Academic Concessions & Accommodations

• JD students: Jennifer Lau, Acting Assistant Dean, Students, lau@allard.ubc.ca
• Exchange Students: Charles Lee, Assistant Director of Centre for Business Law, lee@allard.ubc.ca
• LLMCL/LLMT Students/Distance Learning: Kerstin Walter, Director of Graduate Professional Programs, walter@allard.ubc.ca
• LLM/PHD Students: Joanne Chung, Graduate Programme Advisor, jchung@allard.ubc.ca

Determination of whether to grant an academic concession and which type of academic concession is most appropriate will depend on your individual circumstances. One or more of the following considerations may apply:

Though not an exhaustive list, the most common concessions granted are:

• More time to work on your paper or assignment
• A deferral of your examination (midterm or final) to a later date
• A waiver of the participation requirement for a missed class day
• Rescheduling of a presentation to a different day

Requests for academic concession generally do require documentation. However, a Self-Declaration of your circumstances may be sufficient for:

• the first occurrence of an acute illness
• a request on compassionate grounds
• a conflicting responsibility for which there is no practicable way to provide a letter or other official document from an organization relevant to the conflict
• religious observances

For some circumstances, you may still be required to submit supporting documentation along with, or following, your self-declaration (see details below in Requesting an academic concession). Please see the Self-Declaration form for further information and conditions on the use of the Self-Declaration.

We trust that the information you provide in a request for academic concession is accurate and truthful. The submission of false information for the purpose of obtaining academic concession is classified as non-academic misconduct, and will be investigated and penalized accordingly.

Students are expected to make requests for an exam deferral prior to entering the examination room. Once a student sees an examination paper, the student has committed to writing and completing that exam.  If during the exam, a student experiences a sudden, debilitating illness, which renders them unable to complete an exam, the student must alert the invigilator or Academic Services Staff immediately for assessment. 

Requests from students for retroactive exam deferrals or concessions after an exam is written or submitted (e.g. claiming an in-exam illness or incident) will not be reviewed unless the student alerted the invigilator during the exam as per the above process.

Withdrawal from a course after the last date to drop with a W is available as an academic concession, but only in exceptional circumstances.  Late withdrawals can only be granted with approval from the Assistant Dean, Students (JD students) or the Associate Dean, Graduate Studies (graduate students). Students requesting a late withdrawal should do so promptly and are expected to provide supporting documentation. Late withdrawals are not available if you have written the final exam or completed the final assessments in the course except as allowed by the University Senate on an exceptional basis during Term 2 of the 2019 Winter Session due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

December exams are mandatory for 1L students. Exam deferrals are not available for December practice exams. If a 1L student qualifies for an academic concession for a 1L December Practice exam, the student will be granted an exam waiver. The student's April exam in that course will be worth 100% of their final grade.

Requests for academic concessions will not be considered due to job interviews, conference attendance, court duties, volunteer commitments, travel or vacation plans, work schedules or a failure to back-up work. Students are expected to plan their personal affairs around their academic responsibilities. 

UBC’s Centre for Accessibility assists students with a disability or ongoing medical condition overcome challenges that may affect their academic success. If you think you may be eligible for academic accommodations, you should contact the Centre for Accessibility as soon as possible and ideally prior to the start of law studies to set up an appointment and register for accommodations.

If you are approved for accommodations, send a copy of your Letter of Accommodation to the Assistant Dean, Students. Graduate students should also send a copy to their graduate advisor.  The Assistant Dean, Students or your Graduate Advisor will notify your Instructor of any approved classroom accommodations. You should not send your Letter of Accommodation to your instructors.

If you are eligible for exam accommodations, you need to register each term to write your exams with the Centre for Accessibility. The Centre has created this helpful Power Point outlining the process for Law Students to book exams with their office.

The Centre for Accessibility is set up to manage chronic or long-term illness or disabilities. If you experience a temporary injury, such as a broken or sprained limb or a mild concussion, you should contact your Allard Law Advisor first to explore temporary accommodations, concessions, or referrals to other campus resources (such as exam deferrals or retroactive course withdrawals).

