1. Purpose and principles

1.1This policy operates under the Constitution and governs contribution records, scoring, qualification and termly assessment.

1.2The contribution system recognises completed work that produces genuine benefits for the Society, its members or the wider student community.

1.3The system is designed so that any attempt to increase a score requires delivering additional genuine benefit. If a route emerges for gaining credit without producing such benefit, the scoring rules must be adjusted to remove that route.

1.4Contribution assessment does not replace the separate requirements of competence, reliability, judgement, trustworthy conduct and role-specific suitability.

1.5Only work that complies with the Society's non-ideological principle, safeguarding requirements and other applicable rules may receive contribution credit.

2. Administration and assessment

2.1The Senior Member is responsible for the contribution system and may appoint one or more Contribution Assessors to administer it.

2.2The Society will identify the Contribution Assessor or Assessors responsible for each term.

2.3Assessors must apply the published criteria consistently and keep a brief record explaining each score.

2.4An Assessor must disclose any personal or other material conflict that could reasonably affect an assessment. The Senior Member may assign the assessment to another person or determine it directly.

2.5An Assessor must not be the sole assessor of their own contribution.

2.6The Senior Member has final authority over the interpretation and application of this policy.

3. Contributions that may be recognised

3.1Recognised contributions may include:

1. proposing, planning and leading Society events or activities;
2. providing substantial or supporting work needed to deliver an event or activity;
3. producing social graphics, videos, publicity or member communications;
4. completing useful technical, administrative or operational projects;
5. mentoring or enabling another member to deliver worthwhile work; and
6. other completed work approved as beneficial to the Society, its members or the wider student community.

3.2Attendance, uncompleted promises, social visibility, friendship with a post-holder and the mere possession of a title do not constitute contribution.

3.3Work must produce a completed outcome or independently useful deliverable. Time spent without a useful result does not by itself earn credit.

3.4A repeated event or activity is a separate contribution whenever it is genuinely delivered again and provides a new benefit to members.

3.5Different steps involved in delivering one event, activity or project are normally assessed together as one contribution. A step may be assessed separately only where it produces a distinct benefit that remains useful independently of the wider activity.

3.6Work on an event or activity that does not proceed may receive credit only where the member completed a reusable deliverable or another independently useful result. Cancellation outside the member's control may be considered when assessing execution and reliability, but does not by itself create contribution credit.

4. Contribution levels and scoring

4.1Each completed contribution is recorded as supporting, substantial or leading according to the responsibility actually undertaken:

1. Supporting contribution: the member completed a defined supporting task without substantial ownership of the overall outcome.
2. Substantial contribution: the member took ownership of a significant part of the work or shared responsibility for the overall outcome.
3. Leading contribution: the member took primary responsibility for planning, coordinating and delivering the overall outcome.

4.2Each contribution is scored out of 10 using four dimensions:

4.3The score is the total awarded across the four dimensions. Execution quality and reliability have a maximum of 2 points each.

4.4A contribution receiving 0 for responsibility, benefit delivered or execution quality receives no contribution score.

4.5The termly contribution score is the sum of all contribution scores awarded for that Oxford term.

4.6Misconduct and suitability concerns are not converted into negative points and cannot be offset by accumulating a higher contribution score.

5. Qualification thresholds

5.1A member becomes a Qualified Contributor for the following Oxford term where they:

1. receive a termly contribution score of at least 10 points; and
2. complete at least one substantial or leading contribution during the assessed term.

5.2Eligibility for Events Coordinator additionally requires at least one substantial or leading contribution to the planning or delivery of a Society event or activity during the assessed term.

5.3Eligibility for Media and Communications Coordinator additionally requires at least one substantial or leading contribution involving Society publicity, graphics, video, media or member communications during the assessed term.

