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For the dates of the exams and the dates the timetable is released, see .
The University of Tasmania holds exams on Saturdays and in the evenings (Monday to Friday), so you should be prepared for this when making plans for the exam period. Any public holidays which fall within an exam period may also have exams scheduled (eg, Queen’s Birthday holiday during the semester one exams).
To see your personal timetable you must go to the Current Students page, click on the link for Examinations and Results, and refer to Personal Exam timetables.
We will send you a reminder to your University email account a week before the timetable is released.
You can access your web exam timetable via the Current Students page, by clicking on the link for Examinations and Results, then selecting Personal Exam timetables.
You will need your login name (comes before the @ in your email account), and your password to access your timetable.
If you have never used your email password, your initial password will appear on your enrolment statement. If you have forgotten your password, the IT Service Desk can generate you a new password. This will take a couple of hours.
Once the exam timetable has been released, it is extremely rare for it to be changed.
If we make a change (for example, to correct an error), we will send you an email to your University email account, letting you know that you need to check your timetable again.
The University provides you with an email account to which we send all official correspondence. You should check your emails regularly, and re-check your web timetable before the exams start, as a precaution.
If you have requested special arrangements of any kind and your timetable changes because of this, we will email you to let you know that it has been changed.
Students must sit their exams at the study centre at which they are enrolled, with the exception of the categories below.
Students who are enrolled as distance students with a study centre of I, O or N are entitled to sit at a centre near where they live. See “Distance Education”.
Students who are enrolled at different campuses in the same semester (cross-campus enrolment) may apply to have all of their exams at one of their study centres. Application forms are available through the Forms Directory (see “Alternative centre”).
Students who do not fall into either of these categories may still apply to sit at an alternative centre if they can demonstrate that sitting at their enrolled centre will cause excessive hardship. To apply in this category you must provide supporting documentation or your application will not be considered. Application forms are available on the web, via the Forms Directory (see “Alternative centre”). Please read all the information on the application form very carefully as your application will not be approved if it does not meet the eligibility criteria.
Applications to sit elsewhere close 10 working days after the release of the timetable (the due date will also appear on your personal timetable page).
Students are expected to sit their exams at the date and time on their timetable, unless there are exceptional circumstances. (For evening exams, see below.)
Exams cannot be moved for holiday commitments or ordinary work commitments.
If you wish to apply to sit your exams at a different time, please make an application in writing to the Examinations Office (Private Bag 45, Hobart TAS 7001, or drop the application into Student Administration, Hobart or Launceston, or the Cradle Coast campus). Your application should set out all your reasons for requesting the change, and should include supporting documentation. Applications without supporting documentation will not be considered.
Before you make an application, you should look at the information regarding deferred exams See “Illness and Accident” section of Information Sheet).
If you have an exam scheduled for a 5pm session, you may apply to sit that exam at 3pm on the same day. You will be required to remain in the room until 5.15pm and will not be allowed to leave early.
If you wish to sit at 3pm, please complete an application form, available on the web via the Forms Directory (see “Evening examinations”).
Applications to sit at 3pm close 10 working days after the release of the timetable (the due date will also appear on your personal timetable page).
Exams are not normally moved because they fall on a Saturday.The exception is where it is not possible to sit the exam because of religious beliefs. If you bring a letter from your pastor, rabbi or other appropriate religious leader, confirming that you cannot sit on Saturdays, then we can enter this information as a permanent code. This means that for future exam periods we will check your timetable before it is released, and move any Saturday exams in advance.
Students with other reasons for wishing to have their Saturday exams moved should see “Sitting exams at another time”.
The University of Tasmania provides a wide range of services to assist students with a disability. Alternative exam arrangements are available to reduce the impact of your condition on your exam performance.
If your disability is long-term, you must contact Student Services and make an appointment to speak to a Disability Adviser. The Disability Adviser can assess the impact of your disability on your study as a whole (not just exams) and can assist you in making permanent arrangements. For more information, go to Disability
If your disability is temporary, and you require assistance for this exams period only, you can apply directly to Student Administration. Application forms are available on the web, via the Forms Directory (see “Alternative arrangements”).
If it is very close to, or during the examination period, you should speak to someone in Exams as soon as possible.
