Academic Consideration

Video Tutorials

Before you Begin

Short-Term Request Without Documentation

Long-Term Request

Adding Documentation

Supporting Documentation

Short-term Request with Documentation

Request Due to Significant Event

What is Academic Consideration?

Academic Consideration is a process for the university community to provide a compassionate response to assist students experiencing a short-term extenuating circumstance, which is defined as 3 months or less.

Consideration is based on the principle of good faith, wherein the university and instructors understand that student circumstances and documented requests are legitimate.

Similarly, students understand that Academic Consideration options are provided with the best interest of the student in mind, ensuring they meet essential academic requirements.

Academic consideration must be submitted as soon as possible. All consideration requests must be submitted before the course ends. For more details, please review the FAQ section under “Can I submit a request for consideration after the course has ended?”

Consideration options are at the discretion of the Professor and may include:

an excused absence
a deferral
an extension
a modified schedule for assignments, projects, labs, or placements
an alternative assignment
a re-weighting of term marks
permission for an incomplete grade
course withdrawal. This may require a petition to the Associate Dean (Academics) if past the deadline
other options at the discretion of the Professor

Academic Consideration is governed by the University Senate Academic Consideration for Students in Extenuating Circumstances Policy.

Eligible Circumstances

Which circumstances qualify?

There are many unforeseen extenuating circumstances which may impact a student’s ability to complete their academics. While the list below captures the majority of circumstances which qualify for Consideration, cases are assessed individually, and this list should not be regarded as exclusive:

Health Condition or Injury

Short-term physical or mental illness (e.g., stomach flu, mononucleosis, pneumonia, short-term situational anxiety or depression), excluding minor issues (e.g. seasonal allergies).
Serious injury (e.g., concussion or broken bones)
Treatment (e.g., surgery, medication, vaccination)

Traumatic Event/Confidential

Bereavement (e.g., death of family member or close friend)
Serious injury or illness of significant other/family member (e.g., car accident, palliative care)
Required treatment of a significant other/family member (e.g., surgery)
Personal Traumatic event (e.g., divorce, sexual assault, social injustice)
Societal Traumatic event (personally affecting the student): political unrest (e.g. student’s home country’s instability affecting their family), or natural disasters (e.g. earthquakes, floods, hurricanes)

Requirements by Law or Public Health Authorities 

Court Dates (e.g. jury duty, summons)

Significant Event (see Distinguished Event under ‘Types of Academic Consideration Requests’ tab)

Varsity Athletic Event
Distinguished Event
Serving in the Reserve Forces

Other

Students who have respiratory illness (Covid, flu, RSV,etc) need to follow the guidelines provided by the Government of Ontario and the local Southeast Public Health Unit. If you are located in another area and are subject to different health requirements, please contact our office for support. For more information, please review Queen’s Respiratory Illness Information page.
If you want to speak with a member of our team about your situation, please see the “Who do I contact if I have questions?" section below.

Which circumstances do not qualify?

The following circumstances are not covered by the Academic Consideration policy.

