WSET Diploma Unit 1 Assessment
Current Assessment Information
For students who registered for the Diploma August, 2008 or later (known as NEW students), Unit 1's grade comes from one 2,500-3,000 word coursework assignment and one closed-book essay exam. Students who began their Diploma studies before August, 2008 (known as TRANSITIONAL students) continue to be exempt from the closed-book essay exam; their Unit 1 grade comes from four shorter (1,500-2,000 word) coursework assignments.
The topics for both NEW and TRANSITIONAL students are set by WSET in London and change each academic year. The assignments will all include a business focus, requiring you to address concepts from the Unit 1 course materials and/or classes.
Coursework assignments for the 2009-10 academic year are available at the WSET website. Please note that while TRANSITIONAL students have a choice of topics for either the November or April submission dates, NEW students have one topic for the November date and a different topic for the April date. WSET will reject any November submissions of the April topic and will fail any April submissions of the prior November's topic.
You may find the WSET Examiners' Reports, which are available from our Diploma Exam & Resources page, to be a helpful resource when preparing for Unit 1 assessments.
Coursework Registration and Submission Due Dates
The papers are graded by the WSET in London. Papers are due (to us) on either of two dates each year, generally the second Tuesday in April and the second Tuesday in November. (See our schedule for upcoming due dates.) We send submitted papers on to London by express courier immediately after the due date.
We must register you for a coursework assignment of your choice (and pay WSET for it) at least 13 workdays before the due date so you must let us know you want to do an assignment -- and pay for it -- at least 3 weeks before the due date. Once you have registered to submit one or more papers on one of the due dates, it is imperative that you submit them by that due date, as WSET will not accept late coursework assignments, and will give you a "fail" grade for that assignment. You will lose not only the money you paid to register for that assignment, but you will also have wasted whatever time you put into research and writing the assignment, because WSET will not let you submit that assignment on a later due date.
You can begin researching and writing your coursework assignments as soon as they are posted by WSET (usually in May), but we can't submit them to WSET until the specified due dates.
If you are a transitional student (enrolled in Diploma studies before August 1, 2008), you can continue to do as many of or as few of the four assignments as you like each year, as long as you successfully complete four of them before June, 2010. More information for transitional students.
Note: New Diploma students who begin their studies in the winter semester will not be able to submit any coursework assignments until the November due date because their Unit 2 exams will not be given until after the April due date. They will be invited to attend Unit 1 classes in the fall semester which will assist with their coursework assignments.
Cover Sheets for Coursework Submissions
When submitting your coursework assignments to us, please fill out and include a cover sheet:
- Phillywine Unit 1 Coursework Cover Sheet for 2009-10 (Word document)