Deferral & extensions

The regulations define extenuating circumstances as 'genuine circumstances beyond a student's control, or ability to foresee, and which seriously impair his or her assessed work', for example:

• Acute illness or injury that is serious and debilitating and occurs at the time of the assessments concerned
• Flare-up of chronic conditions, examples of such conditions may include asthma, allergies, depression or migraines
• The death of a member of your immediate family or a very close friend
• Being a victim of a serious crime

It does not include circumstances that:

• Arise from minor accidents or injuries, ailments (e.g. a cold) or conditions that you should normally be able to control (e.g. hay fever, headaches)
• Are symptoms relating to normal exam stress and anxiety. You should develop strategies to cope with this. Guidance and leaflets are available from Student and Academic Services
• Are not related to the time of the assessment
• Arise from your failure to manage your time effectively
• Arise from your own negligence or carelessness (e.g. not getting up on time, going to the wrong room)
• Arise as a result of bad planning (e.g. booking a holiday or making travel arrangements). It is your responsibility to ensure you arrive at the examination room before the start of the examination

No – undertaking a DMU Global experience cannot be cited as a reason for requesting deferrals. We recommend that you check your course and assessment schedules before accepting your place on a DMU Global trip.

The deferral procedure is for addressing sudden and unexpected extenuating circumstances that may affect a student’s ability to undertake assessments. Deferring assessments may impact on your academic progression and therefore your eligibility to student funding, your accommodation and (where relevant) your immigration status. We strongly recommend that you consult your Student Advice Centre, Programme Team or Personal Tutor to discuss your circumstances before submitting a deferral request.

Students with prolonged chronic illnesses or disabilities should contact the Disability Support and Advice team in Student and Academic Services or Personal Tutor for personalised advice, which might include individual arrangements in examinations. Please note, the deferral of assessments is not an appropriate nor standard measure in respect of permanent or long-term conditions.

Deferrals will be considered for students who have notified the university and submitted a deferral request form PDF version | Word Doc version (automatic download) to their Faculty Student Advice Centre.

All students granted deferrals will be expected to take their assessments at the next available opportunity. Should this not be possible due to extenuating circumstances, a further deferral should be sought.

Remember, extenuating circumstances do not in themselves excuse poor performance.

There is no provision to adjust marks; you can only apply to have the assessment deferred.

Detailed information can be found in Chapter 5 of the General Regulations and Procedures Affecting Students.

In assessing the significance of extenuating circumstances, the panel will take into account:

• The severity of the problem
• The length of time it has lasted
• The supporting evidence (remember to include it)
• The closeness in time of the circumstances to the relevant assessment
• Whether all assessments might have been equally affected

Deferral request form

Please download and complete the deferral form: PDF version | Word Doc version (automatic download). This can then be submitted to the Student Advice Centre by email. Alternatively, if you require a printed copy of the form in a different format, you may request this from the Student Advice Centre.

• Arts, Design and Humanities: adhadvice@dmu.ac.uk
• Business and Law: baldeferralrequest@dmu.ac.uk
• Computing, Engineering and Media: cemadvicecentre@dmu.ac.uk
• Health and Life Sciences: hls.advice.centre@dmu.ac.uk

Please ensure that you keep a copy of the form for your reference.

What will happen if the panel accepts my deferral request?

The only course of action open to the panel if it accepts your case is to grant deferral of the affected assessment.

Assessment deferrals are time-limited. You will be required to take the deferral at the next opportunity offered by the university, please contact your Faculty Student Advice Centre for further details. If you do not do this, the deferral will be withdrawn and you will be failed in the deferred assessment with a mark of zero.

If you have already submitted work for assessment it will not be marked. If a mark or grade has been awarded it will be declared void.

The mark/grade awarded when you retake or resubmit the assessment is the only one that will be entered on your record.

Once you have applied for a deferral and it has been accepted there is no going back, you cannot retract your request at a later date.

What will happen if the panel rejects my deferral request?

The decision of the Panel shall be final, except that a student has the right of appeal on the following grounds only:

• That there is new and relevant evidence which the student was demonstrably and for the most exceptional reason unable to provide in the first instance.
• That the Panel did not comply with its own procedures as set out above.

Any student wishing to appeal must do so in writing, stating clearly the specific grounds on which the appeal is based, to the Student Appeals and Conduct Officer within 10 working days of the Panel decision via acasupportoffice@dmu.ac.uk.

On receipt of such an appeal the Student Appeals and Conduct Officer will:

• In relation to coursework; convene the Academic Board Panel who will consider the case.
• In relation to a formal assessment; consult with the Executive Director of Student and Academic Services who will consider the case.

This decision shall be final and not subject to review by any other university body.

Students may request an extension to an coursework deadline using the extension to coursework application form. The request should be made to the module leader in advance of the deadline. The module leader has the discretion to grant an extension of up to 10 university working days.

Guidance on granting extensions and supporting evidence can be found in Appendix 3 of the Academic Regulations 2021/22.

If a deadline extension is approved the module leader will sign the completed extension form and confirm the revised deadline date. The student should submit this form with their coursework.

If your circumstances are such that an extension of 10 university working days would not be sufficient, or if you feel that, despite being granted an extension of up to 10 university working days, your performance in a piece of coursework has been seriously impaired, The Associate Dean (Academic) or nominee may exceptionally approve longer extensions. If this is not sufficient for your circumstances you may apply formally to your faculty panel for a deferral. You will have to fill in the deferral form below and supply supporting evidence; forms should be submitted to your Student Advice Centre.

