Deferred Final Exams

Students who must miss a Registrar-scheduled final exam due to extenuating circumstances may apply for a deferred final exam.

Fall 2024 deferred final exams application window:

  • December 9 - 23, 2024: For all application types

Deadline for all applications is two business days after the scheduled final exam.

  1. Final exam dates

    December 9 - 19, 2024

  2. Deferred final exam dates

    January 21 - 27, 2025

Select courses offered by the Faculty of Science and the Schulich School of Engineering will have Deferred Final Examinations scheduled from January 6-11, 2025:

  • BCEM 411, BCEM 471
  • BIOL 241, BIOL 311, BIOL 371
  • BMEN 381
  • CHEM 201, CHEM 203, CHEM 311, CHEM 351, CHEM 373, CHEM 431
  • CMMB 411
  • CPSC 217, CPSC 231, CPSC 331, CPSC 351, CPSC 355
  • ENCH 300, ENCH 400
  • ENCI 461
  • ENCM 335
  • ENDG 319
  • ENEL 353, ENEL 475
  • ENGG 311, ENGG 349, ENGO 333
  • ENSF 337, ENSF 480
  • MATH 211, MATH 211, MATH 249, MATH 265, MATH 275, MATH 375
  • PHYS 211, PHYS 221, PHYS 227, PHYS 341
  • STAT 321
  • Students are limited to apply for one exam deferral per application. Students seeking deferrals of multiple examinations will be required to enter an application for each exam.
  • In accordance with the reintroduction of section M.1 of the academic calendar, students will be required to submit supporting documentation for the following eligibility criteria: debilitating illness, unforseen crisis/serious personal hardship, and absence due to university representation or a faculty approved activity.
  • Deferral requests due to debilitating illness can be submitted on the day of the exam, or up to two business days following the scheduled examination.

Prerequisite course or applying for graduation

Due to the scheduling of deferred final exams, your standing for course requirements (such as prerequisite requirements and graduation applications) may be impacted. Please contact your faculty advising office prior to applying for deferral to discuss the impact of deferring a prerequisite course, or to discuss a deferred examinations impact on graduation.

Eligibility criteria, application process, and deadlines to apply

To apply to defer a final exam, submit your application and any required supporting documentation through your Student Centre. Supporting documentation can be uploaded in your application. Students will also have the option to submit a Student Declaration of Absence web form.  See the eligibility criteria as well as application instructions and deadlines listed below.

Students with three final exams scheduled to start and finish within a 24-hour period may defer one of their final exams to the deferred final exam period.

You must select the exam you wish to defer on your application. If your schedule does not meet the criteria, you will not be able to select this reason on your online application.

For example, if you have exams at 3:30 p.m. and 7 p.m. on one day, and an exam on the next day at noon, you're eligible to apply under this DFE criteria.

An exam schedule with the first exam at 8 a.m. and the second exam at 3:30 p.m. on one day, and then a third exam at 8 a.m. on the following day, does not qualify as three exams in 24 hours.

View a step-by-step guide for how to submit and review your online application (pdf).

  1. Supporting Documentation

    Supporting documentation is not required.

    You will only be able to select this reason to defer if you are eligible. Consists of three exams within 24 hours.

  2. Application deadline

    Application deadline is 2 business days following the scheduled final exam.

In the event of a religious or spiritual observance causing a direct conflict with a final exam that prevents you from attending a final exam, you can apply to write a deferred final exam.

View a step-by-step guide for how to submit and review your online application (pdf).

  1. Supporting Documentation

    Provide a rationale in the comments area of the application.

    Supporting documentation is not required at the time of application, but evaluators may request further information or supporting documentation as needed.

  2. Application deadline

    Application deadline is 2 business days following the scheduled final exam.

If you personally experience a debilitating illness or medical emergency that physically prevents you from attending a final exam, you can apply to write a deferred final exam.

View a step-by-step guide for how to submit and review your online application (pdf).

  1. Supporting Documentation

    Provide a rationale in the comments area of the application.

    Supporting documentation is required at the time of the application, ie. medical documentation/note, statutory declaration, Student Declaration of Absence (pdf), etc.

    Supporting documentation should provide evaluators with a clear description and timeline of illness and provide valid rationale for your absence.

    Please note: supporting documentation will be considered insufficient if it fails to address your state of health on the day of the exam, fails to provide adequate context, or is overly vague. Examples of insufficient documents include pictures of positive Covid 19 tests, pictures of thermometers, doctor’s notes that do not include the exam dates in the excused absence, prescriptions or medical test requisitions. General or vague statements in the Student Declaration which do not provide evaluators with enough context are also insufficient. Examples such as: COVID 19, fever, illness, feeling sick could not attend, do not provide enough information to determine eligibility for a deferred final exam.

  2. Application Deadline

    Applications open on the day of the exam and remain open for 2 business days following the scheduled final exam.

In the event of an unforeseen crisis or serious personal hardship (e.g. death or illness of a family member) that prevents you from attending a final exam, you can apply to write a deferred final exam.

View a step-by-step guide for how to submit and review your online application (pdf).

  1. Supporting Documentation

    Provide a rationale in the comments area of the application.

    Supporting documentation is required at the time of the application, i.e. written statement from a third party, an accident report, notice (certification) of a death, statutory declaration, Student Declaration of Absence (pdf), etc.

    Please note: supporting documentation will be considered insufficient if it fails to provide information and context regarding the matter that prevented you from attending your final exam. Examples of insufficient documentation include documents that do not include the dates of the incident/funeral/family illness, pictures of a damaged vehicle, prescriptions or medical test requisition, email exchanges, vague statements in the Student Declaration such as: family illness, car accident, medical procedure, which do not provide enough information or context to determine eligibility for a deferred final exam.

