2 (where this is applicable). 

Results for the elective modules

I have today sent out to the markers the approximately 450 elective module assessments received up to 31 July. As you know by now, the markers have 21 days in which to complete the marking. This means that I should  receive the marked scripts back by 22 August 2022. I say "should" as there is really not much I can do if the markers return the marked scripts to me late. This has only ever happened once on one module in the past, although I do not anticipate any issues this year. Please do not enquire about marks / results before 23 August.

Where marked scripts are returned sooner than 22 August, I will of course return these as and when they are returned. 

Results for the year / course

Once all the marks have been returned to me by the markers, I have the unenviable task of collating the marks and informing you of your results on the course. Where you have enrolled to complete the course over a period on one year, the results summary I will send you will contain the results for all your modules. If you have passed all the modules needed for the Foundation Certificate, your results summary will say so and will also contain a word of congratulations. If you have registered to complete the course over two years, you will receive a summary of your results for Year 1.

If you have failed any assessments, or where you failed to submit an assessment, your results summary will be followed by an e-mail from me informing you whether you qualify for a resit assessment. Where you do not qualify for a resit assessment (for example, because  you failed two or more assessments, or failed to submit two or more assessments), I will set out your options for re-enrolling on the course in order to complete over two years. Please note that in such circumstances candidates from designated countries will be required to pay a re-enrolment fee for the second year of the course, unless such candidate enrolled for two years from the start (in which case they will have already paid the fee for two years). There is no financial implication for candidates from non-designated countries, as the fee paid is per module and the option of rolling the enrolment over to two years is purely an administrative one. 

Please note that all candidates must complete the course within two consecutive years - no extensions can be granted beyond the two years in any circumstances. 

Certificates of completion for successful candidates

Please note that the Foundation Certificate, signed by the INSOL President and the CEO, will be sent to successful candidates only after the resit assessments have been completed. This means that candidates can expect to receive their certificates during October 2022. Successful candidates will be provided with the certificate in two formats, one electronic copy and one hard copy. Please ensure that your personal details, especially e-mail addresses and postal addresses, are up to date on the INSOL website as the electronic copy of your certificate will be e-mailed to you. The electronic copy of the certificate will be a high quality PDF and will also be password protected. A hard copy of the certificate will be posted to you at the address indicated in your application; however, in September you will receive an e-mail from a member of the INSOL International team, asking you to confirm your name (as you wish it to appear on the certificate), as well as to confirm your postal address. Please note that INSOL International cannot courier the certificates to successful candidates; however, should you wish to pay for the cost of couriering the certificate to you, this can be arranged. An option to this effect will be included in the e-mail verifying your name and address.

In addition to the above, an announcement will be published in INSOL World Q4 of 2022, mentioning the names of all successful candidates on the course. The names of successful candidates will also be added to the Foundation Certificate web page, where past recipients' names can be found.

Resit assessments / examinations

If you qualify for a resit assessment, please note that these will take place during September / early October. Candidates who qualify for a resit assessment will be contacted by me directly by e-mail and an arrangement made for the completion of the assessment. I usually allow two weeks for the submission of the resit assessment, but a specific arrangement for a longer or shorter period can be made where this is required. I try to be as flexible as possible with the rest assessments. The results for resit assessments are usually returned quite quickly by the examiners. 

Vacation

Please note that I will be on leave from Wednesday 3 August to Friday 19 August 2022. For the period 3 to 10 August I will have limited access to e-mail and will not be responding to e-mails at all. If there is anything urgent, please contact my colleague Sanrie Lawrenson at [email protected] who will assist you. During the period 11 to 19 August I will be monitoring e-mails, but only responding to urgent issues. I will be back in the office on 22 August, at which time I will start sending out the course results. 

I hope you will all be able to take a well-deserved break now that the course has concluded for the year. My best wishes accompany you and I look forward to being in touch again after 22 August.

Best wishes,

David Burdette (Course Leader)

Update posted on Monday 11 April 2022

Please note that the Guidance Text for France, which was recently uploaded, has been replaced by a new text due to the fact that the author picked up some errors in the text. A new version of the text (indicated by V2 in the filename) is now in place. Please be sure to use the correct version of the text.

Further texts will be uploaded during April and hopefully also the assessments that are currently missing.

I wish you all a peaceful Easter!

