Grading at VAA Global happens in two distinct ways, depending on what's being assessed. Practical assignments get reviewed directly by instructors, who give feedback based on the actual work a student submits. Module exams, on the other hand, use structured formats like fill-in-the-gap and multiple choice questions, graded fairly and consistently across students. Together, these two approaches are meant to check both whether a student can apply what they've learned and whether they've retained the underlying material.
Two Different Types of Assessment
VAA Global's courses aren't graded with a single method, because a single method doesn't capture everything that matters. Practical, applied work needs a human instructor looking at it and giving specific feedback. Retention of core concepts, on the other hand, is better checked through structured exams that can be assessed consistently. Both pieces feed into how a student progresses through a course.
This two-part structure also reflects what actually gets evaluated once a graduate is working. A job rarely tests someone with a multiple choice exam, but it does expect that the underlying knowledge is solid, and it constantly evaluates the quality of applied work. VAA Global's grading is built to prepare students for both.
How Practical Assignment Feedback Works
When a student submits a practical assignment, an instructor reviews it directly rather than running it through an automated checker. This matters because practical work in most VAA Global courses doesn't have a single "correct" answer, it has better and worse approaches, and only a person with real working knowledge of the subject can give feedback that's actually useful.
The feedback students get on these assignments is meant to be specific to what they submitted: what worked, what didn't, and what to adjust. This is also where instructors catch gaps in understanding before they compound into bigger problems later in the course.
How Module Exams Work
Module exams are structured differently. They generally use fill-in-the-gap and multiple choice question formats to test whether a student has retained and understood the material covered in that section of the course. These formats allow for consistent, fair grading across every student taking the same exam, since the questions and expected answers are set in advance.
These exams are typically spaced through the course at the end of each module, giving both the student and the instructor a checkpoint on whether the material has actually landed before moving on to the next section.
What "Fair and Normalized" Grading Means
Grading on module exams is designed to be applied consistently, meaning the same standard is used across all students rather than shifting from one student to the next. This is what "normalized" grading refers to in practice: a student's score reflects their answers against a set standard, not a comparison that could unfairly advantage or disadvantage anyone based on when they took the exam or who else is in their cohort.
Pass Requirements Vary by Course
Not every course or exam has the same pass threshold. One specific example is the HIPAA-related exam, which requires an 80 percent score to pass. That figure is specific to that particular exam and shouldn't be assumed to apply to other courses or modules, since pass requirements are set according to what each subject actually demands.
If you're curious about the pass requirement for a specific course you're considering, the most reliable way to find out is to check the course catalogue or ask directly during the application process rather than assuming a single number applies across the board.
Why This Two-Part System Matters for Learning
The combination of instructor-reviewed practical feedback and structured exam grading is meant to mirror how skills actually get used on the job. Real work rarely comes with a multiple choice answer key, so the practical assignments train students for that reality, while exams make sure the foundational knowledge behind that work is solid. Neither piece is treated as a formality, both are part of how a student moves through the course toward the 2-month internship.
Students who take both parts seriously, rather than treating exams as a box to check or assignments as busywork, tend to arrive at the internship stage noticeably more prepared, since that stage assumes a level of comfort with the material that only comes from engaging honestly with both forms of assessment along the way.
If you want a clearer sense of how a specific course is assessed, check the details on the course catalogue, or start an application to begin the process directly and see the grading and feedback system for yourself once your course begins.