Academic Accommodations: Students seeking Academic Accommodations for a chronic or ongoing health/mental conditions, learning disability, or an existing disability should register with Queen's Student Accessibility Services (QSAS). For further information, please contact the QSAS Intake Coordinator at: qsas.intake@queensu.ca. See Academic Accommodation and Academic Consideration section below for more information.
Academic/Exam Related Stress: Students who are not able to meet academic requirements due to experiencing high levels of academic or exam-related stress should seek out support by contacting the following:
- On Campus & Online Students can access a number of supports and services from Student Wellness Services and Student Academic Success Services (SASS).
Inclement Weather: If Queen’s campus is open, students are expected to attend class as normal. If there is a status update about inclement weather and university operations (open or closed), you will see an alert at the top of any Queen's website. For more information on procedures during inclement weather, please see Queen’s Risk and Safety Service webpage.
Personal:
- The following are not covered by this policy as they are planned, foreseeable commitments:
  - Family events (e.g., wedding, vacation, childcare, etc.),
  - Travelling (students needs to buffer adequate travel time to return to campus accounting for potential delays, especially during winter, or holiday seasons)
  - Competing commitments (e.g., work, volunteering, extra-curricular activities, etc.)
- If you are a reservist, please see the Significant Event section for more information.
Religious observances: These are covered by the university policy on religious holidays. The process for these requests is outlined on the Religious Accommodation page on Queen’s Faith and Spiritual Life website. If you require assistance or academic support, please contact the University Chaplain at: 613-533-2186 or chaplain@queensu.ca.
Technological difficulties: Technological challenges (e.g., persistent hardware/software failure, prolonged poor internet coverage, lack of planning or knowledge of program software/OnQ, missing notifications/reminders, use of unsupported/out-of-date software) are not covered as it is the student’s responsibility to ensure they have access to the tools they require for their studies.
Time conflict between courses: If you are granted permission by your department to enroll in two courses with a time conflict, you need to be aware from the start of term if there are assessment due dates that overlap, and create a plan with your instructors to manage the conflict. It will not be covered under the Academic Consideration policy.
- If one of your courses includes a field trip that requires you to miss assessments in other classes, this is not covered by the Academic Consideration policy, as it is not an unexpected event beyond your control. You are expected to manage your class schedule from the start of term knowing that you will be away from your other courses.

Types of Consideration Requests

Short Term
Long Term
Varsity, Military, Distinguished Event

Short-term Academic Consideration can be requested for a maximum of 3-days. These requests must be submitted within 4 days of the onset of the extenuating circumstance (eg. if you are requesting Consideration for September 1, you must have your request submitted into this system by September 4 at the latest).

A reminder that our office verifies that you are experiencing an extenuating circumstance over a certain period of time. Requests should therefore include the due date of a deliverable as, if you were not experiencing an extenuating circumstance on this date, the deliverable should be handed in on time.

Courses that have flexible deadlines, universal design, or Academic Consideration built into the course already may not be eligible for short-term requests. Please check your course syllabus to verify short-term requests for Academic Consideration apply to your course.

Without Professional Documentation
- We strongly recommend that students obtain professional supporting documentation for their requests. See ‘Supporting Documentation’ section of our webpage to understand what types of documentation is possible. If unable to get professional supporting documentation, please review the following options:
  - No Documentation: Each student can make one short-term request for up to 3-days without documentation per term. This type of request is not evaluated. These requests cannot be withdrawn, nor dates changed, once submitted. Please note that these requests cannot be used during final exams.
  - Evaluated Attestation: Students are permitted one attestation request per academic term AFTER their no document request has been used (attestation request can be used during final exams). These requests cannot be withdrawn, nor dates changed, once submitted. Once this request is used, all subsequent requests for the remainder of the term will require documentation from a professional.
    - Please note that an attestation is evaluated as a (non-professional) supporting document. It will require the student to explain their extenuating circumstances and why they were unable to obtain documentation from a professional. The request will then be evaluated by the consideration team to ensure it fits within the consideration policy.
With Professional Documentation
- Once students have used their short-term request without documentation, ALL additional requests for Academic Consideration for the remainder of the term will require supporting documentation. Professional documentation will be evaluated by the consideration team for severity and duration. Documentation must clearly state the start and end date of the request, and the severity of the issue. Please see ‘Supporting Documentation’ section of the webpage for more details.

Not able to physically go to a doctor’s office or walk-in clinic?

There are many virtual health care providers you can access should your symptoms prevent you from seeing a medical professional in person. Should you choose to pursue virtual health care, we recommend utilizing a platform that offers assessments by registered, licensed physicians.

As of January 1st, 2024, Ontario pharmacies can now prescribe medication for a variety of common ailments. This service is available to Ontarians, and you must bring your Ontario health card. For more information and to view the list of ailments that can be treated at your local pharmacy, please visit the Ontario Pharmacies webpage.

Requests for long-term Academic Consideration can be submitted for 4-days to a maximum of 3 months. These requests should be made as soon as the student’s need becomes apparent. Delays may limit the Consideration options available to you. If a consideration request is submitted more than 2 weeks after the date of the provider’s signature on the supporting documentation an explanation of the delay will be required for evaluation. The request may be withdrawn. All Requests for Academic Consideration (between 4 days and 3 months) need to be submitted before the course has closed/ended.