Best wishes,

David Burdette (Course Leader)

Update posted on Friday 25 March 2022

I trust that you are all well and now busy with your elective modules (where these are available). Since the compulsory module assessments have now been returned, it is necessary for me to address some issues that became apparent after this latest exercise.

Results for the compulsory module assessments

Generally most candidates on the course did very well in the compulsory modules and achieved high marks for their assessments. As is the case every year, Module 2A proved to be challenging for quite a few candidates where there were a number of failures. I have received quite a few queries about what happens where candidates fail a module – please consult the Course Handbook and especially the FAQ section where you query should be answered. If your question is not answered in the Course Handbook, you are welcome to contact me.

Submitting assessments

There are simply too many candidates who do not follow the instructions in the Course Handbook and in the assessment itself. Some candidates included their names in the filename of the assessment, which is specifically prohibited. Some submitted their assessment in PDF format, which is also prohibited. If you do not include your correct student ID as a footer to the assessment then it is likely your assessment will become unidentifiable in future, as I will no longer be doing that for the candidates who do fail to comply with the instructions. In future I will simply return the assessment to the relevant candidate unmarked. Such candidate will of course be able to resubmit their assessment to me once they have complied with the instructions, but that will need to reach me before the cut-off date and time for the relevant assessment. If it does not, it will not be marked. All you need to do is to read and follow the instructions, it is really not that difficult.

Plagiarism

Despite multiple warnings in the course material, assessments and on the Course Administration page regarding plagiarism, there were still some candidates who made themselves guilty of this. These candidates were penalised and future breaches will likely result in the termination of their course. You may NOT copy and paste the text from the Guidance Texts into your answers. This is clearly stated in instruction 5 of each assessment. Also, when submitting your assessment you are asked to confirm that the assessment is your own work and that you have cited the work of others included in your assessment (where you have made use of external sources). However, there were cases where candidates did not acknowledge these sources and as a result committed plagiarism. I cannot over-emphasise the fact that this is a course for professionals and as such you may not plagiarise the work of others. Candidates can expect to be severely penalised for this going forward. The lecturers for the modules on the course are all professional people and they pick up very quickly when someone has committed plagiarism. Once again, if this is brought to my attention I am obliged to take appropriate action.

While I understand that many of you work at the same firm or in the same country and may therefore discuss the work / assessments with each other, please be very careful about how you approach this. Markers pick up quite easily where candidates’ answers are the same or similar and this gets flagged for me as Course Leader. If an allegation of two or more students copying from each is made to me by the marker(s), I am obliged to investigate the allegation and convene a disciplinary committee if it is found that there is a case to answer. This is extremely unpleasant and may lead to the termination of the course for those involved. We would also then be obliged to report any such transgression to your professional body. While I do not wish to discourage you from discussing the work with your colleagues or friends, please just ensure that your answers are sufficiently different so that this does not become an issue.

Missing the deadline for assessments

Despite the course material being very clear regarding the granting of extensions (there are none!) there were still a number of candidates who wrote to me asking for an extension or asking me to accept their assessments late. While I have no doubt that all the explanations given to me are valid, the simple reality is that no extensions are granted, no matter the circumstances. This is exactly why the course has been designed to be completed over two years if necessary.

Update on the various modules and availability of texts and assessments

I am of course aware of the fact that some texts are not available at this time, despite my undertaking that I would do my best to get them up by the end of 2021 (and then again by the time the compulsory assessments were submitted). Unfortunately I have failed to meet the targets I set myself, largely due to the fact that I am reliant on external persons to provide the materials. When these materials are received, it takes an inordinate amount of time to edit them, return them to the authors and to thereafter finalise the texts. I am working full speed to get these up and I have started writing to those candidates who have selected modules that will not be available this year with a request to select different modules.

At this point of the course I can confirm that the following modules are not available due to the fact that the material has not been provided to me: 

• Module 5F (Mauritius);
• Module 6C (Greece);
• Module 7C (Nigeria);
• Module 7F (Zambia); and 
• Module 8G (Japan). 

If you have selected one of these modules you may get in touch with me and I will change the module(s) for you to ones that are available. Alternatively you can wait for me to get in touch with you, asking you to select different modules.