If you are an Australian citizen or permanent resident from a non-English speaking background who has been in Australia for fewer than 10 years, you may be able to get some examination assistance in your first year of study. You may qualify for an extra 15 minutes an hour writing time in your exams and use of a bilingual dictionary. There is an application form available on the web, via the Forms Directory (see “NESB Arrangements”).
If you are an international student you cannot apply for NESB arrangements, but you can apply to take a bilingual dictionary into your exams. Application forms are available from Student Administration, and you must take your dictionary with you when you apply. The dictionary cannot be an electronic dictionary and it must be a general, not a specialised dictionary. You may not take a bilingual dictionary into a language exam unless it appears on the materials permitted for that unit on your timetable.
If you are enrolled as a distance student with a study centre of I (isolated), N (interstate) or O (overseas), then we will arrange for you to sit your exams at another institution (known as private supervision). We organise centres for the major mainland cities, but if you live more than 100km from an approved examination centre, or overseas, you will need to organise your own venue in consultation with the examinations office (we will meet all costs).
The Examinations Officer (Launceston) will contact you via your university email account at the beginning of semester with information about venues we have organised.
Distance education students who are enrolled with Hobart (H), Launceston (L) or Burnie (W) as their study centre will have their exams at that centre. If you wish to change your centre, you will need to apply using the “Alternative Centre” form on the Forms Directory.
Clashes of two formal exams are extremely rare (usually only 3 or 4 clashes in nearly 30,000 sittings), and it is highly unlikely you will have a clash. If you do, we will move one of your exams to either the morning or afternoon, and send you a letter explaining what we have done. Between the two sessions you will need to remain in Student Administration under supervision.
If a formal exam falls within the 3 day period granted to a take home exam, and you feel you are disadvantaged because of this, you should discuss this with the lecturer of the unit with the take home exam. Formal exams will not be moved because they fall within the period of a take home exam.
Depending on the units you are taking, you may have two exams in one day. While every effort is made to avoid this, it can happen, particularly with combined degrees, units taken outside your faculty and units in different year levels.
Normally, you will have at least 1 hour and 45 minutes rest time between exams. This means that if, for example, you have a 3 hour exam in the morning, we will move your afternoon exam to a starting time of 2pm, in order to give you a better break. However, if there is already an adequate break, we will not move your exams, and we cannot move one to another day.
You are strictly limited in what you may take into an examination venue. No bags of any kind are allowed in the exam room, and if you bring a bag you will be instructed to remove it well away from the room. Please note, we cannot provide security for bags, so it is strongly recommended that you do not bring one. You may bring a wallet-sized purse with you, and you must bring your student ID card.
As well as your wallet or purse, you may bring in pens, pencils, rubbers and rulers. You may not bring in a pencil case: your pens must be loose or in a clear plastic bag only. For mobile phones, and food and drink, see below.
No other materials are permitted in an examination room, unless otherwise indicated on your timetable.
English dictionaries are available for all students in the room.
You must bring your current University of Tasmania student ID card with you to every exam you sit. If you have forgotten your card and you have not yet entered the examination room, go immediately to Student Administration, taking any other ID you have with you. If you have entered the exam room and realise you have forgotten your card, raise your hand and a supervisor will assist you.
We strongly recommend that you do not take your mobile phone into an examination venue as we cannot guarantee its safety. Nor can we provide a secure location for you to leave your phone outside the venue. If you do take a mobile phone in, you must switch it off, and place it face up on your desk.
Students may enter the examination venue up to 30 minutes after the end of reading time: that is, up until 9.45am, 1.45pm or 5.45pm, depending on the session.
If you arrive after this time, go immediately to Student Administration and ask to speak to an Examinations Officer.
It is your responsibility to ensure that you know when and where your exam is, and that you turn up on time and to the correct place. Missing your exam can result in you receiving a grade of Absent deemed failed for that unit.
If you have missed your exam because you misread your timetable, slept in or forgot, you must contact the Examinations Office as soon as possible.
If you have missed your exam through unforeseen circumstances which prevented you from sitting, you might qualify for a deferred examination (see “Illness and Accident” section).
