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Extenuating Circumstances Policy and Guidelines for students
studying for University of Essex awards at South Essex College
South Essex College of Further & Higher Education
September 2013
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Essex Uni's Students' Extenuating Circumstances Policy & Guidelines at South Essex College, Exercises of School management&administration
The Extenuating Circumstances Policy and Guidelines for students studying for University of Essex awards at South Essex College. It defines extenuating circumstances, explains the process for claiming them, and details how they are assessed by the Board of Examiners. It also covers medical and non-medical extenuating circumstances, examinations, and the confidentiality of information supplied by students.
What you will learn
- What types of extenuating circumstances are covered by the document?
- What are extenuating circumstances according to the document?
- How is the impact of extenuating circumstances on academic performance assessed by a Board of Examiners?
Typology: Exercises
2021/2022
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Extenuating Circumstances Policy and Guidelines for students studying for University of Essex awards at South Essex College
South Essex College of Further & Higher Education September 2013
Introduction
A Definition of ‘Extenuating Circumstances’
Extenuating circumstances are formally defined as “circumstances beyond the student's control which cause the student to perform less well in his or her coursework or examinations than he or she might otherwise have been expected to do (on the basis of other work). In general, extenuating circumstances will be of a medical or personal nature affecting the student for any significant period of time and/or during the examination period”. The extenuating circumstances will be beyond the student’s control and be of such a nature that they have unexpectedly and significantly affected the student’s performance in one or more parts of the programme of study.
It is important to realise that only the most serious extenuating circumstances will have any significant impact on your overall performance, particularly when degree classifications are being considered as these are based on at least 2 years’ work. Therefore the Board of Examiners is unlikely to take any action unless it believes that the extenuating circumstances have had a material effect. A Board of Examiners can only make judgements about the impact of extenuating circumstances in light of evidence of your academic ability demonstrated in non-affected work. Boards cannot make judgements about your potential to have gained a higher mark if there is no evidence in the rest of your performance to support this. Furthermore, unless it appears that the extenuating circumstances have had a material affect on your results, the Board of Examiners is unlikely to take any action. You should therefore consider this carefully before submitting a form. See also section H.
For claims of extenuating circumstances relating to your inability to submit coursework by the deadline and to request for your marks to be instated, you should read the guidelines on Late Submission of Coursework and complete Form A Late Submission of Coursework.
B How do I inform the Board of Examiners?
It is your responsibility to inform the Board of Examiners about extenuating circumstances. You can do this by completing an Extenuating Circumstances Form which is available on the College website under Higher Education Procedures. The form will be considered by the Extenuating Circumstances Panel who will make recommendations to the Board of Examiners regarding the effect your circumstances have had on your performance.
Although you may have previously discussed your difficulties with staff in your department, this does not in itself constitute the submission of extenuating circumstances. You must formally submit an Extenuating Circumstances Form for the Board of Examiners to consider.
Claims should be submitted as soon as possible after the circumstance(s) occurred and by the appropriate published deadline. There are separate deadlines for claims for semester one modules; semester two modules and the August re-sit period. These deadlines are given in the Assessment Year Planner available in your Handbook and on the website under HE policies and procedures. All claims for extenuating circumstances must be anonymous and students must use their ID number.
E What documentary evidence do I need to provide?
Extenuating circumstances of a non medical nature You are required to submit documentary evidence to support claims of a medical or non-medical nature relating to absence from examinations/invigilated tests, or related to an individual coursework assignment which counts for 50% or more for the assessment of a module. It is your responsibility to get this evidence as the College will not seek it on your behalf.
Extenuating circumstances of a medical nature Form B Extenuating Circumstances contains a Medical Evidence Pro-forma for you to use if, having read the following guidelines, you believe that you need to supply medical evidence to support your claim.
Examinations If you miss an examination or an invigilated test due to illness or are claiming to have been affected by medical problems during your examination, you must seek medical attention on the day, and you must submit documentary evidence using the Medical Evidence Pro-forma provided in Form B Extenuating Circumstances. The evidence must relate specifically to the time of the illness and must make it clear that you were medically unfit to take the exam. Evidence stating that you retrospectively reported your illness will not be regarded by the Board of Examiners as satisfactory.
Coursework You are required to submit documentary evidence to support claims of a medical or non-medical nature relating to an individual coursework assignment which counts for 50% or more for the assessment of a module. In many cases Boards of Examiners may judge that a short-term or minor illness has not had a significant effect on your overall performance.
If you have been receiving treatment for a serious or long-term medical condition which you believe has seriously affected your work over a prolonged period, you must submit appropriate evidence. You should be able to obtain evidence from your doctor using the Medical Evidence Pro-forma.
The College reserves the right to check on the validity of the document (s) you submit by contacting the third party directly.
F What circumstances are NOT taken into account?