As far as the remaining modules are concerned, I can confirm the status of these as follows:

• Argentina (Module 4A): the text and the assessment have been received and are in the process of being edited;
• Brazil (Module 4B): I have the updated text and we are busy editing it together with the assessment. I expect these documents to be finalised in the week commencing 28 March 2022;
• Mexico (Module 4E): the text and the assessment have been received and are currently being edited;
• Colombia (Module 4F): the text and the assessment have been received and are currently being edited;
• Chile (Module 4G): the text and the assessment have been received and are currently being edited;
• The Bahamas (Module 5G): the text and the assessment have been returned to the author with some queries and will be finalised in the next few days;
• France (Module 6A): the text and assessment have been returned to the author with some queries and will be finalised early next week;
• Spain (Module 6G): the text and the assessment have been received and are currently being edited;
• Israel (Module 7A): the text and the assessment have been finalised and will be published soon;
• United Arab Emirates (Module 7E): I have uploaded the text but I am still waiting for an assessment from the new author who has agreed to do this. I am working on getting the assessment uploaded as soon as possible;
• Morocco (Module 7G): the text and the assessment have been edited and are in the process of being finalised for publication.

If there is anyone who does not want to wait a few more weeks for the missing material to be uploaded, please do let me know and I will be more than happy to assist you in changing your modules to ones that are immediately available. If you do wish to wait, please complete those modules that are available in the meantime.

Elective modules and results on the course

Just a reminder that the remaining assessments must be submitted by the end of July 2022. Once the elective module assessments have been marked and the marks returned to me, you will receive a course summary e-mail setting out your results for the year. This you will receive between approximately 22 August and 31 August 2022. Those of you who qualify for resit assessments in September / October will also be informed about this when the results summary is sent out. I will also then contact those candidates who need to be progressed to the second year of the course in order to complete (this does not include those candidates who enrolled over two years when they registered – these candidates will be automatically progressed to the second year).

Apologies for the long update post but it covers important aspects of the course.

I will post another update as soon as there is something to report.

Best wishes,

David Burdette (Course Leader)

Update posted on Friday 25 February 2022

It has been brought to my attention that the links to the UNCITRAL documents contained in the Guidance Text for Module 2A, do not work. I have tested these and unfortunately it seems the URL's for these documents have changed. I am working on the problem and hope to be able to fix this by Monday. I appreciate that some of you will be submitting your assessments by Tuesday 1 March; however, the actual UNCITRAL texts are not required to be able to answer the questions set in the assessment. In the meantime I suggest you search the UNCITRAL website for the texts as these seem to have been moved.

Many thanks for your patience while I deal with this issue.

Best wishes,

David Burdette (Course Leader)

Update posted on Tuesday 22 February 2022

I trust my message finds you all well.

This is just a quick reminder that the assessments for your compulsory modules from Modules 2 and 3 are due on 1 March 2022, one week from today. If you are unsure about which modules you have selected as compulsory modules, the landing page in your student portal lists your compulsory and elective modules separately. Simply open your student portal and the landing page (where the Course Handbook is visible) will reflect your compulsory and elective module choices. Alternatively, please consult the e-mail you received when you enrolled, which should indicate the modules you enrolled for. As a last resort you may contact me to be sure of what your module choices are.

Once the closing date for the submission of compulsory assessments has passed, the markers have three weeks within which to mark and return the marked scripts to me. Markers have been informed that the marks must be returned to me by 22 March 2022. I will then return the marks and scripts to you as soon as possible thereafter. Please do not enquire about marks before 23 March 2022 - by then all marks and scripts should have been returned.

Best wishes,

David Burdette (Course Leader)

Update posted on Thursday 13 January 2022

It has been brought to my attention that some of the answers to the self-assessment questions for Module 3A (self-assessment exercises 10 to 14) have not been included in Appendix A. I have checked and it seems that I somehow managed to omit these answers when finalising the Guidance Text. I am updating the Guidance Text and will upload the revised text on Friday 14 December 2022. Sincere apologies for this error!

Best wishes,

David Burdette (Course Leader)

Update posted on Monday 10 January 2022

I trust you are all well - my best wishes to you all for 2022!

I am now once again busy editing texts and finalising summative assessments, so over the coming weeks you will see a whole lot of new material going up. 

The reason for this communication is not only to wish you all a Happy New year, it is also a request to make a note of the dedicated e-mail address we have now created specifically for this course. The address is [email protected] and the address should be used to communicate with INSOL International regarding any aspect of the course. Please note that mails sent to this address will be answered either by myself (as Course Leader) or Harriet (Hatty) Norman, a colleague who will be assisting me with the administration of the course going forward. If you wish to contact me personally, you may of course still use my e-mail address ([email protected]).

