Publish grades
Release graded exam results to students, verify the Published tab, and understand locking, mixed-attempt progression, and irreversibility.
After grading submissions, publish them so students can see their results in their curriculum and module views. Publishing is the formal release step in the Exam Center lifecycle: until you publish, grades remain staff-only on the attempt; after you publish, results appear for students and submissions show on the Published tab.
This is distinct from publishing course grades inside a learning journey. LMS Publish all Grades lives under LMS grading. Here you release formal exam outcomes when you have permission to publish exam grades. Publishing also interacts with attempt progression — especially when a selection spans multiple attempt numbers — which is explained in How exam attempts work.
Why it matters
Universities treat grade release as a controlled disclosure event. Premature publication creates disputes; delayed publication blocks students from planning retakes, electives, and progression. Publishing in My Exams:
- Makes results visible in the student-facing curriculum and module views
- Moves work onto the Published tab for institutional oversight
- Can interact with attempt progression when mixed attempts are selected
- Locks notes and grades on that attempt against casual edits through the standard interface
Because the standard interface typically treats publish as irreversible (or only reversibly under narrow unpublish rules), verification before confirm is part of examination quality assurance. After release, plan resit communication using Exam results and resits.
How it fits
| Upstream / downstream | Role |
|---|---|
| Grade submissions | Enter grades before you can release them |
| Handle exam requests | Resolve open requests that would change timing or conditions |
| How exam attempts work | How release relates to attempt usage, resit eligibility, and module completion |
| Module grade calculation | How published exam marks feed module and final weighting |
| My Exams | Find the exam and open attempt / Published tabs |
| Statistics and reports | Institutional exports and custom reports after results exist |
| Grade and manage an exam | Same publish concept in the tab overview |
| Module Catalog / curriculum views | Where students later see outcomes that affect unelection and progression rules |
Key concepts
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Publish / Publish grades | Action that releases selected graded results to students |
| Published tab | List of submissions whose grades have been released |
| Results published count | Header indicator such as 3/25 Results Published relative to enrolled students |
| Mixed attempts | A selection spanning different attempt numbers; confirmation may warn about advancing to the next attempt |
| Lock after publish | Grade and note fields on that attempt typically become read-only for exam staff |
| Unpublish | Optional institution-enabled reversal for users with publish permission when no downstream module grade has been locked |
| Module completion | All required exams must still pass at the same term and attempt number — publishing one exam alone may not close the module |
Before you publish
Consider pausing if:
- Any selected student still has an unresolved exam request
- The confirmation dialog reports ungraded users in your selection
- Co-examiners have not finished calibration on the attempt
- You are about to publish a mixed-attempt selection without reading the summary
- Sibling exams on the same module are not ready and you need aligned attempt numbers for completion (How exam attempts work)
Publish grades
Open the exam and go to the relevant Attempt tab where submissions have been graded.
Select the student rows whose grades you want to release. You can also publish all graded users or an entire attempt from the toolbar.
Select Publish or Publish grades. A confirmation dialog shows how many users will be affected and whether any selected users are still ungraded.
Confirm. Grades become visible to students and the submissions appear on the Published tab.
Published tab
The Published tab lists all submissions whose grades have been released. Use it to verify which students have received their results and to review published grades in one place.
The tab header shows a count of published results relative to the total enrolled students (for example, 3/25 Results Published).
Lifecycle after publish
| Stage | Staff experience | Student experience |
|---|---|---|
| Graded unpublished | Editable on attempt tab | No result yet |
| Publish confirmed | Rows move to Published; fields typically read-only | Results visible in curriculum / module views |
| Attempt progression (if applicable) | Mixed-attempt confirmations may warn about advancing | Eligible students may become candidates for a later sitting per rules |
| Unpublish (if enabled) | Only when institution allows and no downstream module grade is locked | Visibility may reverse per institution rules |
Irreversibility
Some institutions allow unpublish actions for users with publish permission when no downstream module grade has been locked — check with your administrator if unpublishing is enabled for your role.
