Adverse circumstances

Adverse Circumstances are issues beyond your control that affect your ability to complete assessments, sit your exam or have a negative impact on your performance.

Acceptable reasons for an Adverse Circumstances application are:

• health grounds
• compassionate grounds
• hardship
• trauma
• cultural days or Sorry Business
• unavoidable commitments

Adverse Circumstances do not include:

• misreading the Course Outline or examination timetable.
• usual work commitments.
• travel plans.
• being unaware of the assumed knowledge requirements for your course.
• an inability to meet the inherent requirement for the program or course.

If you are impacted by adverse circumstances, you can submit an application to request:

• an extension of time to submit an assessment item;
• to undertake a formal examination during the Rescheduled Examination Period;
• to undertake an in-class assessment at an alternative time;
• a compulsory attendance exemption (see below for more information); or
• to reschedule a placement.

How to apply:

The University is currently making some changes to the way you submit an Adverse Circumstances request.

If you are requesting an extension of time for an assignment, quiz, or in-class test listed in Canvas, you will need to submit your request within the new Adverse Circumstances system in ServiceNow.

For all other types of requests including: the rescheduling of formal exams, placements, exemptions to compulsory attendance or Special Considerations within the Joint Medical Program, you will submit your application through the legacy Adverse Circumstances system.

To access the correct system for your request:

1. Log in to Canvas and go to the course site for the relevant assignment.
2. Select the "Assessment Extensions" tab on the left-hand menu.
3. Find the Assessment you would like to request an extension for and click “Request Extension”. This will direct you to the appropriate system to submit your request.
4. Follow the steps to finalise your submission.

Alternatively, you can:

1. Log in to the myUni portal
2. Click on the "Adverse Circumstances" tile
3. If you are requesting an extension of time for an assessment, quiz or in-class test listed in Canvas, select “Assessment Extensions” and follow the steps to finalise your submission.
4. For all other requests, select the “Other requests” option and follow the steps to finalise your submission.

Before submitting your request, make sure you check the the Adverse Circumstances Affecting Assessment Items Procedure and Adverse Circumstances Affecting Assessment Items Policy to ensure your reasons will be considered valid.

Once the outcome of your request is determined, you will receive an email in your student inbox with the details.

Read more about the changes to Adverse Circumstances. 

Supporting Documentation

Appropriate supporting documents are detailed in the Adverse Circumstances Affecting Assessment Items Procedure.

Allowable documentation may include:

• a letter or medical certificate from an accepted health professional, which should include the date(s) that health grounds have impacted on your studies.
• a letter from a Counselling Service or a Student Support Advisor.
• a Reasonable Adjustment Plan (RAP) issued by AccessAbility which provides for the requested outcome.
• a letter attesting to the relevant circumstances from an appropriate authority, such as a police officer, fire officer, cultural or religious official, or an employer or supervisor.
• a funeral notice - either hard copy or digital.
• evidence of duties as a student reservist or cadet, a volunteer or an elite sportsperson.
• evidence of religious responsibilities.
• evidence of jury duty or other court ordered appearance.
• a Statutory Declaration attesting to the relevant circumstances, witnessed by an authorised official such as a JP.
• supporting documentation provided by Student Wellbeing (please note this can be used once per semester only).

Supporting documentation should reflect the duration for which you have been impacted by the adverse circumstances. If your documentation is not sufficient, you may be asked to provide additional documentation.

Please note, you may not be required to provide documentation if you are requesting an extension of less than, or equal to, three calendar days. The system will tell you if supporting documentation is required.

For more information on supporting documentation, please see Do I need to supply documentation with my Adverse Circumstances Request.

Compulsory Attendance Exemptions

Attendance is not recorded in lectures, but is recorded in all other activities, including tutorials, labs, workshops and field trips.

Key points about recording student attendance

80% attendance is required at all learning sessions, except whole-class lectures, for all students in 1000 level courses.

Students who are unable to attend a class in a 1000 level course should record their absence using the myUni App.

For courses above 1000 level, students should contact the Course Coordinator to request a compulsory attendance exemption.

Joint Medical Program (JMP) students

Adverse circumstances are slightly different for JMP students, so make sure you are familiar with the Program’s policies and procedures before you commence your studies.

Policies and Procedures

• Adverse Circumstances Affecting Assessment Items Procedure
• Adverse Circumstances Affecting Assessment Items Policy
• JMP Adverse and Special Circumstances Affecting Assessment Procedure
• JMP Policy Manual