With best wishes,

David Burdette (Course Leader)

Update posted on Thursday 9 December 2021

I trust you are all well and staying safe amidst the ongoing Covid-19 crisis.

Feedback on the summative assessment for Module 1

The purpose of this update is to provide you with some feedback on the summative assessment for Module 1, which you all received back on Monday 6 December 2021. It was pleasing to see that 114 of the 128 registered candidates submitted their summative assessments for Module 1. There were also two candidates from the 2020/21 course who submitted, making a total of 116 submissions. 

Of the 116 assessments submitted, there was only one candidate who failed. Quite a few candidates obtained marks in the 90s, with the highest mark being 97%. It was pleasing to see that those who submitted the formative assessment in most cases achieved a higher mark in the summative assessment than in the formative assessment.

Generally I was very pleased with compliance with the instructions for uploading assessments and for including your student ID as a footer to the assessment. However, there were still quite a few candidates who did not bother to read the instructions and I had to do this work for them. It is really important that you include your student ID in your assessments as these are completely anonymised for the purposes of marking. The markers do not have class lists and consequently do not know whose assessments they are marking. The only way in which I can identify whose assessment it is, is if you include your student ID.

 I was also very pleased to see that our new education system seems to be functioning well, with no one reporting any issues of substance.

Summative assessments for Modules 2 and 3

 The next assessments, for Modules 2 and 3, are due on 1 March 2022. Please ensure that you submit the correct assessments (ie, for the compulsory modules you are registered for). When you open your student portal, your assessments are listed as being compulsory or elective in nature, so please ensure you know what the rules are regarding the submission of your compulsory assessments. Instructions are also included in the assessments themselves.

Elective Modules

I realise that there are still quite a few Guidance Texts and assessments for the elective modules that have not yet been uploaded. Please rest assured that I am working non-stop in order to get these up. While I had hoped to have everything up by the end of this month, it is likely that most of the missing materials will only be uploaded in the new year.

In closing . . .

As the year winds down I hope you will all have the opportunity of taking a break over the festive period. I wish you all the very best for the festive season, wherever you may be. I will be taking some much needed leave from 20 December 2021, returning to the office on 10 January 2022. However, I will be monitoring my e-mails during my leave and will respond to any queries you may have over the holiday period.

With best wishes,

David Burdette (Course Leader)

UPDATE POSTED ON FRIDAY 12 NOVEMBER 2021

I trust this message finds you all well.

Submission of Summative Assessment for Module 1

This is just a quick reminder that your summative assessment for Module 1 (for those of you who still have to complete Module 1) is due on Monday 15 November 2021 by 11 pm GMT. Please do not leave your upload to the last moment - try and get your assessment in well before the cut-off time. Please ensure you have received an e-mail notification to confirm that your upload was successful. If you do not receive such an e-mail, please e-mail me immediately, attaching the assessment document you attempted to upload. 

I was quite lenient with the submission of the formative assessments due to the fact that it was the first time any of you had used the system. Please note that there will be no leniency with the submission of the summative (formal) assessment and you are requested to kindly comply with the instructions as set out in the Course Handbook and on the course web pages. The rules are designed to treat all candidates on the course the same, and for that reason no exceptions will be made.

Good luck and have a great weekend!

David Burdette, Course Leader

Update Posted on Saturday 16 October 2021

I trust this message finds you all well.

Submission of Formative Assessment for Module 1

A total of 72 candidates (out of 128) on the 2021/22 Group submitted the formative assessment. These have now been uploaded for the lecturer to mark. Please bear in mind that the marks only have to be returned to me by 6 November 2021. The scripts will be returned to you by 7 November at the latest, although they will of course be returned earlier if I receive them back earlier. I will in any event return scripts as they are received back from the lecturer, unless they are all returned at the same time. You will receive an e-mail informing you that your script has been returned (this e-mail will also contain the mark you obtained). Please do not enquire about your marked scripts before 7 November 2021.