It is your responsibility to arrange your personal life so that your attendance and participation in courses is not impacted. Conflicting responsibilities that create grounds for academic concession must be unexpected and unanticipated, are beyond your control and normally arise after you have registered in courses. Examples (which are not exhaustive) include:

• being absent from campus to represent the University, British Columbia or Canada in a competition or performance
• a change in the need to provide care for a dependent or family member
• being called to serve in the military
• being required to attend a hearing on a matter of university discipline or academic standing
• being required to report to a government office for immigration or citizenship proceedings
• participating in a religious observance

Requests for academic concessions will not be considered due to job interviews, conference attendance, court duties, volunteer commitments, travel or vacation plans, work schedules, or a failure to back-up work. Students are expected to plan their personal affairs around their academic responsibilities.

Documentation for Conflicting Responsibilities

Supporting documentation should normally be provided in support of requests for academic concessions on the grounds of conflicting responsibilities*. A Self-Declaration may be sufficient where there is no practicable way to provide a letter or other official document from an organization relevant to the conflict. Contact your Allard Law Advisor  if you do not have supporting documentation for a concession request based on conflicting responsibilities.

*Documentation is not required for care of a family member.

For students who may miss a final exam due to a religious observance, per Allard Law policy, they must request an academic concession no later than the last day to add a course for that term.  The exam will be rescheduled to a different date during the examination period. Documentation is not required.

Medical circumstances that create grounds for academic concession are normally unanticipated and include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Acute physical or mental illness or a medical circumstance that emerges or recurs during a term
• The emergence of, or a change in, a chronic physical or mental health condition

Documentation for Medical Grounds

Supporting documentation is generally required for academic concessions related to medical grounds. However, for a temporary injury or illness, a self-declaration of your circumstances will usually be sufficient. An Allard Law Advisor will contact you if supporting medical documentation is required before granting a concession. For second or subsequent requests for an academic concession based on the same injury or illness within the same academic term, you may be required to submit medical documentation.

If you believe you are experiencing the emergence of a chronic condition, please speak to your Allard Law Advisor as soon as possible to discuss appropriate referrals and campus resources.

Students who are registered with the Centre for Accessibility, and who are requesting a concession related to their reasons for that registration, should not provide medical documentation or a self-declaration to their Allard Law Advisor and should instead contact their Accessibility Advisor to discuss their request. Students who are registered with the Centre for Accessibility and are seeking an academic concession unrelated to the reasons for that registration should contact their Allard Law Advisor to discuss their request.

Compassionate grounds for academic concession may arise in the immediate aftermath of an unanticipated event, or later. Examples include:

• a traumatic event experienced by you, a family member, or a close friend
• an act of sexual misconduct experienced by you, a family member, or a close friend
• a death in the family or of a close friend

Documentation for Compassionate Grounds

For academic concession on compassionate grounds, a self-declaration of your circumstances will usually be sufficient. An Allard Law Advisor will contact you if additional information is required before granting a concession.

If a prolonged absence is anticipated on compassionate grounds, supporting documentation may be requested. Supporting documentation can be provided by a professional (for example, a counsellor or psychologist) or by a unit (for example, Counselling Services or UBC Hospital) that can assess the effect of the event on you.

The law school recognizes that circumstances may arise where documentation is unavailable or not appropriate. Students with questions about documentation requirements should contact the Assistant Dean, Students, for advice in advance of making an academic concession application.

If you have been approved for an academic concession to defer an exam, or have a paper or assignment deadline extended beyond the date for faculty members to submit final grades, then your transcript will include a “SD” (Standing Deferred) notation in place of a grade for your course. After you have written your exam or submitted your assignment, your instructor will submit your final course grade. The SD notation will be removed when your final grade is posted and there will be no indication that you were approved for an academic concession.

The law school sets specific dates for deferred exams. Students cannot choose when they write their deferred exam. Please see the Academic Concession Request Form for the dates of the deferred exam periods for each term. Student and Academic Services Staff will notify you of the specific date and time of your deferred exam following the conclusion of the term.

You will lose access to your courses in Canvas once the term is finished. It is your responsibility to download any materials you will need to complete the course and prepare for the exam. You may also ask your Instructor to extend your access to the course in Canvas, but do so as soon as possible as it may take several days for your request to be processed. Note that some copywritten material may not be available in Canvas once the term ends.