Exam Postponement and Rescheduling Requests Policy
It is expected that students will sit for all examinations as scheduled. Tentative examination schedules are available to students at the time of course pre-registration. Students are therefore expected to have reviewed and considered the examination schedule for all courses in which they enroll.
The exam period is intensive for all students. It is not uncommon for students to have exams on successive days or to have two exams in one day. Students are also expected to plan for the due dates of papers/projects assigned during the semester and to properly manage the time allotted for take-home examinations. Adjustments to a student’s exam schedule will only be made for the following reasons:
- A student has three proctored examinations in 53 hours. In this case, the student may request that one be rescheduled. Take-home exams and papers/projects are not counted for the purposes of this provision.
- A student has a direct conflict with two scheduled exams. This provision does not apply to situations where a student has a scheduled exam that falls at the same time a paper, project or take-home exam is due.
- A student is taking a remote exam from another time zone such that the exam time would fall during the overnight or otherwise unreasonable hours
- A student is experiencing an extraordinary personal matter or emergency situation which presents an unavoidable conflict with the exam. Examples of this include an issue relating to the health of the student, or close family member, or death of a loved-one. Unexpected and unavoidable conflicts with work. Child/ elder care and other significant personal matters will be considered under this provision as well. Documentation is required for this type of request. Not all emergency situations are easily documented. In these situations, the Dean of Students Office will offer the student an alternate means of verifying their circumstances
Dual degree students may request relief under the above provisions for their law school exams. In such cases, the student’s entire exam schedule (law and non-law, including non-law classes and academic requirements) will be considered in determining if a postponement of a law school exam is appropriate and if so, a make-up date that does not conflict with the students other dual degree requirements.
Students who wish to request adjustment to their exam schedule must not discuss the matter with their professor. Instead, students with three exams in 53 hours, two exams in direct conflict, or who have a time-zone issue should complete the Academic Services Office online exam reschedule form. Students seeking to reschedule exams due to an emergency situation or extraordinary personal matter should contact the Dean of Students Office at [email protected].
Any rescheduled examination will be administered on a date no earlier than the date originally set. Please note that ExamSoft may not be available for all rescheduled examinations.
The general policy is that exams will not be postponed for situations occurring during the semester that cause a student to lose study time. If a student experiences such a situation, he or she is encouraged to meet, as soon as possible, with the Dean of Students Office to discuss what options are available to the student. If properly documented, these options may include a Leave of Absence or reduction of course load. Students experiencing such situations during the semester should notify the Dean of Students Office, in writing, no later than the commencement of the exam period for the semester or session in which the situation occurred.
Date and Time Limit on Exam Postponements
If an exam is postponed in accordance with this policy, it must be taken on the make-up date and time set by the Dean of Students Office and/or the Office of Academic Services. In no case will a student be allowed to take a postponed exam later than 30 days after the exam was originally administered. If a student cannot take an exam within the 30-day time period following the original date of the administration of the examination, the exam will be treated as a failure to take the examination under the Law School’s Rules and Regulations – III. F – Grading/Exams; Failure to Take Exams.
Papers, Projects and Take-home Exams
Students are expected to plan for the due dates of papers, projects and take-home exams. If a student experiences an unforeseeable, extraordinary personal matter or emergency situation which presents an unavoidable conflict with the deadline for a paper, project or take-home, the student should contact the Dean of Students Office for assistance (unless the student is sure that the professor is accepting the paper, project or take-home non-anonymously, in which case the student should contact the professor for assistance). Examples of an unforeseeable, extraordinary personal or emergency situation include an issue relating to the health of the student, or close family member, or death of a family member. Documentation is required for this type of request.
More information regarding extensions beyond the end of the semester, including the limitation on enrolling in classes with Incompletes or Exam Excusals from a previous semester, may be found in the Law School’s Rules and Regulations II.J. Academic Standards; Extensions Beyond the End of the Semester.