I realise that receiving your marked assessments back on 7 November 2021 (at the latest) does not give you much time to prepare for the submission of the formal summative assessment which is due on 15 November 2021. As a result, I have uploaded the proposed Model Answers to the formative assessment and this can be accessed by following this link. Despite providing you with the Model Answers to the formative assessment, your submitted assessments will be marked by the lecturer and you will be provided with feedback. Please use the proposed Model Answers to check your own submitted assessment's answers in the meantime - this will assist you in preparing for the submission of your summative assessment on 15 November 2021.

Just a few remarks regarding the submission of the formative assessments: By and large most of you followed the instructions and saved the document in line with the instructions. However, there were more than a handful who did not populate the footer with your student ID as requested in the instructions. If you don't do this I have to, which takes up a lot of unnecessary time. Please read and follow the instructions! There were some candidates who thought that the time for submission (11 pm BST - which is GMT +!) was merely a suggestion but then found that the submission portal had closed. Please note that the deadline is a hard one and not merely indicative of more or less the time when the assessment should be uploaded. Please also do not wait until the last minute before uploading your assessment - make provision for things to go wrong as in my experience they inevitably do. Please also note that the time of 11 pm is based on the UK timezone, not your local timezone. Other than that the submission process seems to have gone smoothly. If anyone reading this did not receive an e-mail when submitting their assessment, please let me know as soon as possible.

Finally, despite the note on the course web pages instruction you to e-mail [email protected] if you have any issues, please e-mail me directly at [email protected].. While e-mails sent to [email protected] will eventually reach me, it is much faster to e-mail me directly.

I trust you will all enjoy your weekend now that the first assessment has been submitted.

Best wishes,

David Burdette (Course Leader)

One week to go for submission of the formative assessment for Module 1 - posted Friday 8 October 2021

I hope my post finds you all well and in good health!

Formative Assessment: Module 1

Today in a week's time the formative assessment for Module 1 (Introduction to International Insolvency Law) is due. This is just a reminder to ensure you follow the instructions in the handbook for naming and uploading files. The model answer to the formative assessment will be made available here (via a link) on Saturday 16 October 2021. This is to enable you to prepare for the summative (formal) assessment that is due by 15 November 2021. While submission of the formative assessment is not compulsory, you are urged to submit it as part of your preparation for the summative (formal) assessments on this course.

Elective Module Guidance Texts and Assessments

Those of you who access the course web pages on a regular basis will have noticed that I have uploaded a number of Guidance Texts over the past month or so. Where these were approved by the Course Committee, I also uploaded a number of assessments for the various modules. Where Guidance Texts have been uploaded but not the assessment, these are awaiting approval by the Course Committee. I will continue to upload the Guidance Texts and assessments as they are completed on my end.

Copying and pasting from the Guidance Texts and copying the work of other candidates on the course

During the 2020/21 course it was unfortunate that lecturers on certain modules flagged the fact that candidates on the course were copying and pasting text from the Guidance Texts straight into their assessment answers. This is prohibited by the rules of the course and you would do well to consult the Course Handbook regarding the consequences of plagiarism. You MUST answer the questions in your own words and where you do use material written / published by others, you MUST acknowledge the sources you have used. Lecturers who mark assessments have been instructed to use their discretion where this does happen and sanctions will vary from only receiving half the marks available for a particular question to receiving no marks at all. This may lead to you failing the assessment. 

On a more serious note, we had two separate cases of students copying from each other during the 2020/21 course. With mostly legal and accounting professionals undertaking the course, it goes without saying that the course works on a the basis of trust in that candidates are expected to submit their own work. When your submit your assessments, you are required to confirm that you have completed the assessment independently, that it is your own work and that you have cited all sources used. The markers / lecturers will pick up very quickly if two or more students have copied from each other. Please note that INSOL International has a zero tolerance approach to dishonesty on this course and the sanctions that will be imposed are severe. Please consult the Course Handbook where you will see that termination of your course is one of the possible outcomes if you are caught cheating in the assessments. In those cases where candidates have been caught copying, the consequences have been swift and severe. I most certainly hope that there will be no cases of dishonesty during the 2021/22 course. However, please be warned that INSOL will not hesitate to take disciplinary steps against anyone who has been accused of dishonesty on the course. 

In order to address this issue properly, I am considering recording a video explaining what plagiarism is and what acceptable / unacceptable behaviour is on this course. I will provide an update in this regard in due course.

Good luck with the submission of your formative assessment for Module 1. Please do not hesitate to reach out if you need assistance or if there is something that you do not understand.

