Special Consideration for Postgraduate Students
This policy applies to students enrolled in postgraduate courses in ICS. Details for undergraduate computing/IT students can be found here, otherwise students should refer to their department website.
If you have experienced circumstances beyond normal expectation and beyond your control that you believe have adversely affected your performance in a unit, then you may apply for Special Consideration.
You may apply for Special Consideration for assignments as well as for the final examination. The granting of Special Consideration is a privilege, not an automatic right.
In the case of assignments, Special Consideration if granted may result in an extended deadline, marking compensation or an alternative assignment at the discretion of the Unit Convenor. In the case of final examinations, Special Consideration if granted will only result in you being required to sit a Special Examination.
Eligibility for Special Consideration
Generally, to apply for Special Consideration we would expect that your performance in a unit has suffered from an event or set of circumstances which:
- could not have reasonably been anticipated, avoided or guarded against
by the student
AND - were beyond the student's control
AND - caused substantial disruption to the student's capacity for effective
study and/or the completion of required work
AND - interfered with the otherwise satisfactory fulfillment of unit or program requirements.
Further Eligibility Requirements for Special Consideration for Assignments
To be eligible for Special Consideration for a unit assignment you must have:
- completed an Advice of Absence or Other Circumstances form
- attached valid documentary evidence to substantiate your circumstances
- submitted your form to the Student Enquiry Service, Level 1, Lincoln Building
- contacted the Unit Convenor to advise them that you have submitted a request for Special Consideration and are seeking alternative assignment arrangements
Further Eligibility Requirements for Special Consideration for Final Examinations
To be eligible for Special Consideration for a final examination you must have:
- satisfactorily completed all compulsory requirements of the unit (in particular, all assignments)
- attached a completed Professional Authority Form (part of the Special Consideration Form) to your request
- provided valid documentary evidence to substantiate your circumstances
- submitted your request to the Academic Program Section in writing following the procedures and regulations outlined in the Special Consideration Form.
- supplied current contact details and made yourself readily available to be contacted
- made yourself available to sit for the Special Examination at short notice on the date and time we set
Granting Special Consideration for Assignments
The granting of Special Consideration for Assignments is at the discretion of the Unit Convenor. Your Unit Convenor may impose conditions on any Special Consideration granted.
Granting Special Consideration for the Final Examination
The granting of Special Consideration for Final Examinations is at the discretion of the Unit Convenor. Special examinations are scheduled, where granted, as soon as possible after the final examination. If you have been granted Special Consideration for the final examination, then the following conditions apply:
- you will be required to sit a Special Examination on short notice at the date and time we set
- your performance in the final examination, if you sat it, will not be considered
- our marking of the Special Examination will take into account the possibility of extra study time available to you
- your final grade will be based on your assignment marks and your performance in the Special Examination
- failure to sit for the Special Examination, once granted, will result in a grade of FA being recorded.