Water bottles are permitted into the exam room. All water bottles are to be a clear plastic bottle preferably with a pop top lid to avoid spillages and the possibility of destroying the exam scripts and causing a disruption to the exam. However, if an incident like this does occur it will be the responsibility of the student and if the paper is damaged it will be handed in and marked accordingly.
All water bottles are to be placed on top of the desk and will be checked by the supervisor.
If you have a medical condition which means you need access to food and drink during your exam, you may apply for alternative arrangements. See the “Disability: how do I apply for alternative arrangements?” FAQ.
The only food you are allowed to take into an exam venue is sweets.
If notes or other materials are permitted for your exam in a unit, it will be listed on your timetable. If what your timetable has listed as materials permitted does not make sense to you, you should speak to the lecturer of the unit.
If something is not listed, then you are not allowed to take it in. You should be aware that there can be severe penalties for taking unauthorised materials into your exam, including failing the unit or exclusion from your course.
If you have any queries, please contact the Examinations Office.
English dictionaries are available for all students in the examination venue. If you wish to use a dictionary, please raise your hand and a supervisor will assist you. You may not bring your own English dictionary into the room unless an English dictionary is listed on the materials permitted for that exam.
If you are an international student you can apply to take a bilingual dictionary into your exams. Application forms are available from Student Administration, and you must take your dictionary with you when you apply. The dictionary cannot be an electronic dictionary and it must be a general, not a specialised dictionary. You may not take a bilingual dictionary into a language exam unless it appears on the materials permitted for that unit on your timetable.
The Activities Room is in the Student Union building on the Hobart campus. It is one flight up, above the mixed shop and Co-op bookshop.
The Uni Bar is on the ground floor of the Student Union building on the Hobart campus. Enter from the door off the courtyard in front of the Ref.
The Engineering building is at the corner of Dobson and Grosvenor Streets on the Hobart campus. Room 302 is at the top of the stairs, one flight up.
Room 346 and SASC (Room 370) are in the Humanities building. Enter through the Churchill Avenue entrance.
Social Science Rooms 211, 212, 213, 320 and 322 are in the Arts building. Enter through the “fishpond door”, near Lazenby’s.
Room 237 is in the Earth Sciences building, on the corner of Grosvenor Cres and Dobson Rd. Enter through the main doors and take the corridor to the right of the lifts. Room 237 is at the first bend in the corridor.
The Human Movement Hall is located in the building behind the bookshop on the Launceston campus (building G).
Rooms D1, D2, D3 and D4 are located on level 1 of the Commerce building (building D) in Launceston. These rooms are often used as tutorial rooms during semester.
Brooks 14 is located near the School of Computing on the Launceston campus (14 on the campus map). It is a freestanding building of timber construction.
SASC is on the second floor of the Kerslake Student Centre in Launceston.
Room A060 and Room A070 are on the ground floor of building A (the building that houses Degrees restaurant).
All rooms in Burnie are in the main wing of the building.
If you are based in China, Malaysia, Singapore or Indonesia, please speak to your local coordinator regarding examination rooms.
If you are ill on the day of your exam, you may apply for a deferred examination. You must see a doctor on the day of the examination and take a copy of the deferred examination application form with you. The application form is available through the Forms Directory (see “Deferred Ordinary Exam Application”). Applications are due within 3 working days of the missed exam.
Fill out section A of the form, and leave the form with your doctor: they will return it to us. Please note that having a medical certificate does not guarantee that a deferred examination will be approved. Further guidelines are contained on the last page of the form. Please read these carefully, as they explain the circumstances in which a deferred exam might not be approved.
If you were ill when you sat your exam (or something else had happened which affected your performance) you may wish to apply for special consideration. There is an application form available through the Forms Directory (see “Special Consideration”).
You should complete the application for special consideration as soon as possible after the exam, since the lecturer needs to know of the request before marking is completed.
Complete a separate application for each unit affected, and submit these directly to the school. You must include supporting documentation with your application: without supporting documentation, no consideration can be given.
The consideration granted will depend upon your examiners, but may include supplementary examination or a viva (oral) examination.
If you are ill during the exams, but still wish to attempt your exams, we may be able to provide alternative arrangements to help you sit. If your illness is temporary, and you require assistance for one exams period only, you can apply directly to Student Administration. There is an application form available through the Forms Directory (see “Alternative arrangements”).
