Digital Education Service mitigating circumstances guidance

The event or circumstances must have had a serious impact on your studies.

You must normally have had no prior knowledge that a particular event or circumstance would occur.

There must have been no reasonable steps that you could have taken to prevent the event or circumstance from occurring.

You must be able to link the event or circumstance, and its impact, on the period for which the application is being made.

An application for mitigating circumstances must meet the normal requirements for independent documentary evidence.

Where submission is delayed due to failure of personal IT equipment, corruption of saved files, or internet outages, then this would not normally be regarded as sufficient grounds for mitigating circumstances.

You are responsible for ensuring that you maintain accessible backups of any assessed work and that you make suitable alternative arrangements in the event of a failure of personal IT equipment.

Any events where you can choose to attend and have advance notice such as birthdays, job interviews, weddings and travel for recreational/personal reasons are not regarded as mitigating circumstances.

Circumstances that are beyond your control such as funerals, jury service, or events where attendance is required by a formal authority, may be considered.

The Digital Education Service will usually only grant up to seven days’ extension to reduce the impact on your study of subsequent modules. If you require a short extension to a deadline then you should continue to request, and expect, seven days. 

You must provide evidence of your circumstances, unless they are for personal illness, which you are permitted to self-certify for up to seven days. 

For longer extensions (seven to 14 days) you will need to ensure that there is adequate justification for impacting your study of the next module and you must be able to provide sufficient evidence of your circumstances in all cases (including medical).

Coursework Extension requests must be submitted before the assessment deadline. Any requests received after the deadline will be rejected. 

If a request for a Coursework Extension is rejected due to late submission and you have relevant evidence to support that late submission, then you can consider making an application for Additional Consideration.

You should select this if the extension you require is for longer than 14 calendar days, or if you want to request an outcome other than an extension (such as a first attempt resit or the removal of penalties). 

All requests for additional consideration must be accompanied by supporting evidence, regardless of circumstances. 

The Digital Education Service Special Circumstances Committee will consider the specific circumstances, the evidence provided, and your progress on the programme so far when determining an outcome. This means that you may receive a different outcome to the one that you have requested.

Additional Consideration applications must be submitted within five working days of the assessment deadline wherever possible. 

You must not wait until you have received your assessment marks and/or feedback before applying as this will be rejected. 

If you are applying for Additional Consideration in relation to a resit opportunity you have been granted, then you should apply as soon as you are offered the opportunity, and not when the resit opportunity is due to be taken.
 

• You should always select the level of study as ‘Postgraduate Taught’.
• You must ensure that you include the correct module code. You can check that the module code is correct using the university’s Module Catalogue.
• You should always be clear about which assessment you are applying for. This should be entered on the application in the same way as it is referenced on the module’s assessment pages. If an extension is required for more than one assessment, you can add multiple assessments by using the ‘Do you wish to apply for an extension for a further piece of assessment’ question. This will allow you to complete this section multiple times as required.
• You should always select ‘Digital Education Service’ as both the Parent School and Teaching School. If you do not select ‘Digital Education Service’, then the form will not be processed within the stated timescales. It is your responsibility to ensure that you submit the application correctly. Submission of an extension request to the wrong school that is not identified until after the assessment submission deadline will be rejected. Submission to the wrong school will not be regarded as a valid reason for applying late in any subsequent request for additional consideration.

• All applications must be submitted through the Online Application Form. Requests made by email will not be considered.
• Coursework extensions will usually be granted for up to seven days.
• ‘Digital Education Service’ must be selected as both the Parent and Teaching school when completing the application form.
• Evidence must be provided for all requests which are not seven-day self-certified extensions. Adequate detail of circumstances must be included for all requests.
• The Digital Education Service Special Circumstances Committee will reach the appropriate outcome for each application based on the application form, evidence, and progress on the programme so far. This may not match the original request and may include the recommendation to take a break from studies.

• You are required to provide details of when the circumstances occurred and how these circumstances have impacted on your studies.
• You should put as much information as possible and should always include the dates on which the circumstances have impacted you.

It is your responsibility to ensure that you provide sufficient relevant detail. If there is insufficient detail to determine a decision, then the outcome may be delayed, or your application rejected.

