Let’s finish these two days of classes strong! Good luck and good effort as we come up to reading period. Please, please be mindful of your final psets, papers, and projects, ensuring that your work is in alignment with our Honor Code. When in doubt, ask! In the spirit of a proactive attitude I want our House to be well-informed and prepared so I'm giving you the heads up now and will continue to as we get through this last stretch. I know you can do it!
You may have a lot of work due over reading period so here's what you need to know first about any written work. The biggest takeaway is that there are no incompletes allowed.
Extensions of Time WITHIN the Exam Period
Extensions on written work up to the end of the exam period may be granted by the instructor. Such extensions are at the discretion of the instructor; there is no need for Administrative Board action. It is up to your instructor, so you should contact him/her directly. You should also check in with your Resident Dean (me) as well, as most instructors will require you to do so, and your Dean can often be helpful in securing an extension.
COPY ME IN YOUR EMAIL WHEN REQUESTING AN EXTENSION.
Extensions of Time BEYOND the Exam Period
No instructor can accept your work after the end of the exam period without the authorization of the Administrative Board. You must petition the Board for an official extension of time beyond the exam period. I can help with that, so please come talk to me if you think this is going to be necessary. The notation "Incomplete" (INC), often used in the grading of graduate students, cannot under any circumstances be given to undergraduates.
Below I have described and pasted some important reminders about the rules associated with the final exam experience at Harvard.
EXAM SCHEDULING: You should check and double-check and triple-check the final exam schedule: https://registrar.fas.harvard.edu/files/fas-registrar/files/final_exam_schedule.pdf
If you have two exams scheduled at the same time...
The Registrar’s Office should have been in touch with you to reschedule one of them. Let me know if you have not heard anything!
If you have an accommodation for extra-time or the use of aids...
The Registrar should be in touch about the time and location of your exam. Again, please let me know if this has not happened.
If you have 3 or even 4 back-to-back-to-back exams...
That’s awful and you get an automatic play date with Big and/or an Insomnia cookie. In other words, there’s no relief. You can do it!
EXAM CONTINGENCIES
If you are SICK before an exam and do not think you can take it --> Go to UHS and let me know. If you are on the fence about whether you are too sick to take your exam, contact me (or the tutor on call if you cannot reach me).
If you are LATE to an exam --> Go to the room and try to join the exam a bit late. You can usually join the exam within the first half-hour or so. You will not get to make up lost time, but better late than absent! Even if it has been more than a half-hour, you should still go to the assigned room and see if they will allow you to sit for the exam.
If you are late and they do not let you into the exam, or if you totally miss an exam (like you sleep through it or misread the schedule) --> Get in touch with me ASAP. If it is a weekend, call the tutor-on-call at 617-872-9911. I will do what I can to help you petition for a make-up exam, but it is not guaranteed.
What you should do in the event you encounter any of the difficulties mentioned above:
Illnesses BEFORE a Final Exam You can petition for a make-up exam because of illness ONLY if the illness is documented by UHS within the 24-hour period before the beginning of the exam. In an emergency, your illness can be reported to UHS by a private physician, but it must happen before the beginning of the exam. The private physician must also supply a written statement to UHS. See "Make-Up Exams for MEDICAL Reasons" (below) for details about petitioning the Administrative Board for a make-up exam. If you are not feeling great, and you are unsure whether or not you should sit for an exam, you should definitely discuss the options with your Dean.
Illnesses DURING a Final Exam If you show up for any part of an exam, you cannot get a make-up exam. Once you start an exam, you must complete it. If you get ill during an exam, report the illness immediately to your instructor or exam proctor. The instructor or exam proctor will have you escorted to UHS, where you will be kept incommunicado (big word, I know) until able to resume the exam. Upon resumption, you will be allowed the balance of time not already used to complete the exam.
Make-Up Exams for MEDICAL Reasons The Administrative Board has jurisdiction over granting make-up exams. No instructor may grant or give a make-up exam to any student who missed a final exam without the express authorization of the Registrar and the Administrative Board; nor may a make-up exam be given at any time or place other than that specified by the Registrar. The granting of a make-up exam is not an extension of time to complete other written work for the course. Such an extension is granted only by special vote of the Administrative Board. Petitions for make-up exams are due in my office as soon as possible and no later than one week after each exam. If you have a medical excuse, fill out the UHS petition form, available from your doctor at UHS, and take the form directly to my office (this must be done within 24 hours of your exam).
LATE Arrival to a Final Exam If you arrive late for a final exam, then you may be refused admission and reported as absent. Your instructor has some discretion, so report directly to the exam room (you will probably get in if you arrive in the first 30-45 minutes). No one should be admitted to an exam if any student has already left the exam room, but, again, the instructor has discretion. Ordinarily, latecomers are not allowed to make up lost time. If you are confused about this, or are really late and not allowed in, or miss an exam altogether, call my office (5-2296) or the tutor-on-call (617-872-9911) right away.
Make-Up Exams due to INADVERTENCE If you miss an exam due to genuine inadvertence (e.g., oversleeping, thinking the exam was scheduled for a different time), then see me immediately about petitioning the Administrative Board for a make-up exam. By immediately I mean contact me ASAP! As part of the petition, the coursehead (your professor) must send an e-mail to me stating that he/she will prepare a make-up exam (to be administered early in the next semester) and that you were in good standing in the course (C- or higher) before the final exam. You can petition successfully for such a make-up exam only once in your College career. If the petition fails, you will receive a permanent grade of ABS (unexcused absence), which is equivalent to a failing grade. Please note that this is totally up to the discretion of your instructor - they are free to say "no"!!!! And if, for any reason, they do not support giving you a make-up, then you get the "ABS."