It is not possible to list every circumstance that the Board of Examiners would not accept or take into account. However some of the more obvious examples are listed below:
Claims submitted after the deadline, unless there are good reasons why this is the case. General pressure of work is not taken to be circumstances beyond your control, as you are expected to plan your work schedule; A short-term problem or illness which has occurred during the year and which is not deemed to have had an overall effect on your performance;
Personal disruptions or events which could have been anticipated; such as holidays, weddings, changing address or employment, religious holidays or festivals which are usually known in advance. Excessive demands on time or pressure of one’s employment (except for full-time employees who are registered for a part-time degree). Financial constraints commonly experienced by students. Missing an examination because you misread the timetable or overslept; Having more than one examination on the same day or on consecutive days (unless you were already suffering from illness or injury); Where extenuating circumstances have affected you throughout your time at College, it is difficult to determine what your marks might have been like otherwise. In such cases, the Board of Examiners is unlikely to take any action.
G What is a Board of Examiners?
A Board of Examiners is the body which considers the marks for each student. It approves the marks, decides whether students can proceed to the next year, and decides on the degree classifications for final year students.
In the first year, there are First Year Examinations Boards and these are normally made up of a representative from each of the relevant programmes. The meeting is normally chaired by the Dean of Academic Partnerships. In the second and subsequent years, the External Examiner is also a member of the Board of Examiners. Not all members of academic staff are members of the Board of Examiners.
The Board of Examiners consider all candidates anonymously, by number. Great care is taken over the confidentiality of information supplied by students.
H How are extenuating circumstances judged by a Board of Examiners?
Boards of Examiners try to determine whether, and to what extent, extenuating circumstances have affected your academic performance, and determine what action, if any, can be taken. In assessing the significance of extenuating circumstances, Boards will normally take into account:
the severity of the problem and the length of time involved; any supporting documentary evidence; whether all work in the same period appears to have been equally affected; whether it is possible to gauge the effect of the extenuating circumstances upon academic performance; whether your achievement is consistent with past performance; the type of assessment affected, and how long you had to complete the work (i.e. date when work set and deadline for submission).
Boards cannot estimate potential. For example, if you have performed at 2.2 level in your other exams, and then miss an exam in which you believe that you could have got a 2.1 because you had prepared well, you cannot expect a Board of Examiners to
J What action will not be taken by Boards of Examiners?
a) Permit a student who presents extenuating circumstances to proceed to the next year of study if he or she has not met the necessary requirements, unless the examiners are satisfied that it is appropriate to do so on academic grounds. b) Add extra marks because a student’s work has been affected by extenuating circumstances; c) Amend marks from previous years of study. d) Award a higher class of degree if the examiners are not satisfied that this is a fair result based on the student’s proven academic ability. e) Annotate statement of results/transcripts with comments about the existence of extenuating circumstances.
K False Claims
You should note that submitting a false claim or false documentation is a serious matter and would be regarded as an attempt to gain unfair advantage. This would be an academic offence and would be dealt with under the Academic Offences Procedures. The College reserves the right to check on the validity of the document (s) you submit by contacting the third party directly.
L Data Protection Act 1998
By submitting an extenuating circumstances form you are agreeing to the College holding this personal data for the purposes of processing your claim. The College will hold this data in accordance with its notification under the 1998 Data Protection Act.
M Equality Act 2010
If you are providing information about your disability on your extenuating circumstances form, please note that this does not count as disclosure to the College as these forms are intended for use only by the Board of Examiners. We strongly urge you to disclose any persistent medical condition, specific learning difficulty or disability to Student Services
N Professional Suitability and Fitness to Practise
IMPORTANT – PLEASE READ: Information about you that may affect professional suitability
The College is committed to a fair and confidential process for handling extenuating circumstances and recognises that this process may involve the disclosure and handling of sensitive personal information.
The College is committed to full compliance with its obligations related to professional suitability in order to uphold the highest standards of conduct among its students both during and beyond their period as a student at the College.
All College students are required to comply with the Student Disciplinary Procedures and other regulations of the College regarding conduct. Students enrolled on schemes where a practical professional placement is required have
additional responsibilities placed upon them regarding their professional suitability. Failure to meet these responsibilities can lead to the Fitness to Practise Procedure being invoked. You will have been informed when you registered as a student if your degree scheme is subject to this Procedure
- Breaches of professional standards by students may involve a range of actions or omissions but may include:
actions that are harmful to service users, other members of the public or service provides;
actions that are likely to constitute an unacceptable risk to students or others;
failure to disclose information about previous matters relating to professional suitability prior to enrolment on the scheme;
contravention of the relevant professional code of conduct;
actions that are prejudicial to the development or standing of professional practice.
- Any information that is provided on any extenuating circumstances form that raises issues of professional suitability, whether it has been disclosed by you and about you or by another student on another form but relates to you will be disclosed as necessary to the relevant internal or external authorities. Information will only ever be disclosed on a need to know basis to ensure the College is able to comply with its obligations related to professional suitability. These authorities may include the Professional Practice and Conduct Committee, your employer if your registration as a student relates to Continuing Professional Development or any relevant Professional or Regulatory Body.
Where can I get more guidance?
If after having read these notes you feel you need more help in putting forward your extenuating circumstances, you should contact Student Services.
Related documents
Late submission of Coursework Policy and Guidelines for students studying for University of Essex awards at South Essex College
Form A Late Submission of Coursework for students studying for University of Essex Degrees at South Essex College.
Form B Extenuating circumstances claim form for students studying on University of Essex Degrees at South Essex College
Fitness to Practise Procedure