This type of request requires supporting documentation, which needs to be submitted within 5 business days of submitting the request. If supporting documentation is not submitted, your request may be withdrawn.

All requests must be submitted before the end of term. For full-year courses, requests must be received during the semester for which you are requesting Academic Consideration. Case-by-case exceptions can be made in extreme cases (ie: the student is in a coma or otherwise incapacitated). Please contact our team at asc.consideration@queensu.ca if you have questions.

Students who are participating in a Queen’s Varsity Athletics event, an event to which you are invited as a distinguished guest or participating as a student reservist in military sanctioned event can submit a Significant Events request. These events can be at the provincial, national, or international level.

You must first submit a Request for an Excused Absence for a Significant Event (REASE) form through the Student Affairs Office.

Once you have received a completed REASE form, please submit a request in the Academic Consideration Request Portal, using the REASE form as supporting documentation.

You need to apply for a REASE a minimum of two weeks before the sanctioned event, or as soon as the event is scheduled. You will also need to provide the following information:

A personal statement about why participation in the event is significant to you/Queen’s
Specific details about what is being missed (i.e., exactly what courses, what tests, what assignments, etc.)
A copy of the invitation to participate/details about the competitions that determine who is invited
Any other relevant details about the event (i.e., tournament information, schedules, team details, who is participating)

You can submit a REASE application based upon the following categories:

Varsity Athletic Events
Non-Varsity Athletics or Other Significant Events/Activities
Students Service in the Reserve Forces

If you have questions about these requests, you are encouraged to review the Student Affairs webpage.

Once you have received a completed “Request for Excused Absence for Significant Event/Activity” form, please submit a request in the Academic Consideration Request Portal.

Supporting Documentation

For student privacy, all documentation must be uploaded to your request in the Academic Consideration Request Portal. We do not accept documentation via email.

All documentation must be dated and provide our team with a clear duration of the circumstance and a sense of the severity of the situation.

While this list is by no means exhaustive, the following are examples of some of the documentation we accept:

Verification of Extenuating Circumstances form to be completed by a medical professional.
A medical report, or medical prescription (Patient name, prescription date and duration, and dosage must be visible. You may need to upload multiple images). Please note, not all prescriptions will be suitable documentation for a request. We may ask for additional information and/or documentation.
A note from a health care professional or other professional (i.e., doctor, nurse practitioner, social worker, counsellor, occupational therapist)
An accident report or police report
A court order
News article of social injustice

Please note, we do not accept photos of injury or incident as we cannot verify when the photo was taken and who it pertains to.

If you have questions about what types of documentation can be used to support your specific case, you can either:

upload it to your request and we will contact you if we need more information, OR
attend our weekly Zoom office hours to discuss with our staff (see “Who Do I contact if I have questions” section for Zoom link).

Not able to physically go to a medical professional’s office or walk-in clinic?

There are many virtual health care providers you can access should your symptoms prevent you from seeing a medical professional in person. Should you choose to pursue virtual health care, we recommend utilizing a platform that offers assessments by registered, licensed physicians.

While notes from virtual health care providers are accepted, the preferred medical documentation is from a medical professional that you have seen in-person (as listed above). Please limit notes from virtual clinics to only those times that you cannot attend a clinic in-person (i.e. cold/flu). Too many notes from virtual clinics may limit our team’s ability to verify your request.

As of January 1st, 2024, Ontario pharmacies can now prescribe medication for a variety of common ailments. This service is available to Ontarians, and you must bring your Ontario health card. For more information and to view the list of ailments that can be treated at your local pharmacy, please visit the Ontario Pharmacies webpage.

Requests without Professional Documentation (For Short-Term Requests ONLY)

Each student can make one short-term request for up to 3-days without documentation per term. This type of request is not evaluated. Please note that these requests cannot be used during final exams.

The second short-term request without professional documentation will require the student to submit an attestation in the portal. This is an explanation of their extenuating circumstances and why they were unable to obtain professional documentation. The attestation will then be evaluated by the consideration team as a (non-professional) document by the consideration team to ensure it fits within the consideration policy. By submitting the request you agree that your request is made in good faith and that any false or misleading information provided constitutes a breach of academic integrity, which could result in you being subject to the University’s Academic Integrity procedures.