Both you and your doctor must fill out this form, but if you wish for advice as to what kind of arrangements might be suitable, please contact an Examinations Officer. If it is very close to, or during the examination period, you should speak to someone in Exams as soon as possible.
If your illness is ongoing and you will require permanent arrangements, you must apply through the Disability Adviser. See the “Disability: how do I apply for alternative arrangements?” FAQ.
If you have been prevented from sitting your exams due to unforeseen circumstances, you may apply for a deferred exam. The application form is available through the Forms Directory (see “Deferred Ordinary Exam Application”). Applications are due within 3 working days of the missed exam.
Please read the information on the form carefully, particularly the information on the back page. Deferred exams are not available for ordinary work commitments or holiday commitments, and the circumstances which prevented you from sitting need to have occurred on or near the time of the exam. Deferred exams are not awarded for loss of study time.
You should provide supporting documentation with your application. If you need any assistance in determining what type of documentation would best support your case, please contact an Examinations Officer.
It is not possible to defer your exams on the basis of loss of study time, as deferred exams are only available to students who are well prepared for their exams but are prevented from sitting due to unforeseen circumstances.
However, there are other options you may wish to consider. You can apply for withdrawal without academic penalty: information on the process and an application form are available from the Forms Directory (select Enrolment Forms, then Enrolment Variations).
Alternatively, if you choose to sit your exams, you may wish to apply for special consideration in marking. Please see “Special Consideration” above.
The instructions for collecting your take home exam will appear on your exam timetable.
Most take home exams are collected from and returned to Student Administration, but please check your timetable for details.
Instructions for returning your take home exam will appear on your exam timetable. Some units may specify that you can fax, mail or email your take home exam back to the school. However, if you are to return the exam to Student Administration you must hand deliver the exam and sign to confirm that you have delivered the exam to us.
Take home exams are scheduled to take place over three days. Usually, the exam will be timetabled so that students do not have an exam on the day the take home exam is due to be handed in. However, this is not always possible.
If you have any concerns about the timetabling of your take home exam, you should speak to your lecturer, and show them your timetable. We will not move a sit-down exam because it occurs during the 3 day period of a take home exam.
A deferred ordinary exam is an exam a student sits after the main exam period because they were prevented from sitting the ordinary exam (i.e., the exam in the main exam period) by circumstances out of their control.
To be allowed to sit a deferred ordinary exam you must have applied to the Examinations Office and your application must have been approved. For application process, see below.
Deferred ordinary exams are held approximately a month after the main exam period, under the same rules and conditions as the main exams. For information about the format of your deferred ordinary exam, see your lecturer.
When you get your result for your deferred ordinary exam, it will be an ordinary result (eg, 55 Pass, 78 Distinction). On your Faculty record and on the results page on the web, the “DO” indicating that you sat a deferred ordinary exam will remain, but this will not appear on your academic transcript.
The application form is available through the Forms Directory (see “Deferred Ordinary Exam Application”).
Before applying for a deferred exam, please read the form and associated information carefully, as a deferred exam can only be granted in certain circumstances. See also the information under “Illness and Accidents”.
The application form for a deferred ordinary exam is due to Student Administration within 3 working days of the missed exam.
The dates for the deferred ordinary exam period for semester one and two, and the timetable release dates, are available on the Key Dates page. We will also send you these dates when we approve your application.
Summer school has no formal deferred ordinary period, so if you are granted a deferred exam for summer school, your school will organise a date for you to sit your exam (within a month of the ordinary exam period).
The deferred ordinary timetable is available on the web only, via your Personal Exam timetables page.
You are expected to sit all your exams at the campus at which you are enrolled. If you would like to apply to sit at another study centre you need to complete an application form and provide supporting documentation. The application form is available from the Forms Directory (see “Alternative Centre”). For more details about applying, see “Sitting exam somewhere else”, under the Special Arrangements section.
The exception to this rule is the deferred and supplementary exams at the end of semester two. Because these exams occur during the summer break, we allow students to sit these exams at another centre, on the mainland, or even overseas. There are charges for sitting on the mainland or overseas.
An online application form is available at the end of semester two only, with a link from your results page. Please read all of the information carefully before submitting your application. Applications close less than a week after the results are released, so get your application in quickly.