• You can only self-certify for personal medical reasons for a maximum of seven calendar days.
• No other circumstances other than medical reasons can be self-certified.
• Medical reasons with an impact beyond seven calendar days must always be evidenced.
• Sufficient detail about circumstances must be provided even when self-certifying.
• Self-certification does not apply to illnesses relating to anyone other than yourself, including close family members or dependents.
• Where illness of a close family member or a dependent has an impact on your study, then evidence of this will be required.

• All circumstances other than medical self-certification require evidence to be submitted regardless of the length of the extension or the requested outcome of additional consideration.
• Evidence can be submitted as part of the application or via the link provided in the automated email received following submission of your application.
• All evidence must be submitted within 14 calendar days of your initial application. If evidence is not received within this time, then the outcome of your application will be revoked, and late penalties applied to your submission from the original deadline date.
• The Digital Education Service will not send reminders to you about outstanding evidence. It is your responsibility to check whether evidence has been submitted correctly.
• All evidence must be in written English. An official certified translation must be provided where evidence is submitted that is not in English. Any evidence not in English or not accompanied by a certified translation will not be considered.
• All evidence must be dated.

• You should submit your extension request as per the usual procedure, however it is your responsibility to ensure that you inform others in your group if you have been granted an extension.
• Your extension will not automatically apply to others in your group.
• You do not need to disclose the reasons for your mitigating circumstances to the group when you inform them, however failure to notify them that you have been granted an extension is regarded as poor academic practice.
• If you are a group member who is informed by someone in your group that they have been granted an extension, then you are responsible for ensuring that you apply for an extension for yourself if required.

• You can consider applying for the removal of penalties via additional consideration if you have submitted your assessment late and have not applied for an extension prior to the submission deadline.
• You must apply for removal of penalties as soon as you submit your work and must not wait until marks or feedback have been released.
• If you have not submitted your assessment, then you cannot apply for the removal of penalties. You may instead be eligible to request a resit of the assessment if you have not submitted one or all module assessments to a pass standard. The type of resit available to you will depend on your specific circumstances.
• The service’s Special Circumstances Committee will decide an outcome that they deem most appropriate based on the circumstances and current progress on your programme. This may be different to what you have requested and in certain circumstances may include the suggestion to take a break from your studies.

• Once submitted, you will receive an automated email confirming receipt of the application.
• Please note that the system will not provide you with a copy of your application.
• It is your responsibility to keep a record of your responses should you wish to retain them for future reference.

You should receive a response to your application within the times stated in this section. In some cases, the initial response may be a request for further information, or an email informing you that a decision cannot be made until further investigation has been completed.

Coursework Extension (up to seven days) Response Time

• For extension requests of up to seven days; the Digital Education Service will aim to provide you with an outcome within three working days.
• Evidence must be submitted within 14 calendar days of your application, or the extension will be revoked (unless you have self-certified for medical reasons).

Coursework Extension (seven to 14 days) Response Time

• For extension applications of seven to 14 days; the Digital Education Service will aim to provide you with an outcome within three working days.
• Where the application requires further consideration, it will be taken to the next Special Circumstances Committee meeting.
• You will be informed within three working days if this is required. Evidence must be submitted within 14 calendar days of your application or the extension will be revoked.

Additional Consideration Response Time

• All requests for additional consideration will be discussed at the next scheduled Special Circumstances Committee meeting.
• Applications for additional consideration that are received after the published deadline for the relevant meeting will not be considered until the following meeting.
• You can expect to be notified of the outcome of your application within 2 working days of the Special Circumstances Committee meeting date. Evidence must be submitted within 14 calendar days of your application or the outcome of the Special Circumstances Committee will be revoked.
   

• Application deadline for the Digital Education Service Special Cases Committee: Wednesday 23 April 2025
• Digital Education Service Special Cases Committee meeting date: Monday 28 April 2025

• Application deadline for the Digital Education Service Special Cases Committee: Wednesday 14 May 2025
• Digital Education Service Special Cases Committee meeting date: Monday 19 May 2025

• Application deadline for the Digital Education Service Special Cases Committee: Wednesday 4 June 2025
• Digital Education Service Special Cases Committee meeting date: Monday 9 June 2025

• Application deadline for the Digital Education Service Special Cases Committee: Wednesday 16 July 2025
• Digital Education Service Special Cases Committee meeting date: Monday 21 July 2025

• Application deadline for the Digital Education Service Special Cases Committee: Wednesday 13 August 2025
• Digital Education Service Special Cases Committee meeting date: Monday 18 August 2025