Requesting Extensions & Extenuating Circumstances

Procedure for requesting an Extension/ Extenuating Circumstances

If a student wishes to request an Extension or Extenuating  Circumstances (ECs) then they must request this formally to the School's Support team. The team manages all requests  for the School (Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil). The student must complete the  Extension/ Extenuating Circumstances form. For further guidance on the University's policy for EC's and Extensions please see here.

For clarity if you are applying for Extenauting Circumstances ( not an extension) then the main categories are:

Not Assessed (NA)

• You may be allowed to defer a formal examination or assessment attempt to the next standard occasion of assessment

• This can be applied to a first attempt (uncapped assessment) or a resit attempt (capped assessments)

• This cannot be applied to modules in which you have achieved a pass.

Remove lateness penalties

• Removing lateness penalties in cases:

• where you submitted assessments after the agreed extension date; and/or

• where you can evidence substantial reasons which prevented you from requesting an extension in advance.

Consideration of overall classification

• Where degree classifications are borderline, consideration of your overall classification with regard to the General Regulations for First Degrees, Higher Degrees and Higher Doctorates for consideration by the relevant faculty.

Disregard a missing component mark

• Disregard a missing component when deriving an overall module mark. School EC Panels can recommend this to the Exam Board. Typically, a single component mark under 20% of the overall mark can be removed at the school’s discretion, greater than this needs faculty officer approval. In such cases Panels should ensure that learning outcomes have been met.

If you are  requesting an extension we will aim to respond to your request with 24-48 WORKING hours ( if not sooner). If you are self certifying  then the length can be determined by the student on the form  (1-7 days). Once a decision has been agreed then the Support team will inform the student and the appropriate Module Leader. 

Extension requests will only be considered within two weeks of the original submission deadline. Any request submitted before this time period will be rejected. The School will not consider retrospective extension requests. Extension requests must be made at least two working days before the coursework deadline. For final year students any short extension on the project thesis does not mean that your viva will also be moved.

Please be aware that any extension requests made on or after the day of the submission will not be taken into consideration.

N.B  students should be aware that we plan the submission deadlines carefully in order to avoid clashes. Extensions can often lead to bunching and make a  difficult situation worse. Students are asked to think carefully before requesting an extension.

For  Extenuating Circumstances requests ( e.g. Not Assessed)  you should receive an email notification of our decision once the results are released ( February, July and September). This will briefly explain what action ( if any) the School took. For a  more detailed explanation we encourage students to speak to their academic tutor and/or the Learning and Teaching Manager (Mr Jason Hawley).

The deadline dates for submitting an extenuating circumstances form are:

• Autumn semester is 10th February 2025

• Spring semester is 16th June 2025

• Undergraduate Resit is 29th August 2025

• Postgraduate Taught Resit is 20th October 2025

N.B - If a student directs their request to the Module Leader, Diamond staff or anyone else rather than the support team then this will slow the process down and could cause undue confusion amongst the Student Support staff.

Please note that students can find extra support by viewing the University's Health and Wellbeing website

Procedure for Requesting an Absence from Engineering Applications (Machine Shop and/or Workshop)

Please follow the practice above  and complete the Extension/ Extenuating Circumstances form.

If the form and evidence are both satisfactory then it is usual practice to:

Machine Shop

• Machine Shop sessions 1 will be rearranged by Machine Shop technical lead (Jeremy Stakes) at the students earliest convenience so that they can continue with their other timetabled sessions. Sessions 2 & 3 will be rearranged if possible so as to not impact the rest of the workshop sessions. If not possible, the parts will be provided to the students. This decision will be made at the discretion of the Machine Shop technical lead (Jeremy Stakes).

Workshop

• If a student misses a workshop session then they should continue with their timetabled sessions. If the student has not had the opportunity to complete all manufacturing operations then additional sessions will be arranged (this may be after week 9 of the Spring semester). 

N.B -If a student directs their request to the Module Leader, Diamond staff or anyone else rather than the support team then this will slow the process down and could cause undue confusion amongst the Student Support staff.

Please note that students can find extra support by viewing the University's Health and Well-being website