As we head towards the main exam period, it is possible that your revision or exams may be unexpectedly disrupted. If your assessments are impacted by serious events such as illness, bereavement or self-isolation, you can apply for Extenuating Circumstances. You can check what kind of circumstances are covered in UCL’s Extenuating Circumstances procedure here.
As part of the 2020/21 academic year’s ‘No Detriment’ package, UCL have an enhanced Extenuating Circumstances procedure in place. This means that you can self-certify without providing evidence for up to five separate 14-day periods in the academic year. Where students can self-certify, mitigation is limited to:
- Coursework extensions up to 14 calendar days
- Suspension of Late Submission Penalties for coursework submitted up to 14 calendar days late
- Deferral without Tuition to the next normal occasion (typically the Late Summer Assessment Period)
- Permission to spread assessments between two assessment periods without penalty
If the mitigation you require is not included in UCL’s enhanced Extenuating Circumstances procedure, you will need to provide evidence to support your EC claim. You can find more information about what can be used as evidence here.
If you would like to submit an EC claim, you will need to fill out an EC form and send it to your department. Details of where to submit the form should be in your Student Handbook. EC forms must be submitted within one week of the extenuating circumstance taking place, so don’t delay submitting your form if you think your assessments will be affected!
You might not be sure what type of mitigation would be best for your situation. In this case, please speak to your academic department who should be happy to discuss the options. This way, you're less likely to need to make multiple EC claims.
If you would like to find some further information about this year’s enhanced Extenuating Circumstances procedure, you can visit the UCL website here. If you still have any questions, or would like some support filling out an EC form, you can contact our service using our online form.