Please note that practical exams can only be taken at the campus at which they are taught. This is the case for all semesters and all exams.
If it is not possible for you to sit your deferred examinations, you may wish to consider applying for withdrawal without academic penalty. For guidelines on making an application and a copy of the application form, please see the Forms Directory (select Enrolment Forms, then Enrolment Variations).
A supplementary exam may be granted after a student has failed the ordinary exam (the ordinary exam is the exam sat in the main exams period) and the mark falls between 40-49%. The supplementary exam is a second opportunity to pass the unit. You cannot request a supplementary exam, it is granted by a Faculty Assessors’ Committee.
For further information about the awarding of supplementary exams, please see Rule 111, part 19 at University Council Rules, and the Guidelines issued by Senate at http://www.admin.utas.edu.au/ac_serv/suppextp.html. For information about the format of the supplementary exam, contact your lecturer.
When you check your results you will know if you have been granted a supplementary exam if you have been given the result NS, TS or FS. You must check your exam timetable immediately, as the supplementary exams take place very soon after the results have been released.
A small number of units have more than one exam. For example, a full year unit may have an exam in first semester and an exam in second semester, or a unit may have two or more exams in the same semester. If you receive a supplementary exam in a unit with more than one paper, there will be a comment on your results page telling you which paper you need to sit, and your timetable will be amended so that it only shows that paper. The title of the paper will be amended to give an indication of the content of the paper you have been asked to re-sit. If you have any queries about which paper you are meant to sit, contact the Examinations Officer. Supplementary exams can be granted for practical exams also, and your timetable will indicate if you need to sit the practical exam.
Very rarely, a student may be asked to undertake supplementary assessment which is not an examination. This may be an assignment, or it may be a viva voce (oral) exam. If this is the case, there will be a message on the Results page next to your result, asking you to contact your school. You must contact your school without delay, as there is only a limited amount of time in which you can do your supplementary assessment.
If you have been given the result NS, TS or FS, check your Personal Exam timetables page immediately for the date of your supplementary exam.
The dates for the supplementary exam periods are available on the page.
You are expected to sit all your exams at the campus at which you are enrolled. If you would like to apply to sit at another study centre you need to complete an application form and provide supporting documentation. The application form is available from the Forms Directory (see “Alternative Centre”). For more details about applying, see “Sitting exam somewhere else”, under the Special Arrangements section.
The exception to this rule is the deferred and supplementary exams at the end of semester two. Because these exams occur during the summer break, we allow students to sit these exams at another centre, on the mainland, or even overseas. There are charges for sitting on the mainland or overseas.
An application form is available on the website to sit an exam at an alternative venue. Please read all of the information carefully before submitting your application. Applications close less than a week after results release, so get your application in quickly.
Please note that practical exams can only be taken at the campus at which they are taught. This is the case for all semesters and all exams.
There is no process for deferring a supplementary examination. We would usually recommend that you attempt your supplementary examination, and also apply for special consideration in the marking of the supplementary exam, including documentation with your request. There is an application form available through the Forms Directory (see “Special Consideration”). Also see “Special Consideration” in the Illness and Accidents section.
We can make alternative arrangements for supplementary exams, if these will make it possible for you to sit. Due to the short timeframes for this exam period, you should contact the Examinations Office directly, and as soon as possible. You will need to fill out the application form, which is available through the Forms Directory (see “Alternative Arrangements”), and your medical practitioner must fill out part B of the form.
If you are prevented from attending your supplementary examination through accident rather than illness, contact the Examinations Office as soon as possible.
Supplementary examinations are granted only in certain circumstances, and are intended to give a student with an otherwise good record a second chance at a unit where the fail was close to a pass mark.
While specific rules vary slightly from faculty to faculty, you can only usually receive one supplementary exam, and must have passed at least half your enrolment in that semester to qualify for any. Generally, your result must be in the 40-49% range to be considered, and you must have passed your internal assessment but failed the exam.
Supplementary exams are granted by faculty before the results are released. It is not possible to apply for a supplementary exam, but if you have any queries about the process you should speak to your lecturer or faculty.
Authorised by the Executive Director, Student Centre
25 September, 2013
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