[dvdhsu]

This is similar to how the system at Oxford works (I think this is how the rest of the British universities do it as well.). Your degree class (essentially your GPA) is solely based on tests you take at the end of every year of your degree (three for a BA, four for a MComp). There are practicals (lab sessions) and tutorials (conversations with tutors about problem sets), but those don't affect your degree class, unless you do terribly.

With all the testing in American universities, the British (?) system is quite refreshing.

[setrofim_]

I believe this is the case for most British universities, most "traditional" universities anyway (not sure about former polytechnics, etc). Sometimes there is also coursework that contributes to your final degree (my CS course had a group project in the second year and an a dissertation based on an individual project in the final year), but all the exams take place at the end of the year.

My uni also weighted the exams so that the final year contributed much more to the final "grade" than the first year, effectively putting most of the pressure on the final term of the last year.