Meeting Academic Obligations
This page contains links to the forms and outlines the processes required when submitting an Academic Consideration Request for missing a lab, quiz, assignment, or exam due to:
Inability to Complete Coursework due to Health, Compassionate or Extenuating Circumstances
As per (PDF file) Policy 167: Academic Consideration, students may request Academic Consideration (ACR) when they experience health, compassionate or extenuating circumstances that significantly impact their ability to fulfill an academic requirement. For example, their ability to attend classes, write a scheduled term test or exam, and/or meet an assignment deadline.
Students experiencing health, compassionate or extenuating circumstances, as outlined below, must submit a request for academic consideration through the online Senate portal (opens in new window) before, or within 3 business days of the missed evaluation. Depending on the type of request, a Toronto Metropolitan University Medical Certificate and/or supporting documentation is required.
Students must contact each course instructor via email as soon as possible after an Academic Consideration Request has been placed to inform them of the expected absence and determine the next steps for alternate arrangements, if available.
As of Fall 2020, students may submit 1 request per term without documentation. However, this request must be submitted within 3 business days of the missed evaluation, may only cover an absence of 3 days or fewer, and may not be for a missed final exam or final assessment.
Students with health, compassionate or extenuating circumstances lasting longer than three days are encouraged to contact Academic Accommodation Support (opens in new window) to discuss the possibility of temporary accommodations.
Health, Compassionate and Extenuating Circumstances
| Type of Request | Description | Required Documents |
|---|---|---|
| HEALTH | Physical and mental health issues that are either sudden or acute, including but not limited to unexpected illness or injury, hospitalization, or treatment, or significant aggravation of a pre-existing condition. |
The doctor’s note must include information outlined on the Toronto Metropolitan University Medical Certificate; including the date that academic functioning is no longer impaired and the degree of incapacitation. Only requests that are deemed "Serious" or "Moderate" will be considered. Note: The role of the FYEO is to verify documentation. If sufficient documentation is not provided, the request cannot be verified. |
| COMPASSIONATE | Events, circumstances or emergencies that cause undue hardship, personal distress and/or trauma. | While it is recognized that compassionate grounds may sometimes be hard to document, items such as relevant travel documents, death certificates or notices from a funeral home, letters from counsellors, therapists, or religious or community leaders would be appropriate. Note: The role of the FYEO is to verify documentation. If sufficient documentation is not provided, the request cannot be verified. |
| OTHER EXTENUATING CIRCUMSTANCES |
|
Examples of documentation can include a letter from the applicable Toronto Metropolitan University Athletic Coach for a Toronto Metropolitan University Varsity competition, letter from the organizer for the conference with the confirmed student registration, letter from the faculty member organizing the field trip identifying the course/program the field trip is related to with confirmed student registration, signed letter from the Officer Commanding or higher with the dates of required service. Note: The role of the FYEO is to verify documentation. If sufficient documentation is not provided, the request cannot be verified. |
Inability to Complete Coursework due to Religious Observations
According to (PDF file) Toronto Metropolitan University Senate Policy 150,: “If a student is requesting accommodation due to a religious, Aboriginal and/or spiritual observance, he or she must submit a (PDF file) Request for Accommodation of Student Religious, Aboriginal, and Spiritual Observance, within the first two weeks of the class or, for a final examination, within two weeks of the posting of the examination schedule.” If the required absence occurs within the first two weeks of classes, or the dates are not known well in advance as they are linked to other conditions, the request should be submitted with as much lead time as possible in advance of the required absence.
This form should be submitted via the online Academic Consideration Request (ACR) system within the first 2 weeks of class. After the request has been verified, it is the student’s responsibility to contact each instructor, who will then work with them to determine what academic accommodation will be provided.
Step-by-step video guide on how to submit an Academic Consideration Request (ACR)
Note: Students who have submitted one request per term without documentation must submit documentation for future requests.
Students who submit more than two requests for academic consideration per academic term will be required to meet with an Academic Advisor to ensure they have appropriate support in place to meet their academic needs before the third request is processed.
In some cases, make-up's for missed obligations may not be possible. Alternate options may be provided instead. Refer to the Course Outlines for each of your courses and (PDF file) Policy 167 for more information. Any academic consideration and alternate arrangement is at your professor's discretion.
What to do After Submitting an ACR
After a student submits their ACR, the First-Year Engineering Office and instructor(s) are notified. The student will also receive a confirmation receipt of the request via their Ryerson (TMU) email account. The FYEO will review the request along with relevant documentation (if applicable) and will notify both the student and instructor(s) as to whether the request has been verified or not verified
After the documentation has been verified, it is the student’s responsibility to contact each instructor via email. The instructor(s) will then decide whether to grant academic consideration and make acceptable alternate arrangements.
If a response is not received from the instructor within five working days, the student should contact the instructor again or consult with the teaching department Chair via email.