  2. Application deadline

    Application deadline is 2 business days following the scheduled final exam.

If your attendance is required elsewhere during a scheduled exam due to civil obligations or a faculty-approved activity (such as jury duty, academic competitions, or high-level athletic competitions), you can apply to write a deferred final exam.

View a step-by-step guide for how to submit and review your online application (pdf).

  1. Supporting Documentation

    Provide a rationale in the comments area of the application.

    Supporting documentation is required at the time of the application, i.e. letter from a coach, nomination letter, juror summons letter, Student Declaration of Absence (pdf), etc.

    Please note: supporting documentation will be considered insufficient if it fails to provide dates or adequate context. Examples of insufficient documents include an undated program from an event that you are part of, uncontextualized conference abstract, uncontextualized travel itinerary, email exchanges, confirmations that you have applied to be part of an event with no indication of whether you have been invited, vague statements in the Student Declaration such as: track meet, tournament, conference, which do not provide enough information or context to determine eligibility for a deferred final exam.

  2. Application deadline

    Application deadline is 2 business days following the scheduled final exam.

Supporting documentation can be uploaded along with your application. The Student Declaration of Absence electronic form is available to students via the deferred final examination application portal. View a guide on how to find and complete the Student Declaration of Absence (pdf).

Student Declaration of Absence video guide

Submission of supporting documentation does not in itself constitute grounds for the approval of a deferral. Supporting documentation must clearly demonstrate serious illness or extraordinary circumstances beyond the student’s control that would warrant exemption from the regular examination schedule.

Students faced with difficulty in attaching documentation are encouraged to submit their deferred final examination application using the Student Declaration of Absence. Students can then submit any additional supporting documentation to the email addresses listed below:

For reasons of debilitating illness (any faculty): dfedocs@ucalgary.ca 

For reasons other than debilitating illness:

  • For enrolment and attendance in other courses, including group study courses.
  • For misreading the exam schedule.
  • To accommodate travel plans.
  • If you've completed less than half of the assigned work in a course.
  • If you've submitted a final exam for marking.
  • To compensate for lost study time due to unforeseen extenuating circumstances.

If you're approved to defer an exam but you decide to write the exam as originally scheduled, please email dfedocs@ucalgary.ca to withdraw your deferred final exam application.

Your application status

Once you've submitted your application, you can review the details and status on the Deferred Final Exam page in your Student Centre. If you have submitted incorrect information or need to amend your application, please notify your faculty office or Enrolment Services in the case of deferrals due to debilitating illness.

Please note: Applications are reviewed in the order in which they were submitted and are reviewed between 3-5 business days from the date of submission. It is likely your application will not be reviewed before your scheduled final exam.

A decision on your application

Once a decision is made on your application, you will see the status of your application changed to “approved” or “denied”. You will be able to view comments in your application if one is provided. If you have questions regarding a denied application, you can contact the appropriate office listed above.

Approved applications are subject to further review and evaluation which may result in approved applications being placed under administrative review if more information is required or denied. Students are encouraged to periodically check the status of their deferred final examination application and respond to any email requests for additional information within the deadlines indicated in the email.

Your application approval process

If your application is approved, you will receive an automated email indicating that your application has been “tentatively approved”. Your application will remain tentatively approved as approved deferral application may be overturned any time prior to the date of the deferred final exam due to a re-evaluation of deferred final exam application. Students who have been provided a deferral final exam schedule are considered definitively approved to write the deferred final examination.

Deferred exam dates and schedule

Deferred final exams are scheduled by the Office of the Registrar. They may be scheduled anytime, Monday to Saturday, during the official deferred exam period as noted. Students must be available for their scheduled exam time. Arranging alternative exam times is not possible, and further deferral of a deferred final examination will not be granted.

Receiving your deferred exam schedule

If you are approved to write a deferred exam, the schedule will be emailed to your UCalgary email address approximately one week prior to the start of the deferred exam period. The schedule will not be available in the Student Centre and are not posted online. Students are fully responsible for identifying the exact date, time and location of the deferred exam when it is made available.

Questions related to the deferred final exam schedule can be directed to dfedocs@ucalgary.ca

Preparing for your deferred final exams

Regulations for deferred final exams are very similar to final exams. The steps below outline expectations for in-person deferred final exams. 

Arrival

Arrive early to check the seating lists posted outside the exam room and to prepare for your exam.

If you're more than 30 minutes late to arrive at the exam location, you will not be permitted to write the exam and will be marked as absent

Identification

You must have your Student ID or a valid government-issued photo ID at the time of the exam.

Failure to show a valid ID at the start of the deferred exam will result in ineligibility to sit for the exam.

Physical or digital pictures of identification will not be accepted.

Students who are unable to present government-issued photo ID will not be granted an alternate time to complete the deferred examination.

Integrity bag

Except for items authorized to be used during the exam, all your belongings, including bags and backpacks etc., that you bring into the exam room must fit in the integrity bag provided on the day of your exam.

Electronic devices, including electronic watches, must be powered off before being placed into the integrity bag; analogue watches are allowed for use in the exam room. Non-religious headgears cannot be worn in the exam room.

Storing your belongings

You will not be allowed to leave your bags in the hallways nor inside the exam room if they are not put in the integrity bag provided. You must store them away before you enter the exam room.

Questions?

View a list of frequently asked deferred final exam questions.

Deferred Exam FAQs