University Extenuating Circumstances: Process, Classification, and Form, Summaries of School management&administration

Download University Extenuating Circumstances: Process, Classification, and Form and more Summaries School management&administration in PDF only on Docsity! 1 What to do if you think your studies are being affected by extenuating circumstances The following Frequently Asked Questions are intended to help you in deciding what to do about any problems that you are having that may be affecting your studies. It is important that you understand the University’s process for supporting students with extenuating circumstances. This process may be very different from that which you have been used to at school or college and requires you to take some responsibility and to be proactive. It is also essential that you follow the guidance given. There have been a number of cases in recent years of students with very genuine problems who we have not been able to help because they did not, for example, submit an extenuating circumstances form before the appropriate deadline. The answers to the questions are given as guidance and are not intended to be definitive. Full details of how the University supports students with extenuating circumstances are given in the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes. What is an extenuating circumstance? .................................................................................. 2 What isn’t an extenuating circumstance? .............................................................................. 2 What is the difference between a known and a developing circumstance? ....................... 2 How are extenuating circumstances classified? .................................................................... 3 What options are open to a Board of Examiners in considering extenuating circumstances? .......................................................................................................................... 3 How should I complete my Extenuating Circumstances Form? ......................................... 4 I have talked to my personal tutor about my problems. Do I still need to submit an Extenuating Circumstances Form? ........................................................................................ 4 What evidence do I need to provide? ..................................................................................... 4 I think that I’ll do well enough in my exams even though I have problems. Should I still submit an Extenuating Circumstances Form? ...................................................................... 4 I suffer from exam stress. What should I do? ........................................................................ 4 Should I suspend studies? ........................................................................................................ 5 What happens if I attend an exam knowing that my performance may be affected by an extenuating circumstance? ...................................................................................................... 5 What happens if I am ill on the day of an exam? .................................................................. 5 I am worried that I am not going to do very well in my exams. Can I ask to defer them? .................................................................................................................................................... 5 Should I submit an Extenuating Circumstances Form as an insurance policy, just in case something goes wrong?............................................................................................................ 5 I find it difficult to talk about my circumstances. What should I do? .................................. 6 Who should I ask for advice? ................................................................................................... 6 I didn’t tell anyone about my problems. Can I appeal? ........................................................ 6 2 What is an extenuating circumstance? It is difficult to provide an exact definition of an extenuating circumstance, because every student is different. However, examples of extenuating circumstances typically include everything from physical and mental illness to personal problems. The illness may be something like depression, that can affect your studies over a long period, or a migraine that just affects one exam. Personal problems might include a family bereavement, housing difficulties or being the victim of a crime. Extenuating circumstances may be on-going chronic conditions that have a long-term impact over a period of weeks or months throughout the teaching block and so affect all aspects of your study. Alternatively they may be acute circumstances, which last for a few days or hours and just affect preparation for exams or the assessment itself. If you wish a Board of Examiners to take into account such an extenuating circumstance, you must submit an Extenuating Circumstances form. What isn’t an extenuating circumstance? There are, of course, some problems that have an impact your performance in an assessment that would not be classed as extenuating because they are within your control. These might include travel problems, such as booking travel tickets without checking the dates of an examination, a late bus or train, or the breakdown of a car. Problems with a computer, such as a virus or a corrupted file would also not usually be considered as extenuating, because you should keep a back up of everything that you do. Personal circumstances that might reasonably be expected to form part of normal life, such as the break up of a relationship with a boyfriend or girlfriend, or voluntarily moving accommodation would also not usually be classed as extenuating. It is also natural to want to help a friend who is having difficulties, but you should be careful to make sure that your support does not affect your own studies, because this is unlikely to be considered as an extenuating circumstance. Furthermore, the impact of taking on paid employment, whether full or part time, would also not usually be considered as an extenuating circumstance. If you are ever in doubt as to whether your problems might be considered as extenuating, you should, of course, ask in advance for advice. What is the difference between a known and a developing circumstance? The University distinguishes between known and developing circumstances. Examples of known circumstances include conditions such as dyslexia, dyspraxia, Aspergers Syndrome or autism. The impact of a known circumstance would usually be accommodated in advance through the development of a Disability Support Summary or Learning Support Plan with Alternative Exam Arrangements such as extra time or rest breaks, put in place where appropriate. A Board of Examiners would not usually be expected to make any additional allowance as a result of a known circumstance. Only if the condition worsens or is exacerbated by another problem would we expect a student with a known circumstance to submit an Extenuating Circumstances Form. Developing circumstances are those for which appropriate arrangements have not already been put in place. These might include everything from the onset of a long-term physical or mental-health problem, an