Meaning & use
course work or coursework
Last updated
Meanings
noununcountable
Work done by a student as part of a class or program, especially when it counts toward the final grade.
Grammar: No plural and no article: say 'a lot of coursework', not 'a coursework' or 'courseworks'.
Patterns
- do coursework
- coursework for a degree
- coursework and exams
Half of our grade comes from coursework, and half from the final exam.
She has a lot of coursework to finish before the weekend.
The biology degree is mostly coursework, with only one big exam.
noununcountable
Written or practical work done during a course, as opposed to a single final test.
Grammar: Often used to contrast with exams: 'assessment is by coursework and examination'.
Patterns
- assessment by coursework
- based on coursework
Assessment is by coursework and a final project.
Students who miss the exam can sometimes be graded on coursework alone.
Common combinations
- do coursework
- I need to do coursework all weekend.
- coursework deadline
- The coursework deadline is next Friday.
- coursework grade
- Her coursework grade was higher than her exam grade.
- assessed by coursework
- This module is assessed by coursework, not by exam.
Commonly confused: course work or coursework or course work?
course work or coursework vs course work
The two-word spelling is also used and means the same thing, but the one-word form coursework is standard in modern writing.
Practice
Choose the best sentence.
Choose one answer.
Coursework is uncountable, so it takes 'a lot of' and no plural -s. 'Courseworks' and 'a coursework' are wrong, and 'many' cannot be used with an uncountable noun.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “course work or coursework”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.