The official wording for this ground is '' Bereavement through the death of a close relative or significant other that, in employment, would lead an employer to grant compassionate leave''.

Bereavement means experiencing the loss of someone through death and therefore your studies are very likely to be impacted. 

If this is relevant to you, we are firstly of course sorry for your loss and encourage you to reach out for support where you can. 

This section covers 3 grounds and you can select one or more depending on your situation. It is either for yourself, a close relative e.g. your parents, child or spouse/partner, or a person that may be dependent on your care:

• serious short-term illness or accident of a nature that, in employment, would lead an employer to agree to absence on sick leave e.g. if you have the flu, an infection or were in a car accident
  
  
• a long-term chronic health problem, or other disability as defined by the Equality Act (2010), suddenly worsening. This can include conditions such as Fibromyalgia, Diabetes, Asthma or long-term mental health difficulties for example, and can be applied if they were causing difficulties during the time of submitting your work
  
  
• a flare-up of a chronic health problem, or other disability as defined by the Equality Act (2010) e.g. if you have Asthma and experience regular flare-ups which the University are aware of, then you can use this ground to inform the University it is happening again.

The official wording for this ground is ''Late diagnosis of additional learning requirements or a disability resulting in the need for reasonable adjustments, such that the student has not received the support they needed''.

If you recently got a diagnosis of ADHD for example, and feel you need extra time in an upcoming exam which has not been arranged yet by the Disability & Neurodiversity team, then you can request this via EC.

The official wording for this ground is '' for students enrolled on part-time programmes and distance learning programmes who are in employment, an increase in their workload due to circumstances beyond their control, or being required by their employer to work through periods normally available for study and/or assessment''.

If you are enrolled on a part-time programme or a distance learning programme while in employment, and you experience an increase in workload which is out of your control, then you can use this ground for your EC.  

The university state this ground as '' other exceptional circumstances that have or will have in the future, affected the student's ability to meet a deadline or to attend an event. Such circumstances will be considered on a case-by-case basis and may include participation in international sporting events, jury service and military service''.

This is the ground you can use if you have a valid reason to EC, but it doesn't quite sit in the other grounds available. If you are not sure then please get in touch and we would be happy to help you!

Online, via your Surrey Self-Service account. Under the ‘Extenuating Circumstances’ tab along the top of the welcome page. Then select "Start new self-certified application". If you are not providing evidence as you are covered by the ground of “long term health condition” then you should select evidence, and mention in the statement which previous evidence you have submitted that supports your EC. You have the option to ask the University to consider previously submitted evidence. 

For self-certified ECs, you will just need to say which ground you are applying under. For evidenced ECs, you will need to include a statement explaining:

1. What grounds you are applying under
2. Your situation and how it is/has been affecting your academic ability
3. How long you have been/will be impacted for
4. What outcome you are seeking
5. As well as relevant evidence to support your statement unless you are self-certifying your application.
   
   Please see page 4 of the University’s regulations for extenuating circumstances for more details on evidence needed. You do not need evidence if you are applying under the grounds of a “flare-up of a chronic health condition” and you have already provided evidence of the nature of your illness and how it can flare up.

You should ideally submit your EC as soon as you know you won’t be able to attend an exam. If you are physically unable to attend the exam then we would recommend you raise a question through MySurrey Hive and email your Module Leader to let them know that you cannot do the exam. Third parties can technically submit an EC on your behalf if for example you were in a short-term coma and they were able to provide evidence why, but it can become complex and the University would still want to get your consent before approving the EC. 

You may wish to consider if you want to apply for self-certified ECs, and you can do so in order to defer your exam to the next suitable examination period (usually the August examination period) provided you apply before the start of the exam, and provided you have not already used your self-certified EC for the semester already. If you have already used your maximum self-certified application for the semester, seek support as soon as possible as you will need evidence to add to your EC application.

Please be aware that if your ECs aren’t valid, and you don’t attend the exam you run the risk of your exam being awarded zero. 

In some cases you might not hear about your EC application before your deadline. If this is the case with you then please try not to worry, we would advise you to do the following.

For coursework: We would advise that you submit what you have already by your current deadline. If your EC is later accepted, then your submission attempt will be voided and you will be given a new deadline (so we would suggest you continue to work on your coursework) or your assessment will move to August. This means that you should continue to work on your assignment, as if you have your new deadline accepted.

For exams: We would suggest that you email your lecturer/module lead and contact the assessments team through MySurrey Help and let them know that you do not plan on sitting the exam. This essentially tells the University that you are “not fit to sit” the exam and this will support your EC. If you are worried you don’t have valid grounds for an EC, then you can attempt your exam. If your EC is later accepted then your attempt will be voided and your exam will be deferred. If your EC application is rejected following the event or deadline then please contact us and we can discuss your case in more detail. You can always apply for another EC – up until the board of examiners meet. Additionally, the appeals process is there to support you later down the line.  We can help you with this!

If you need to submit ECs in the LSA (Late summer assessment period which takes place in August) then there are several things that you need to consider.

