If your performance in an assessment task or exam for a subject was affected by circumstances beyond your control, you may be able to apply for special consideration.
Special consideration is intended to provide equitable academic treatment for students whose performance in an assessment task / exam has been significantly affected by extenuating or special circumstances beyond their control.
Special consideration is not automatically granted and may not result in a study or mark adjustment.
Covid-19 - supporting documentation:
Starting in 2023, Covid-19 test results will no longer be accepted as a form of supporting document for special consideration. If you have tested positive for Covid-19 and would like to apply for special consideration, please refer to the supporting document requirements for health-related matters.
You may apply for special consideration if you were affected by:
The circumstances below are not eligible for special consideration:
Students who are parents/carers/pregnant:
Find more about balancing study with significant carer responsibilities.
Long-term or ongoing circumstances:
If you are experiencing a recurring medical condition, we are encourage you to register with UTS: Accessibility Service.
Knowingly making false or misleading claims of extenuating circumstances or altering or falsifying any documentary evidence (e.g. medical certificate, professional authority form, or other supporting documentation) may be considered an act of student misconduct and may be dealt with in accordance with Section 16 (Student misconduct and appeals).
To apply for special consideration online:
Need help with your application?
A guide is available to help you lodge a special consideration application
Applying for multiple assessments / exams
When circumstances affect more than one assessment task or exam, you must submit a separate special consideration application for each and attach your supporting documents to each application.
The deadline for your special consideration application varies depending on the type of assessment or exam.
These are also known as end-of session exams. The Exams team (from Student Administration Unit) schedule and conduct these type of exams (including online exams).
| Status | Deadline |
|---|---|
| Attended | Submit within 48 hours after exam (excluding weekends) |
| Missed | Apply for an Alternative Exam |
If you know in advance (before the exam period starts) that you cannot attend a centrally-conducted exam then you need to submit a Scheduling Difficulties form to Exams before the deadline.
These are conducted by the faculties during or after the teaching period.
| Status | Deadline |
|---|---|
| Attended | Submit within 2 working days after |
| Cannot attend | Submit at least 10 working days before the date of exam / test / quiz |
| Missed | Submit within 2 working days after |
If you miss a centrally-conducted Examination, you may apply for an Alternative Exam. If you miss an Alternative examination as well, you can apply for Special Consideration.
| status | deadline |
|---|---|
| Attended | Submit within 2 working days after |
| Missed* | Submit within 2 working days after |
*Law students should apply for Exam after Examination period instead of Special Consideration.
All assessments should be submitted by the due date specified in the subject outline to avoid academic penalty or failure. Assessment items include but are not limited to:
A request for an extension on assessment must be made in sufficient time before the assessment due date so the subject coordinator can assess and consider the outcome. This will allow you time to complete the assessment by the deadline if your application is refused.
| Request for an extension of | deadline |
|---|---|
| More than one week | Submit application before assessment due date |
| One week or less | Email your subject coordinator directly (do not apply via special consideration) |
Law students requesting for less than one week are to apply for Short-term Extensions. Deadlines are outlined on the Faculty of Law's webpage.
UTS Online students should refer to Canvas course page, subject outlines and/or UTS handbook for advice on requests for extensions.
| Request for an extension of | deadline |
|---|---|
| 1 - 7 days* | Must apply to subject coordinators using UTS Online Request for Short Extension without Academic Penalty |
| More than one week | Must submit a Special Consideration application before assessment due date |
*Students studying psychology requesting an extension need to apply following the Graduate Diploma in Psychology / Graduate Diploma in Psychology (Advanced) assignment extension policy.
This assessment type applies to students who have mandatory attendance requirements for clinical placements.
| status | Deadline |
|---|---|
| Missed | Submit within 5 working days of the missed date |
| Cannot attend | Submit before the upcoming placement date |
Some courses have mandatory attendance requirements such as:
| Status | deadline |
|---|---|
| Attended | Submit within 2 working days after |
| Cannot attend | Submit at least 10 working days before date of the mandatory attendance |
| Missed | Submit within 2 working days after |
Late applications may be lodged only in exceptional circumstances. Such requests must be supported by documentary evidence for the late submission.
All special consideration applications must include current supporting documents as evidence to support your claim. You may be required to supply originals of these documents at any time during your studies at the University.