Have a great weekend.

Best wishes

David Burdette (Course Leader)

Important note for candidates who completed the Foundation Certificate in 2020/21: Posted Monday 6 September 2021

Certificates for successful candidates in 2020/21

I have received a number of enquiries about when the certificates for successful candidates who completed the 2020/21 course will be sent to candidates. Please note that the certificates will only be prepared after the re-sit examinations have concluded in October 2021. All successful candidates will be contacted separately by e-mail to confirm how they want their names displayed on the certificate and also to confirm the address to which the certificate must be posted. Please reply to that e-mail promptly when it is sent out.

De-linking student portals for candidates who completed the course in 2020/21

Please note that the student portals of candidates who completed the course during 2020/21 will be de-linked at the end of September 2021. This means that from the beginning of October 2021 you will no longer be able to access your student portal or download documents or certificates. You are therefore requested to ensure that you have downloaded all you need from the student portal by the end of September 2021. No requests for the sending of certificates, results or Guidance Texts will be entertained once the relevant accounts have been de-linked from the system. It goes without saying that those who have enrolled to complete the course over two years will continue to have access to their student portals until the end of the second year of the course in 2022.

Best wishes,

David Burdette (Course Leader)

A Word of Welcome!

Welcome to the Course Administration page for the Foundation Certificate in International Insolvency Law. On this page you will find important information relating to the course itself as well as general information as the course progresses. This page will be used for any announcements regarding the course, so please access this page on a regular basis. New announcements will display at the top of the page, with older items appearing lower down. 

As a student in the class of 2021/22, you have the distinction of having been enrolled as part of only the third cohort of students on this course. During the first year a range of teething problems were experienced with the system we use to present the course. While most of those issues were addressed, it is worth noting that a new education system was implemented during 2021. You are on the new education system and while everything appears to be working normally, please do let me know if you experience any problems with the system at any time. I can be reached by e-mail at  [email protected].

I would also like to extend a special word of welcome (back) to those candidates from 2020/21 who elected to complete the course over two years. I trust you will be successful in the second year of the course. There are a number of candidates from the 2020/21 group who will finish the course this year. Just for information, for the current 2021/22 course there are a total of 129 candidates from 34 countries enrolled. For those of you thinking of asking for the names and contact details of those who are doing the course with you, please note that data protection laws in the UK prevent us from sharing this information.

Course Handbook

Your very first instruction on the course is to read through the Course Handbook. A link to the Course Handbook was sent to you by e-mail prior to the course commencing, but it is also accessible at all times in your student portal. The Course Handbook contains extremely important information relating to the course and the manner in which it is run. Please bear in mind that this course is essentially a course of self-study. We have gone to great lengths to ensure that all the information you require to complete the course is contained in the web pages of the Foundation Certificate and in the guidance texts for each module. If you have any questions relating to the information contained in the Course Handbook, please contact me by e-mail. It is imperative that you work through the entire Course Handbook as your very first instruction on this course. If you are unable or unwilling to read instructions, such as those provided in a multitude of places in the course materials, it would be remiss of me not to tell you that you will struggle with this course.

Structure of the Course

 It is important to note that the course is structured. When you look at the structure of the course, you will notice that the compulsory modules are dealt with first and are then followed by the elective modules. The first priority on the course is to get you all settled in and it is for that reason that Module 1, Introduction to International Insolvency Law, is dealt with first. While the content of this module is not particularly difficult, it does lay the foundation for the rest of the course. It is important that you understand the basic principles of international insolvency law before tackling the other compulsory modules and then the elective modules. Please be warned that Modules 2A and 2B are a lot more difficult than Module 1, especially for persons who have had no exposure to international insolvency law instruments such as the UNCITRAL Model Laws relating to insolvency and the European Insolvency Regulation. Candidates are urged to make provision for sufficient time to master the content of these two modules.

Your first priority should be to work through the Module 1 Guidance Text and then to start work on the Formative Assessment for Module 1. The Formative Assessment is a practice assessment that has been set to help guide you through the Module 1 materials and is also designed to give you some idea of what to expect in respect of the Summative Assessments you have to complete for each module on the course. The Summative Assessments are the formal assessments (examination, if you like) that determine whether you pass or fail the module. More information regarding assessments has been provided below. The Summative Assessment for Module 1 is due one month after the submission date for the Formative Assessment, so all candidates are encouraged to submit the formative assessment for Module 1 as this is the only practice assessment you will be given the opportunity of completing. The marking guide for the formative assessment will be uploaded to this page as soon as the formative assessment date has passed (ie on 16 October 2021). Please note that this is the only marking guide that will be provided to candidates.