Extension decisions

The decision of the Module Leader (or nominee) is final and not subject to review by any other university body.

Supporting evidence

The request form (whether for extensions or deferrals) should be accompanied by supporting evidence, normally from an independent third party. It is your responsibility to provide all the required documentary evidence; the university will not make enquiries on your behalf. You are advised to keep a copy of any evidence you submit. All evidence should be submitted in English.

Third party evidence should clearly support how the extenuating circumstances have impacted on your ability to undertake the assessment or coursework.

Retrospective medical certificates or doctors' notes will normally only be accepted if you consulted the doctor at the time of the illness. They should be from your own doctor and contain a clear medical opinion that you were unfit to undertake the assessment on the day. A note stating only that you claim to have been unwell or that you told your doctor you were unwell at the time of your examination will normally be disregarded.

If it is impossible to include third party evidence when handing in your form requesting deferral of assessments, forms must be submitted before the deadline date with a note to say that supporting evidence will follow. The evidence must be submitted before the assessment results are published. Evidence submitted after the release of assessment results will not be accepted as the deferral process will be closed.

Examples of other third party evidence that might be acceptable are:

• A letter from a doctor concerning bereavement
• A police report and crime reference number as evidence of theft, break-in or other serious crime
• A letter from a counsellor whom you have been seeing

You may also wish to attach a letter of support from your personal tutor or mentor if they know your circumstances well.

The university recognises that it is not always possible or appropriate to seek an appointment, or consult with your GP for short-term illnesses. In such circumstances, self-certification is appropriate. Note you may only self-certify once for examination deferrals and once for coursework deferrals in any registration period (normally 3 years).

Self-certification should only be used where you have missed, or will imminently miss an examination, coursework or an assignment deadline due to an unforeseen short-term illness. The onus is on you to formally declare the reason for being absent from your examination or for not submitting your assignment. No additional evidence needs to be submitted, provided that the deferral request is correctly completed and submitted by the applicable deadline. It is important that you provide as much detail as possible, to allow a decision to be made.

By submitting an application for a deferral on the basis of self-certification, you will be declaring that the information provided is true and complete. Students who submit fabricated or falsified information to the university will be subject to investigation under the Disciplinary Procedures found in the General Regulations.

What can I self-certify for?

Self-certification is not for everything, and should only be used in cases of short-term illness for which you are unable, or it is not appropriate, to seek medical attention. Examples* of short-term illnesses for which it would be acceptable to use the self-certification option are:

• Migraine
• Noro-virus
• Gastroenteritis
• Acute period pain
• Flu
• Food poisoning
• Diarrhoea
• Acute or sudden flare up of a long-term condition

*This list is not exhaustive.

Self-certification should only be used where absolutely necessary, and the university expects you to manage minor ailments yourself e.g. coughs or colds.

What is not appropriate for self-certifying?

You should not use the self-certification option for an illness which lasts longer than 7 days. Neither should you use the self-certification option for an illness for which it would be reasonable to seek medical attention. In such circumstances, medical certification must be obtained, to support any application for a deferral request.

As self-certification is an option for deferral requests, you should not normally self-certify for any of the reasons outlined below:

• Temporary self-induced medical conditions e.g. hangover, drug taking (except prescribed medication)
• Minor ailments e.g. coughs, colds, sprains, minor fractures (unless in the writing hand/arm)
• Long-term life circumstances such as a disability or a chronic or on-going medical condition (where you have registered with Disability Services).

Please complete the self-certification form and provide details of your absence.

• Remember to include weekends and days on which you were not timetabled to attend in the dates of absence
• Reason for absence
• Try to give as many details as possible
• Words like "unwell" or "illness" are not acceptable

Remember:

• The self-certificate only covers the first 7 days of absence.

Confidential evidence

It is normally in your own interests for your extenuating circumstances to be discussed by the full panel; however, if your supporting evidence is of an exceptionally sensitive or personal nature it can, at your request, be seen only by the chair of the panel. To do this you must place the evidence in a sealed envelope marked 'confidential: from (your name)' and addressed to the chair of the panel. You must then attach the envelope to the form.

Only the chair of the panel will read confidential evidence. He or she will inform the panel that confidential evidence has been submitted and will give an opinion on its seriousness and relevance.

For information on deadlines for requests for deferrals for coursework, you should contact your faculty office.

The Academic Board panel that considers requests for deferral of formal assessments meets three times per session. The deadlines for the receipt of deferral forms by the Student Advice Centre are detailed below. These deadlines will be rigorously enforced; forms will not be accepted after these dates.

There is no such thing as a 'retrospective deferral'. Deferral requests must be submitted no later than 10 university working days from the date of the exam or the assessment submission deadline (including, where relevant, any approved extensions).

End of session assessments (May/June)

All requests must be received by 27th May 2022.

End of session assessments (August)

All requests must be received by 19th August 2022.

Other assessments

For postgraduate assessments and undergraduate assessments that fall outside the main formal assessment periods (May/August), the deadline for requests will be 10 university working days from the date of the exam/assessment concerned. Please contact your Student Advice Centre if you need further information.

Late applications will not be considered. Deadlines will be strictly enforced.

Extension deadlines

Requests should be made on the coursework extensions request form in as timely a manner as possible. Requests received later than 24 hours before the date and time that the work is due to be submitted will not be considered.

• Deferral form for coursework and formal assessments
• Coursework extension form
• Student self-certification form