Short term requests without professional supporting documentation cannot be withdrawn, nor dates changed, once submitted.

Additional Information

Please note that we discourage self-reported documentation in which a practitioner states that a student was ill or unable to attend to their academics during a certain time frame. All requests will evaluated on a case-by-case basis. Documentation should include an assessment of the extenuating circumstance as it is occurring.
Documentation (not including Verification of Extenuating Circumstance form) must be written by a regulated practitioner (typically a medical professional), provided on their official letterhead, signed and dated by the practitioner.. The document must not be editable.
As an English language school, Queen’s University requires documentation in English to be able to assess the severity and timeframe of an extenuating circumstance. Please upload both the original and translated documentation to your request for review. Our team will be in touch if we require more information.
For long-term requests: If you do not yet have access to your documentation, you may submit a request in the Portal and select “Documentation not yet available.” Choosing this option will provide you with 5 business days to attach supporting documentation to your request through the Portal.

Applying for Academic Consideration

General Process

All requests for Consideration must be submitted through the Academic Consideration Request Portal.

Submit Request: Submit a request to the Academic Consideration Request Portal. Consideration requests can only be submitted in the same semester as the course is being taught. After the last day of the semester, students will need to submit a Petition to the Associate Dean (Academic).
Review Request: Your request will be reviewed by the Faculty Office’s Academic Consideration Team, who will use the supporting documentation provided to verify the circumstances you are experiencing. One of two outcomes will occur:
1. Should the team need more information, you will be contacted. This may mean providing additional documentation to support your request.
2. The team will verify the timeline and severity of impact of the extenuating circumstances.

Note that the dates indicated on your request are simply a guide for our team. We use the documentation provided to verify your need for Consideration, as well as the duration and severity of the circumstance. This may mean that we are unable to verify the exact dates you have requested without further supporting documentation. Once the request has been reviewed, a confirmation email stating the verified dates and severity will be sent to the student and instructors.

Contact Your Instructors: Once their circumstances have been verified by our staff, it is then the student’s responsibility to contact their professor(s) to arrange for Academic Consideration. You do not need to discuss the specifics of your circumstance with your professors, as the request has already been verified by the consideration staff. You do however need to discuss what consideration the instructor is able to give.
Academic Consideration Offered: Instructor(s) will determine what Academic Consideration remedy is appropriate based on the essential requirements/learning outcomes of the course. All students who receive Academic Consideration must meet all essential academic requirements/learning outcomes and standards of the course.

Application Tips

Consideration is verified by the extenuating circumstance, not by the course, so only one request per circumstance is required. You can add as many courses as you need to your request.
Before submitting your request through the portal, you will need to gather the following information:
- The course name and number (e.g., PSYC 100) of all courses for which you are requesting academic consideration
- The Instructor or Course Coordinator's name and their Queen's email address for each course in your request (you can find this information in the course syllabus or OnQ)
- Information regarding the missed deliverable (missing a test, assignment, tutorial, etc.)
- Supporting documentation (please see Supporting Documentation section)

Technical issues when submitting

Sometimes students have issues when navigating the consideration portal or uploading supporting documents. Below are some tips that we encourage you to review:

If you are having problems connecting to the consideration portal, we recommend trying a different browser.
If you are having issues moving forward in the portal from the contact and course information page, please note there are 2 steps:
1. Go to the top of the page and confirm that all of your information is correct (click OK).
2. Then scroll down below ‘course information’ (near the bottom of the page) and click submit
If you are having issues uploading supporting documentation, please take a look at your document and ensure:
1. Your document size is less than 10MB.
2. You have saved your document in the correct format. The portal will only accept PDF, JPG, PNG, TIFF, HEIC, and Word formats.
3. Your file name does not have any special characters (including apostrophes, dashes, and periods), and uses only numbers and letters.
  1. For example, if you label your document “Dr.’s note”, the portal will not upload it. However, if you call it “Dr note” it will be accepted.

For more information please watch the Supporting Documentation video in the ‘Video Tutorial’ tab above.