You should remember that all students get a third self-certified EC application especially for the LSA period.

For coursework/dissertations: the normal EC process is applied. You can get up to a 5 University working day extension (with self-certs) or, a 10 University working day extension (with evidence). If passed, you will progress as normal.

For exams: You will be given a deferral.

Please read ahead for key things to note about deferrals from the LSA:

1. If you defer an exam from the LSA, you will retake it in the same semester, and in the same exam format, that you were due to originally. For example, if your exam was in SEMR1, you will retake it in the exam period in SEMR1 the next academic year. If it was a mid-term test in SEMR2, then you will retake it as a mid-term test in SEMR2 in the next academic year.

2. Trailing 15 credits: All students (with the exception of Medical students and Foundation year students) are allowed to trail 15 credits into their next academic year of study without it impacting their progression. So, if you EC something in the LSA worth 15 credits, most students should be able to take that assessment alongside their next year of study. If you are a final year, you will retake in the next academic year (as you have no year to “trail” into).

3. Suspended years: If you have more than 15 credits to retake from the LSA (as a result of ECs or failure) then you will not be able to progress into your next academic year of study and you will be on a “suspended year, without attendance” which means that you will not be able to return to study, but you will be able to return to retake your assessment. You will not be able to re-join the current academic year but will progress in the next year. For visa students, retaking without attendance may mean that your visa is curtailed.

4. If you wish to retake with attendance (i.e. go to your teaching and learning), you are able to but you would be liable for additional tuition fees. LSA deferrals and retakes can very much depend on your current situation, how many retakes you have and what course you are on. This can be complex and so please get in touch with us if you are not sure what to do. 

It may be worth trying to apply for self-certified ECs in this case, but we would only suggest this when you are not able to obtain evidence. For example, an illness that you would not normally go to your GP for.  To apply without evidence, you must be applying for ECs before your deadline and not have already used your self-cert for the semester.

If you have already used up your self-cert for the semester, or if you require longer than a 5 university working day extension, we would advise that you submit your application before the deadline anyway, and indicate in your application that you are still waiting to obtain the evidence. As soon as you receive it, you can log back in to your application and add it. At least this way you have ensured that you have reported the matter ahead of the assessment. It is important to note, however, that your application won’t be looked at until your evidence is uploaded. If your application closes before you have time to submit your evidence, that is ok, you can just submit another EC application. If your application is rejected because the board of examiners have met, you will need to make an academic appeal. If you are not able to source evidence for your situation, you might be eligible to self-certify your ECs.

For an in-person examination: You can ask an invigilator for an ‘unfit to continue’ form, and then you can leave if needed. This ensures your exam will NOT be marked as a non‑attempt and will serve as part of your evidence in your extenuating circumstances application. You must follow this up with a full ECs application as soon as possible. You should book an appointment with a medical professional as evidence for your ECs.

For an online examination: Email your module leader and raise a question through MySurrey Help and let them know you are unwell and are unable to continue the exam. This email will help when you apply for your EC. You will not be able to self-certify if the exam has already started, so you should seek to obtain medical evidence as soon as possible – from a GP/counsellor or similar. Put in your EC application as soon as you can – you can add your evidence later on.

If you submitted or sat your assessment: Your work will be marked as normal.

If you failed to sit the exam or failed to submit an assessment then you may be awarded zero. You can appeal this decision but you will need valid grounds to do so. If you self-certified then your EC should be approved without evidence, by the University and should not be rejected so long as you have valid grounds. However, in the event that it is rejected, you will be able to use your self-certified EC again that semester. If your EC was evidenced then you can submit another EC with new grounds or new evidence for the same grounds. You can apply for a self-cert for the same assessment, provided you meet the self-cert criteria.

If you decide that you no longer want your EC, and you believe you can complete your assessment, then you can ask the University to remove your EC however, it would depend on when your exam or assessment takes place:

Accepted self-certified ECs: can be revoked up until the deadline or start time of an assessment. Once the assessment has started or deadline passed, you can no longer withdraw your request for an EC

Accepted evidenced ECs: can be revoked up until the deadline or start time of an assessment. Once the assessment has started or deadline passed, you can no longer withdraw your request for an EC

Pending evidenced ECs (where you don't yet have the outcome): Can be revoked after an exam, assessment or deadline if the EC has not yet been accepted. However, students will need to provide good reasons why they were unable to revoke their EC before the start time or deadline. If you revoke a self-certified EC and it no longer is used for any assessments, then you will get your self-certified EC back, to use again in the same semester.

Sometimes this happens and when it does, it is usually a technical error. Don’t panic.

We would suggest you submit your EC and choose a different module and assessment so that you can submit the form. When you come to write your statement make it very clear that the module you have selected is NOT the one you want to EC, and instead you want to EC XX00234 module assessment instead.

The assessments team who look at your EC will be able to change it the other side for you. Make it REALLY CLEAR what you are doing in your statement. We would also suggest you send a follow up email to the hive team as well, to let them know what you have done and what outcome you are seeking. You can raise a question through MySurrey Help.