5.4Eligibility for President requires:

1. Qualified Contributor status in at least two of the previous three completed Oxford terms;
2. at least three leading contributions to Society events or activities across those terms;
3. event-delivery experience in at least two separate Oxford terms; and
4. demonstrated ability to plan and coordinate multiple events or activities as part of a coherent programme.

5.5Qualification is assessed again each term. Previous qualification does not create automatic continuing eligibility, appointment or renewal.

5.6Where a vacancy arises during a term, eligibility is determined using the most recent completed termly assessment.

5.7Any additional functional post must have published qualification requirements before expressions of interest are invited.

5.8Reaching a threshold creates eligibility for consideration. Appointments remain governed by the Constitution and are not determined by score ranking.

6. Evidence and termly procedure

6.1Contribution records should identify:

1. what the member undertook to do;
2. what was completed;
3. the member's level of responsibility;
4. the benefit delivered; and
5. any evidence reasonably needed to verify the contribution.

6.2Evidence may include event plans, booking or venue correspondence, published event pages, attendance information, completed graphics or media, communications, budgets, feedback or other relevant deliverables.

6.3Members and post-holders should record contributions promptly after completion. A member may submit evidence of a missing or incomplete record directly to the Contribution Assessor.

6.4The Society will publish the submission deadline and expected assessment date for each term.

6.5After assessment, each assessed member will receive their score and a breakdown of the contributions recorded.

6.6Termly assessment must be completed before appointments are made for the following Oxford term wherever reasonably practicable.

7. Corrections and score reviews

7.1A member may request correction of a factual error, missing contribution or misapplication of the published scoring criteria.

7.2A request should identify the disputed assessment, explain the requested correction and provide any relevant evidence. No particular academic or legal format is required.

7.3A correction request should normally be made within 5 days after the member receives their assessment.

7.4The Contribution Assessor will reconsider the assessment and provide the outcome privately.

7.5A member who remains dissatisfied may ask the Society for a final review. The Senior Member has final authority over the application of this policy.

7.6A score review determines only the correct contribution assessment. It does not create an entitlement to appointment or renewal.

8. Publication and privacy

8.1The Society may publish a qualifying member's name and termly score only with that member's consent.

8.2Declining publication does not affect qualification or eligibility.

8.3Non-qualifying results, assessment breakdowns, evidence and correction requests remain private to the member and those responsible for administering the system, except where disclosure is required by law or reasonably necessary to address misconduct or protect the Society or another person.

8.4Published qualifying results must be presented alphabetically or in another neutral form. They must not be ordered or presented as a competitive ranking.

8.5Contribution records and related personal information are handled under the Society's Privacy Policy.

9. Conduct and suitability

9.1Contribution scores measure positive work only. They do not certify conduct, competence, trustworthiness or suitability for a particular post.

9.2Misconduct, dishonesty, unsafe behaviour, financial irresponsibility, serious unreliability, an undisclosed material conflict or loss of constitutional eligibility may prevent qualification, appointment or renewal regardless of score.

9.3Where appropriate and consistent with safety, confidentiality and the rights of others, the Society will tell an affected member privately that a separate suitability concern has prevented qualification or appointment.

9.4Involvement in a complaint, investigation, removal or temporary coverage of duties creates no additional score, qualification or appointment priority.

10. Anti-gaming and policy changes

10.1Assessors consider the substance of completed work rather than the labels applied to it.

10.2Artificially dividing one activity into several tasks does not create several contributions unless each task independently delivers a genuine benefit.

10.3Repeating a genuinely beneficial event or activity is not artificial division. Each successful delivery may receive its own assessment.

10.4False, misleading or materially incomplete claims receive no credit and may be treated as misconduct.

10.5Changes to scoring criteria or thresholds must be approved by the Senior Member and published before they take effect.

10.6Changes normally apply from the next Oxford term and do not retrospectively reduce scores properly awarded under the policy then in force. Factual errors, duplicate credit, fraud or misrepresentation may be corrected retrospectively.

10.7This policy takes effect when approved by the Senior Member and published by the Society.