AbstractThe paper examines how the role of assessment shapes the student experience of higher education. It raises questions about how assessment can facilitate flexible learning in a system of mass higher education and challenge pedagogic assumptions about the value of content‐driven syllabi. The student body in many higher education institutions is increasingly disparate which necessitates an educational experience which is meaningful to each individual student. This requires a deconstruction of traditional assessment methods. The paper draws on two empirical sources. Firstly, interviews with students at the University of Central Lancashire who are involved in a personal development programme. Secondly, interviews with students from Alverno College, Milwaukee, USA which operate a ‘liberal learning’ programme. The aim of the paper is not to draw comparisons between two institutions but to illustrate how assessment is considered central to the educational experience as illustrated through student discourse. The paper argues that the student perception of learning has implications for quality, both of the educational experience of the student and at an institutional level. Finally, a case will be made for assessment which is both ‘student‐centred’ and accountable.