accident, the death of a close relative during a revision period, or a migraine in an exam. For a developing circumstance, even if you have told someone informally about your problem, you must submit an Extenuating Circumstances Form. How can I request Alternative Exam Arrangements? You may request alternative exam arrangements by submitting an Alternative Exam Arrangements form. A link to a copy of the form, and details of the deadlines for submission, are given on the Academic Registry website. A validated assessment of your circumstances, such as a Disability Support Summary, will usually be required in order to ensure that we can accommodate your needs 5 Should I suspend studies? For some students, the impact of an on-going developing chronic circumstance can be such that their studies are affected over a prolonged period. In such cases, it is usually advisable for you to suspend studies rather than continue and submit an Extenuating Circumstances Form. Suspension gives time for you to recover completely, or for a Disability Support Summary to be put in place. What happens if I attend an exam knowing that my performance may be affected by an extenuating circumstance? We do expect students to take some personal responsibility for managing their extenuating circumstances. You will usually be the best person to decide whether you are well enough to sit an exam. Indeed, a Board of Examiners may decide that because you chose to sit an exam, your condition cannot have been sufficiently serious to require any additional accommodation to be made. Thus, whatever a well-meaning friend or parent might advise, it is rarely a good idea to sit an exam if you know that you have problems on the expectation that a Board of Examiners will definitely take your circumstances into account. What happens if I am ill on the day of an exam? If, on the day of an exam, you consider that your illness or other circumstances are sufficient that they will have a significant impact on your performance, you should contact your School immediately. This is especially important if you are unable to sit the exam. Equally, if your symptoms develop during an exam, then you should alert an invigilator so that there is a record of your illness. In each case, you should also complete an Extenuating Circumstances Form. I am worried that I am not going to do very well in my exams. Can I ask to defer them? If you have genuine problems outside your control that mean that your performance in forthcoming exams is likely to be significantly affected, then the Board of Examiners may well agree to your deferring your exams until the August/September examination period. However, deferring exams is not without consequences, as it will mean that you will have to spend your summer preparing. Furthermore, if you are not able to complete your assessment in August/September either because you do not achieve the required standard to pass, or because of other circumstances, you may not be permitted to progress until the following academic year. Nevertheless, most students with genuine extenuating circumstances welcome such allowance because it allows them to demonstrate their true potential. If, instead, you are worried about your performance because you have not engaged fully with your studies, or for other reasons that we would not consider extenuating, then you should talk to your Personal Academic Tutor or Senior Tutor immediately. They may well be able to help you to get back on track, or at least to minimise the impact of your problems. They may even advise suspending studies, but deferring exams would not usually be an option. Should I submit an Extenuating Circumstances Form as an insurance policy, just in case something goes wrong? No! Our extenuating circumstances process is intended to help students with genuine problems. If your problems are not genuine, it will neither be helpful to you, or to your School, if you submit an Extenuating Circumstances Form. You will be required to substantiate any submission by providing appropriate evidence and this can be time consuming and embarrassing if your problems are trivial. If you are in any doubt about whether your circumstances might be considered as extenuating, you should seek advice. 6 I find it difficult to talk about my circumstances. What should I do? We appreciate that some students find it very difficult to talk about their problems, especially if they are of a personal or sensitive nature. Equally, we are aware that in some cultures, it is considered inappropriate to talk to outsiders about family problems. Nevertheless, you must inform us by submitting an extenuating circumstances form if you wish a problem to be taken into account. Your circumstances will be treated confidentially and be made known only to a very small number of members of staff. We hold our Boards of Examiners anonymously, using only candidate numbers to identify students; there is therefore no way that you could be identified from any discussion at a Board of Examiners. Very often, in the long run, fewer people will know about your personal circumstances if you try to sort things out as soon as possible rather than having to pick up the pieces if your studies go badly as a result. Some students appeal against a decision of the Faculty Board of Examiners, claiming that they did not submit an Extenuating Circumstances Form because they found it difficult, or did not want to talk about their problems. Unfortunately, the nature of the appeal process means that the student does then have to reveal their circumstances in full to quite a few people. Furthermore, an appeal on these grounds is very unlikely to be successful. Who should I ask for advice? Your Personal Academic Tutor should be able to help and offer you advice on dealing with simple problems. However, if your problems become sufficient that they might have an impact on your performance in an exam, or a significant piece of coursework then you should talk, in the first instance, to either the Student Administration Manager or Senior Tutor in your School. You may also want to consult the JustAsk Service at the Student Union. I didn’t tell anyone about my problems. Can I appeal? If you appeal, the Board of Examiners would only retrospectively take into account any extenuating circumstances if there was a good reason for your not having disclosed them at the time. For example, an appeal panel may accept that a student who was suffering from significant mental illness or whose illness had not be diagnosed at the time of the Board of Examiners was not in a position to submit an Extenuating Circumstances Form. However, ignorance of the procedures, exam stress, cultural differences or reluctance to discuss personal problems would not usually be considered as being good reasons for not submitting an Extenuating Circumstances Form. Useful links University Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes: http://www.bristol.ac.uk/esu/assessment/codeonline.html Alternative Exam Arrangements Form: http://www.bristol.ac.uk/exams/alternative/ Extenuating Circumstances Form: http://www.bristol.ac.uk/currentstudents/forms/ UBU Just Ask: http://www.ubu.org.uk/justask/ Disability Services: http://www.bristol.ac.uk/disability-services/ Revision date: 4/2/2014, Faculty of Science, University of Bristol