Mixed attempts and confirmation
When publishing a selection that includes students on different attempt numbers, the confirmation dialog may warn that some students will advance to their next attempt if applicable. Review the mixed-attempt summary before confirming.
Publish scenarios
Clean Attempt 1 release
All selected students are graded on Attempt 1, no open requests, confirmation shows no ungraded users. Confirm. Students see results; staff use the Published tab to match the results count to enrollment. Failed students may later appear on Attempt 2 under auto reattempt or after reassessment approval — see How exam attempts work.
Accidental early publish
A mark was wrong but already published. The standard interface typically locks edits. Ask whether unpublish is enabled for your role and whether any downstream module grade has been locked. Prevention (Pending review, calibration, spot-checks) is the primary control.
Mixed Attempt 1 and Attempt 2 selection
The confirmation may warn that some students will advance to their next attempt. Read the summary carefully. If you only intended to release Attempt 1 fails for a resit window, deselect Attempt 2 rows first.
Reassessment-gated Attempt 2
Under reassessment period, publish Attempt 1 fails first, ensure reassessment requests are approved, schedule Attempt 2, grade, then publish Attempt 2 as its own coherent batch.
Multi-exam module
Publishing a pass on the written exam does not complete the module until every required exam passes at the same term and attempt number. Coordinate publish timing across related instances so students and reports do not assume premature completion. See Module grade calculation.
Permanent failure communication
When publish reveals that a student has exhausted failed attempts, they are permanently failed for the module. Treat that as a regulatory outcome your exam office must process — not only a UI label (Configure attempt limits).
Best practices
- Publish in coherent batches. Prefer releasing a calibrated Attempt 1 cohort together rather than dripping single grades unless policy requires rolling release.
- Read the confirmation dialog fully. Ungraded users in the selection and mixed-attempt warnings are easy to miss under time pressure.
- Use the Published tab as a checklist. Match the results count to enrollment expectations for the term.
- Coordinate with reporting. After major release windows, institutional teams may run statistics exports — publish complete sets first when possible.
- Do not confuse LMS and CMS release. Course Publish all Grades does not publish Exam Center results, and vice versa.
- Resolve requests first. Open accommodations or reassessment decisions should not be overtaken by a locked published mark.
Common pitfalls
| Situation | Likely cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Publish control unavailable | Missing publish permission | Request permission to publish exam grades |
| Dialog warns about ungraded users | Selection includes students without saved grades | Deselect them or finish grading first |
| Cannot edit after publish | Expected read-only behavior | Verify before publish; ask about unpublish if enabled |
| Unexpected next attempt | Mixed-attempt publish advanced some students | Review mixed-attempt confirmation carefully next time |
| Student cannot see result | Grade saved but not published, or wrong view | Confirm Published tab status; students see curriculum / module views, not My Exams |
| Module still open after publish | Sibling required exam not passed at same term and attempt | Align related exams — How exam attempts work |
FAQ
Does saving a grade publish it?
No. Saving grades the submission for staff. Students see results only after you select Publish or Publish grades and confirm.
Can I unpublish?
Some institutions allow unpublish for users with publish permission when no downstream module grade has been locked. Ask your administrator whether it is enabled for your role.
Where do published results appear for students?
In their curriculum and module views. Staff continue to review released work on the exam Published tab.
How is this different from LMS Publish all Grades?
LMS publishing releases course content-block grades inside FuxamLMS. This page releases formal Exam Center outcomes. See LMS grading.
Why did publishing affect the next attempt?
A mixed-attempt selection can trigger a confirmation warning about advancing to the next attempt when applicable. Publish one attempt number at a time if you need stricter control, and read How exam attempts work.
Related pages
Grade submissions
Enter grades before publishing.
Exam results and resits
After release — resits, transcripts, and permanent failure.
How exam attempts work
Attempt progression, completion, and permanent failure.
Exams
Find and open an exam before working through its tabs.
Statistics and reports
Export exam data at the institutional level.
LMS grading
Course-level grade publication in FuxamLMS.