The supporting documents must clearly indicate:
Special consideration applications will be refused if no documentation is provided or the documentation provided does not support your claims.
Important - UTS will not obtain documents on your behalf from third parties (e.g. medical doctors, hospital or police). However, the University may verify the documentation provided with your application with the issuing authority. Disciplinary action may be taken if false or misleading documentation is submitted.
In the first instance, please submit a Professional Authority (PA) form which needs to be completed by a medical practitioner, psychologist, counsellor, or other registered health practitioner.
The PA form must include both the AHPRA Practitioner Registration Number AND the Medicare Provider Number (not required if being treated by UTS Health Service practitioners). If either number is missing, then the Professional Authority form cannot be accepted.
UTS require both these numbers to authenticate the registration of the health practitioner. The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) Register of Practitioners (opens an external site) provides the Practitioner Registration Number of health practitioners.
Alternatively, you may submit any of the following documents depending on the special consideration reason:
You can download a Student Declaration for Online Technical Issues here.
In addition to the declaration, you may also submit secondary supporting documents such as:
More information on Student Declaration for Online Technical Issues can be found here.
UTS currently accepts medical certificates issued by a registered health practitioner after a face-to-face, video conferencing, or telephone consultation. Medical Certificates or Certificates for Personal Leave issued by a Pharmacist will not be accepted.
Students in Australia
The medical certificate must include:
Students who are overseas
UTS accepts medical certificates from overseas. The medical certificate must include:
Any medical certificates that are in a language other than English must be accompanied by an English translation performed by a NAATI-accredited translator (opens an external site).
Note: The medical certificate will not be accepted if any of the details listed above are missing.
Any students who experienced an online technical issue during an online exam are required to complete a Student Declaration.
Examples of online technical issues:
The Student Declaration form must include:
In addition to the student declaration, you may also submit secondary supporting documents such as:
You can download a Student Declaration for Online Technical Issues here.
A Statutory Declaration is a written statement which a person declares to be true in the presence of an authorised witness (e.g. Justice of the Peace, lawyer, notary public etc.).
The statutory declaration must include:
You may also need to provide any secondary documents that verify your circumstances and address the impact on your studies.
Examples of appropriate supporting documents include a police report or a death certificate. If you need to travel interstate or overseas for a funeral, you will need to provide a travel itinerary or statutory declaration for the additional time you are away.
You can download a Commonwealth of Australia Statutory Declaration form online (opens an external site). It must be signed in front of a Justice of the Peace (opens an external site) or an authorised witness.
Note: Under new NSW Government regulation (opens an external site), video conferencing technology like Skype, WhatsApp, Facetime and Zoom can now be used in the witnessing of legal documents such as statutory declarations.
Students affected by other circumstances (i.e. not based on health-related matter) should provide a third party or independently verified document (e.g. a letter from a relevant authority) such as a:
This should be written on an official letterhead and must include the following details:
UTS accept documents from overseas if they are certified by one of the following:
Please note that all certifications must be in English.
When supporting documentation is in a language other than English it must be accompanied by an English translation by a NAATI-accredited translator (opens an external site).
Special consideration applications often contain sensitive personal and/or medical information. Student confidentiality is important to us.
Please look at Your privacy at UTS as it explains how UTS will manage your privacy and protect your personal information.
Applications submitted after the deadline will not be accepted. You may request a late submission in exceptional circumstances only. Submit online enquiry and include reasons for late submission which also must be supported by documentary evidence.
In order to be able to authenticate the Professional Authority form and identify fraudulent documents, UTS must be able to confirm the Practitioner Registration Number of your health practitioner on the AHPRA register.
Students who experience difficulties in scanning and attaching their supporting documents should submit an online enquiry.
The outcome of an application will be sent via email to the student’s UTS Webmail. Students can monitor the status of their application by logging into My Student Portal. If it has been several weeks and the status of the application is still showing as Referred to Faculty students should contact the subject coordinator.
The University's Student Rules cover a suite of mandatory requirements for academic teaching, learning and research related activities. They cover student responsibilities, all processes from admissions through coursework and research requirements to exams, assessments and graduations.
UTS acknowledges the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, the Boorooberongal people of the Dharug Nation, the Bidiagal people and the Gamaygal people, upon whose ancestral lands our university stands. We would also like to pay respect to the Elders both past and present, acknowledging them as the traditional custodians of knowledge for these lands.