If you have made these changes and are still having issues, please email the consideration team at asc.consideration@queensu.ca.

After I submit my request

Once your request has been submitted, the Academic Consideration Team is responsible for verifying your request. Please see information pertaining to each request type below:

Short-Term Requests: Each request is reviewed and verified by the Academic Consideration Team. If we are unable to verify the request, or we require additional information, you will be notified within 24-48 business hours. If you do not hear from our office within this timeframe, your request has been verified. Please note that your confirmation email also serves as verification of the request.

Long-Term Requests: Our team will review your request and supporting documentation. If we are unable to validate the request, we will contact you to request additional information. When the request has been verified, you and your professor(s) will receive a verification email detailing the duration and severity of your request. Long-term requests can take up to 6 business days to be processed.

After the verification process has been completed, students are required to follow up with their instructors (as per the directions listed in their syllabus) as soon as possible to discuss Academic Consideration options available. Delays in contacting the course instructor may limit the consideration options available.

Course instructors will determine what Academic Consideration is appropriate for your course based on the academic requirement(s) you may miss and the essential academic requirements learning outcomes of the course (please see course syllabus). All students who receive Consideration must meet all essential academic requirements/learning outcomes and standards of the course. Academic consideration does not guarantee academic achievement in a course/program.

For further support, please contact the Academic Consideration Team directly.

Academic Consideration and Academic Accommodation

For both academic consideration and academic accommodation students must continue to meet all essential academic requirements and standards of the course. Receiving either an academic consideration or an academic accommodation does not guarantee success in a course.

Academic Consideration
Academic Accommodation

Academic consideration is a good faith process allowing for a compassionate response for students experiencing an extenuating circumstance. Academic consideration is a Queen’s University Policy, and does not fall under the Ontario Human Rights code, meaning there is no duty to accommodate requests made through this process. This means that Instructors have discretion for how and whether Consideration can be granted.

For more information review our handy Consideration or Accommodation Cheat Sheet for more information.

Academic accommodations are available to students with visible and non-visible disabilities to remove barriers to learning. This involves removing barriers caused by unique student functional impacts, allowing students to fully access the academic environment. Under the Ontario Human Rights Code, Queen’s University, made up of all members of the Queen’s community have a responsibility to uphold the Duty to Accommodate students with disabilities.

The following describes some of the academic accommodations that may be approved for a student as part of the academic accommodation process.

Extra time when completing a quiz, test, or exam;
A different location to write a quiz, test, or exam;
Use of computer, adaptive technology, note-taking, alternate formats (e.g., receiving textbooks in audio and/or electronic format):
Extensions on assignments, etc.

Students seeking academic accommodation related to a chronic or ongoing physical or mental health condition, learning disability, or an existing disability are encouraged to review the Queen’s Student Accessibility Services (QSAS) website. If you need assistance, or your question is not answered on the website, please contact the Intake Coordinator at qsas.intake@queensu.ca .

To better understand the differences between the Academic Consideration and Academic Accommodation processes, please review our handy Consideration or Accommodation Cheat Sheet.

Deferring an Exam

Midterm Exams

Students requesting to defer a midterm exam through Academic Consideration should follow the process outlined under the “Applying for Academic Consideration” tab.

Important Information for Requesting to Defer a Midterm Exam

Students may use their one no-document request and one attestation request per term, including midterms. All additional requests in the same term will require documentation (see the “Supporting Documentation” tab for details).
Dates entered for no-document and attestation requests cannot be changed. Ensure the dates are entered accurately.
Once a consideration request is verified, you must discuss deferring the midterm, or other options, with your instructor. It is at their discretion.
If you need to defer a midterm a second time within the same term, you must have a valid consideration request covering the date(s) of the deferred midterm and then discuss the possibility of a second deferral with your instructor(s). A second deferral is not guaranteed and is granted at the instructor’s discretion.
Do not submit a petition to defer a midterm, or to request a second deferral, if the request is still within the term the course is being taught. A petition is required only if you need to defer an exam a second time after the course has ended.

Limitations of a Deferred Midterm Exam

Students need to carefully assess if deferring an exam is their best option.