Once you have completed the assessments on Module 1, you can start working on the Guidance Texts for Modules 2A, 2B, 3A and 3B. These are the compulsory modules on the course and also electives for for those candidates who decided to take the alternative choice of module as an elective. For those of you who are doing both Modules 2A and 2B, or both Modules 3A and 3B, please take note of the submission dates for assessments, depending on whether you have taken the module as a compulsory or an elective module. The guidance texts and assessments for Modules 1 (both formative and summative), 2A, 2B, 3A and 3B have already been uploaded. The Guidance Texts and can be found under the "Course Content" tab on the course web pages and the assessments under the "Assessments" tab. You are free to start working on the assessments for Modules 2 and 3 if you so wish, although you are urged to initially only focus on the two assessments for Module 1.

The assessments for modules 4 to 9 will be uploaded as they are received back from the authors. Please bear in mind that there are 36 elective modules and five compulsory modules on this course and since I am the only one working on this, it takes time to get the updated texts and assessments uploaded to the system. Most authors have already returned their updated texts and new assessments and these will be uploaded just as soon as I have had time to edit them and prepare them for publication. My aim is to have all the module guidance texts and assessments uploaded by the end of December 2021.

Course Assessments

Information regarding the due date of assessments can be found in the Course Handbook and for each module under the Assessments tab on the course web pages. There are very specific instructions regarding the submission of assessments and candidates are requested to read and follow these instructions very carefully. With 129 of you enrolled on the course, and in order to ensure that assessments are marked quickly and accurately, you are requested to co-operate by following the instructions provided to you. Having the benefit of experience after having run the course for two years, I cannot over-emphasise the importance of reading (and complying with) the instructions that are provided to you.

It is also important to point out that this course is run on an entirely paperless basis. Assessments will be marked electronically in Microsoft Word, with comments or coloured text being used to provide you with feedback. When assessments are returned to you, this will be done in PDF format with the lecturers' feedback clearly visible. You will be informed by automated e-mail when you have submitted your assessment as well as when it is returned to you. The Course Handbook explains how to upload assessments and also where you will find your returned, marked assessment once it has been uploaded to your student dashboard.

All the assessments on the course count 50 marks. The breakdown of the mark allocation for each assessment is as follows: i) multiple-choice type questions - 10 marks; ii) direct questions - 10 marks; iii) essay-type questions - 15 marks; iv) fact-based application-type questions - 15 marks.

All assessments are open-book, although you will be asked to confirm that the assessment is your own work at the time it is submitted. Please consult the Course Handbook in this regard. On the last two courses (2019/20 and 2020/21) a multitude of problems were experienced with students copying and pasting their answers from the Guidance Text into their assessment answers. This is specifically prohibited and if this occurs during the course of this year, lecturers / markers have been instructed to award no marks for the questions where this has been done. All answers must be written in your own words. Where you do quote or use external sources for your answers, the source must be acknowledged. This is dealt with in detail in the Course Handbook, so please consult the relevant part.

Guidance Texts

The guidance texts for each module contain everything you need to know for the purposes of the assessments. You are not required to consult external or additional sources in order to answer the assessment questions, although in some cases you may be required to download texts (such as the UNCITRAL Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency). This will be made clear in the relevant guidance text.

The guidance texts and assessments for Modules 1, 2A, 2B, 3A and 3B have already been uploaded for you. These are in PDF format and are both downloadable and printable. As far as the remaining guidance texts for modules 4 to 9 are concerned, these are not needed until such time as the compulsory modules have been completed. As indicated, the Guidance Texts for the elective modules will be uploaded piecemeal as and when they are completed. For now, though, you have everything you need to start work on Module 1 and the four compulsory modules.

And finally . . .

With the course web pages now open, please do navigate your way around the site and familiarise yourself with the system. It is by no means a complicated system, as we wanted to keep the running of the course as simple as possible, both for you and those who have to administer the course.

Good luck to you all for the coming year!

With best wishes,

Dr David Burdette
Course Leader
1 September 2021