Apply for a reasonable adjustment

Exam deadlines

Please send your medical evidence to us or make an appointment to see us before the deadline to arrange support.

Overview

The types of adjustments for exams and controlled assessments include:

• extra time
• rest breaks
• use of a computer
• a separate or smaller room
• a reader and/or scribe
• exam papers or answer booklets in a different format
• ergonomic furniture.

Exceptional adjustments to assessments might include:

• alternative assessment
• presenting to a smaller audience.

Read the reasonable adjustments policy and exams reasonable adjustment factsheet for further information.

Emergency support

If you need emergency additional support arrangements because you’ve been injured or have a serious infectious illness, the University will make every effort to put adjustments in.

Ad-hoc exams

If you have any exams taking place outside of the above assessment periods, the deadline to apply for alternative exam arrangements is three weeks before the exam date.

How long reasonable adjustments will be in place for

Your adjustments will be in place for the duration of your course. If there’s any discrepancies please contact an Information Point and you can check MyUWE at any time.

Exam timetable

Please note: If you have reasonable adjustments for exams you won’t be in the main exam room. Please go to the room specified on your exam timetable. If you're entitled to extra time for any of your exams, this will show on your timetable. Please note that it only applies to extra time, not rest breaks, which will be known by your exam invigilator.

You may be eligible for a reasonable adjustment if you meet the below criteria – and you need ten working days beyond the original deadline to complete the work.

Disabled students

For disabled students:

• Where you are affected disproportionately, because of your disability, by other illnesses or events.

Or

• Where your disability is fluctuating or episodic.

Or

• Where your disability, mental health condition, medical condition or specific learning difficulty – such as dyslexia – has been diagnosed within the last six months.

Other students

For other students:

• Where you are a primary carer of a disabled person.
• Where you are pregnant or a parent with a baby under six months old.

In order to process your request for a reasonable adjustment to deadline we will need to see some medical/supporting evidence which provides us with information about your current needs and situation.

Medical evidence

We would usually ask for medical evidence to be a letter or report from a GP or other medical professional that you have seen recently. The medical evidence should include the following information:

• your name and personal information e.g. date of birth, address etc
• a date to show when it was written
• confirmation of a diagnosis or information about your current situation.

If you are pregnant then please provide a copy of your MATB1 form or a copy of medical correspondence which confirms your expected delivery date.

We do not accept photocopies of prescriptions, letters from the UWE Wellbeing Service or photos of your injury.

Evidence of your caring responsibilities

We ask that you provide us with evidence of your caring responsibilities. This may include:

• A letter from the Department for Work and Pensions confirming that the student is in receipt of carers allowance.

Or

• A letter from a medical/social care professional working with the person being cared for e.g. mental health practitioner, social worker, consultant, GP. The letter needs to outline:
  • disabled adult/child’s diagnosis/needs.
  • type of caring support provided (emotional support, personal care, shopping etc).

if you require further advice regarding the best type of evidence to supply then please contact Information Point by calling +44(0)117 32 85678.

Applications for reasonable adjustments to deadlines must be made at least two full working days before your assignment submission date, and not any earlier than ten working days prior to the deadline. If you are applying outside these timeframes you must explain in your application why you have needed to do so.

Complete the form

Postgraduate researchers

If you are a postgraduate researcher (PhD, DPhil, MPhil) and you are looking for a reasonable adjustment to a deadline for one of your taught modules, please go ahead and submit the form. If you are looking to discuss a reasonable adjustment to a progress review or final assessment, please contact the Graduate School.

We will notify you by email and we will be in touch with you if we have questions about your application.

We will notify you by email. Where you have been granted a reasonable adjustment to a deadline, or a five working day extension, further adjustments to the deadline for the same piece of work will not be able to be considered. You may be able to apply to complete the work at a later date via the University’s missed assessments process. Please contact an Information Point for further guidance.

There are other options if you do not meet the reasonable adjustment criteria but have experienced something significant that affects your ability to sit an exam or submit a piece of coursework. Please find out more about the options available to you.

Please note that during resit periods, you can apply for a reasonable adjustment to deadline adjustment for a maximum of five working days. The five working day extension process is not available during resit periods. 

If you are outside of these timeframes you need to explain why. A reason for applying earlier than 10 working days before the deadline could be to manage around a planned surgery or other event.

Adjustments to deadlines cannot be considered retrospectively, unless there is a compelling reason why you could not apply in advance of the coursework assessment deadline. You must explain why you have not been able to apply before two working days before the deadline in your application.

An Access Plan is a meeting to talk about adjustments, support and strategies for students on professional practice placements. An Access Plan is usually a meeting, but in some cases can be carried out over the phone. If a meeting takes place it would usually be attended by a Disability Adviser, a programme representative and a placement or trust representative, along with the student. Your tutor will need to complete an Access Plan request form and send this to Disability Service, who will decide which type of meeting is required and will be in touch to set it up.