If a consideration request to defer an exam has been verified and the instructor agrees to defer the exam, the instructor may offer a deferred period during the term or move the exam to the official deferred period (after the term has ended), it is at the instructor’s discretion.

Students need to understand the following limitations if the exam is move to the official deferred period after the term has ended:

Deferred Exam Period: The student must write during the deferred exam period, or when the instructor schedules the deferred exam. If the exam has been deferred to the official exam period after the end of term, the consideration portal will not accept additional requests to defer exams during the deferred exam period, a deferred exam cannot be deferred again through the consideration process. The student will need to consider other options (e.g., petition for extended incomplete, late drop etc.).
Exam Format: All deferred exams are to be written in the format they were originally scheduled. For example, if a student’s original exam was scheduled to be in-person, they must write their deferred exam in-person. This is an important factor to consider, especially if the student is sitting the deferred exam after the end of term and knows they will not be in Kingston during the deferred exam period.

Final Exams

Students requesting to defer a final exam through Academic Consideration are students that have an extenuating circumstance, beyond their control, that is affecting their ability to write their exam(s) and are either:

Students who are registered with QSAS
1. Student who are requesting to defer a final exam due to the disability for which they are registered with QSAS, should follow the deferred process on the QSAS webpage. They should not submit a consideration request.
Students who are not registered with QSAS
1. If a student requires a consideration that is not related to a disability, they should follow the consideration process below.

Process for Requesting a Deferred Exam through Consideration

Students with a cold/flu/Covid should stay home and NOT visit Student Wellness Services (SWS) unless extremely unwell and treatment is required.

The Faculty Office DOES NOT recommend writing exams/tests/quizzes or handing in assignments when experiencing an extenuating circumstance impacting your academic ability. Please submit a Request for Academic Consideration as soon as the need arises.

Consideration requests can only be submitted in the same semester as the course is being taught. After the last day of the semester, students will need to submit a Petition to the Associate Dean.

Steps to Request Consideration

Documentation for supporting the timeline being requested.
1. If a student is unable to obtain supporting documentation, they may be able to submit one short-term (3 day) request using the attestation embedded in the portal during the final exam period. Students will need to provide an explanation of the extenuating circumstances and why they were unable to obtain documentation as part of the attestation process.
2. Students who have already used their one attestation request in the current term, will require supporting documentation for ALL further requests during the final exam period.
3. Students should review what documents are accepted under the ‘Supporting Documentation’ tab.
  1. Note: students who should not visit a doctor/walk-in clinic in-person (i.e. flu, respiratory illness) can visit an online clinic to request documentation.
Submit a consideration request through the portal
1. An email will be sent to the student and instructor informing them of the request.
2. The consideration team will evaluate the request within 48 hours (for short-term requests), or 5 business days (for long-term requests) to ensure it fits within the consideration policy, and email both the student and instructor(s) if there are any issues or if the request is being withdrawn.
Reach out to your instructor
1. Once a consideration request is verified, it is the student’s responsibility to reach out to their instructor(s) to discuss the options available to them.
2. While the Academic Consideration team verifies severity and the timeline being requested, it is the instructor who will decide if offering a deferred exam is an appropriate consideration option for their course.
Scheduling the Deferred Exam
1. If you are writing your exam during the deferred exam period, it is your instructor’s responsibility to submit your name to the Exam Office, as the Exam office will then schedule and proctor the exam. If you are writing the deferred exam outside of the deferred exam window, it will be your instructor’s responsibility to arrange the time, location, and proctor for the exam.

Limitations of a Deferred Final Exam

Students need to carefully assess if deferring an exam is their best option.

If a consideration request to defer a final exam has been verified and the instructor agrees to defer the exam, the student needs to understand the following limitations:

Deferred Exam Period: The student must write during the deferred exam period, or when the instructor schedules the deferred exam. The consideration portal will not accept requests to defer exams during the deferred exam period, a deferred exam cannot be deferred again through the consideration process. The student will need to consider other options (e.g., petition for extended incomplete, late drop etc.).
Documentation Beyond Deferred Period: If documentation submitted during final exams extends beyond the deferred exam period, you will need to discuss the timeline with your instructor. It will be at the instructor’s discretion when the deferred exam is to be written. Students will not be able to submit another consideration request to further defer the final exam through the consideration process. Students who cannot write their deferred exam due to extenuating circumstances must explore other options (e.g., petition for extended incomplete, late drop etc.).
Exam Format: All deferred exams are to be written in the format they were originally scheduled. For example, if a student’s original exam was scheduled to be in-person, they must write their deferred exam in-person. This is an important factor to consider, especially if the student knows they will not be in Kingston during the deferred exam period.

What if I Need to Request a Second Deferral of a Final Exam?

If a student experiences an extenuating circumstance during the deferred final exam period, or when the instructor re-schedules the exam, and they need to request a second deferral of their final exam, they will need to submit an Academic Petition to the Associate Dean (Academic) along with supporting documentation to request an Extended Incomplete (Academic Petition and Appeals Regulation 1.7.1.6). For more information on submitting an petition please visit the Petition and Appeals webpage.

Incomplete Standing

If unexpected extenuating circumstances prevent you from completing all coursework within a term, you may be eligible to request permission from your Instructor(s) for an Incomplete Standing (IN). If granted, this would allow you to complete the remaining coursework in the following term.

Notes:

This explanation refers to requesting an Incomplete Standing for coursework, not final exams. If you need to defer a final exam, please refer to the “What if I need to defer a final exam?” section.
It is recommended that you apply for Academic Consideration during the term in which you are enrolled in the course. Some instructors will ask for you to request consideration before deciding on an Incomplete Standing, and you cannot request consideration once the course is closed.
You must request permission for an Incomplete Standing with your instructor prior to the end of the term the course is being taught.
You must have actively participated in the course and have only one or two outstanding components left to complete.
If extenuating circumstances have prevented you from completing most of the coursework, you should consider dropping the course before the deadline or submit a petition to the Associate Dean (Academic) for a late drop instead of requesting an Incomplete Standing.
Academic Consideration cannot be requested after the course has ended. However, you may submit a petition to the Associate Dean (Academic) for other academic options, such as late course drop, within the timeframe for submitting a Petition.

How to Request an Incomplete Standing

Request Academic Consideration during the term in which the course is being taught. The Consideration team will need to verify your request.
Discuss with your instructor what consideration they can offer, including requesting permission for an Incomplete Standing
1. Granting an Incomplete Standing is at the instructor’s discretion and depends on academic factors (e.g., the amount of work you have completed in the course, what deliverable is missing, the weight of the missed assignment, etc.)
Agree on a completion deadline with your instructor. Incomplete work can be submitted no later than the end of the subsequent term.
Complete a Permission for an Incomplete Grade form with your instructor. If your instructor grants an Incomplete Standing, you must complete the form together. This is to set clear expectations for outstanding work and deadlines.

Need a further extension?

If an additional extension is required due to further extenuating circumstances, you will need to submit a petition to the Associate Dean (Academic) with support from your instructor.

Frequently Asked Questions

As a Non-Arts and Science student, should I use the FAS portal?

No. If you are a student from another Faculty (i.e., Commerce, Engineering, Health Sciences, Nursing, or a graduate student), you should submit a request through your home Faculty/graduate office. This applies even if you are taking an undergraduate Arts & Science course. Please see the “Links to Faculty/School Office Websites” list under the “Info for Students” section and “Faculty/School Office Contacts for the Academic Considerations” drop down to find the appropriate contact for your Faculty.

I have an ongoing disability. Can I submit a request?

If you have an ongoing disability, your needs are likely best served by Queen’s Student Accessibility Services (QSAS). However, please refer to the specific points below to see what best fits the circumstance you are experiencing:

1. You have an ongoing disability, and you are not registered with QSAS: Please visit Queen’s Student Accessibility Services (QSAS) website to begin the process of registering using the steps below:

Please upload your documentation and complete the Student Intake Form in the secure Online Intake Portal on the QSAS webpage.
For more information on the intake process, please contact the Intake Coordinator at qsas.intake@queensu.ca

2. You have an ongoing disability, are registered with QSAS, and you are experiencing an exacerbation of your disability: 

Often extenuating circumstances can exacerbate symptoms of an ongoing disability. Students can receive support for exacerbations of their ongoing disability through Queen’s Student Accessibility Services (QSAS). Please send an e-mail to your instructor regarding your specific accommodation needs and copy your accommodation advisor. This is the best means for you to receive the accommodation you require. If you are not sure if you are registered, or do not know your QSAS Advisors contact information, please contact qsas.intake@queensu.ca.

3. You have an ongoing disability, are registered with QSAS, and you are NOT experiencing an exacerbation of your disability: 

If your request is related to an extenuating circumstance (I.e., bereavement, illness, accident) that is not exacerbating your disability, please submit a request for Academic Consideration through the Academic Consideration Request Portal.

For more information, including a handy “Consideration and Accommodation” cheat sheet, please see the “Academic Consideration and Academic Accommodation” section above.

When to use my short-term request without documentation?

If you have documentation that clearly states the duration and severity of the extenuating circumstance you are experiencing, it is always better to use this documentation to support your request. Please note that we can only verify dates that are clearly visible on supporting documentation.

While we strongly recommend that you obtain supporting documentation for your request, we understand that it isn’t always possible. You can submit two short-term requests (up to 3-days each) per academic term: one 3-day no-document request (no explanation) and one 3-day attestation request (no documentation, but an explanation is needed). The no-document request cannot be used during the final exam period. These types of requests cannot be withdrawn, or dates changed, once submitted. If you use these requests, all subsequent requests for the remainder of the term will require documentation (see ‘supporting documentation’ section of our webpage to understand what types of in-person and online documentation is possible).

Can I submit documentation in a different language?

As an English language school, Queen’s does not have the capacity to translate supporting documentation from other languages. To be able to assess the severity and timeframe of an extenuating circumstance, we require documentation in English. Please review the “Supporting Documentation” section for more information regarding our required translation process.

How do I extend my request? Can it be extended to next term?

If your request for Academic Consideration needs to be extended beyond what your supporting documentation previously verified (within the current term) please simply submit a new request with updated documentation. Our team reviews your entire history of requests when evaluating all submissions, so we will take this into account when reviewing new information.

Students are expected to make decisions about their academics on a semesterly basis. This means that if you have an extenuating circumstance that spans two academic terms, the Faculty office expects you to decide about your involvement in new course(s) based on your current abilities before the drop deadline and adjust your course load as needed. While requests with documentation supporting a timeframe beyond the current term may be verified, students will need to submit a new consideration for any courses in the new term, if needed, using the same documentation. Please note that consideration using the same documentation will only consider the time remaining in the documentation not used in the previous term.

Does my request need approval before the assessment due date?

No, however, requests should be submitted as soon as the need becomes apparent, and within the term you are taking the course. This request will send a notification to course instructors, giving teaching staff ample notice to plan for possible Consideration options to assist you.

Due to the volume of requests we receive, it may take our team up to 6 business days to verify your request. Teaching staff are understanding that this process may take time. We do appreciate your patience and ask that you do not contact our staff for updates on the status of your request; this further slows down the process.

Can I submit a request after the course has ended?

The Faculty Office generally does not accept requests for Academic Consideration once a course has closed/ended. In most cases, an academic petition is likely to be recommended; you can speak with an Academic Advisor by attending an online drop-in meeting, or make an appointment with an Academic Advisor to discuss your options by calling 613-533-2470.

Exceptional cases will be reviewed by our Academic Consideration Team on a case-by-case basis. To be eligible to submit a request for Academic Consideration after the course has ended, you must meet the following criteria:

Your extenuating circumstance has impeded your ability to submit your consideration request in a timely manner
You have supporting documentation clearly outlining the severity, timeline and duration of your extenuating circumstance.
Your professor is in support of your request for academic consideration and is willing to accept work late.

Exception: In cases where the student has disclosed sexual violence, the university has a legal obligation to provide consideration for the student. In these cases, the student only has to meet criteria 1 and 2 to be able to proceed with a request.
- If you need assistance, please see the Sexual Violence Prevention and Response Services website to Get Help Now.

If you believe you meet all these criteria, please reach out to our Academic Considerations Team at asc.consideration@queensu.ca.

Important Information