If you believe that your academic performance has been negatively impacted by extenuating circumstances, you should submit an application for mitigation as soon as possible.
"Mitigation" means action taken to reduce or remove the negative impact of extenuating circumstances where possible (for example, to provide an extended deadline on an assignment).
If you are a Kent and Medway Medical School student, please use the KMMS form.
All other schools use Kent Vision. Below is text and video guidance for submitting either an In-Course or End of Year extenuating circumstances request.
Engagement Support staff reviewing the application will consider:
Based on this information, staff reviewing the request will accept or reject the application as appropriate. Please keep scrolling to read the sections below, and read the full Mitigation of Extenuating Circumstances Policy for full details.
events or circumstances that have impacted your academic performance throughout the academic year and/or for circumstances that could not be considered as an In-Course request, including:
There are always exceptional circumstances where a different adjustment or mitigation may need to be considered. If you have circumstances that you feel are not being supported by the In-Course and End-of-Year Mitigation options, then please contact Student Support and Wellbeing to discuss what other reasonable adjustments might be possible.
In exceptional circumstances, longer extensions may be permitted (within the constraints of return of marks and feedback timelines). If you have exceptional circumstances (for example, if you go into hospital for a procedure and will need a longer period to recover), then contact the Engagement Support team to explain, and we can see what longer extension or other mitigation may be possible.
Please note that if you have been granted a deadline extension because of your extenuating circumstances, then late submission with penalty as outlined in the Late Submission Policy will no longer apply.
Please also note that:
For End-of-Year Mitigation requests, you will be notified by email within a week if your request has been accepted (or if further information is required), but you will not know what mitigation action has been agreed until your final results are released at the end of the academic year.
At the end of the academic year, a panel will meet as a Mitigation Committee to agree on what mitigation outcome is possible for each End-of-Year request that has been accepted.
The Mitigation Committee will review all of the marks for each student with an accepted request, and will recommend appropriate actions to the Assessment Board.
The Mitigation Committee or Chair (or nominee) will consider a recommendation based on:
Based on the above criteria, a recommendation will be made for approval at the relevant Assessment Board.
Assessment Boards will consider all recommendations, and mitigating actions will be reflected in final results when released to students at the end of the academic year. This means that:
Also see the Mitigation of Extenuating Circumstances Policy for full details.
Extenuating circumstances are events or situations that are:
a) Unexpected and not in your control (events that you cannot plan for or anticipate).
b) Negatively impact your ability to submit your work, attend exams or practical assessments, and/or impact your performance.
If you are helping to care for family or have children or other dependents that sometimes impact your focus or your work, this does count as extenuating circumstances eligible for mitigation and support.
These circumstances may not be “unexpected” or “out of your control”, however, where these circumstances are placing you at a disadvantage, applications for mitigation on these grounds will be considered.
Some students may be impacted by prolonged periods of fasting as part of religious observance. While this circumstance may not be “unexpected” or “out of your control,” the University recognises that prolonged fasting may place students at a disadvantage, and applications for mitigation on these grounds will be considered.
For this purpose, “prolonged” is defined as longer than 24 consecutive hours or for more than ten consecutive hours a day for more than three consecutive days. Please note that attendance at religious festivals or events is not normally considered eligible for mitigation.
Students may have a legitimate reason out of their control for missing an assessment deadline or a scheduled assessment/ examination due to external commitments.
For example, participation in a high-level sporting event, a medical appointment that cannot easily be rearranged, a job or placement interview, or the refusal of an employer to release a student from work commitments at the relevant time (the list is not exhaustive).
As these types of external commitments should be known to you in advance, you may request either that an extension be granted, where appropriate, or submit end of year mitigation to account for the missed assessment. Evidence of the external commitment must be provided.
If you are aware of this type of external commitment more than 2 weeks in advance of a deadline, then contact the Engagement Support team directly to discuss, as the Kent Vision system will not allow you to submit a mitigation request more than 2 weeks in advance.
On occasion, it would be fair to take into account an unexpected crisis involving the examples listed above, if it was clear that the circumstances had significantly impacted the student’s performance or ability to submit assessment(s).
However, the University will not normally consider applications for mitigation in cases where the student was directly responsible for the circumstances or where a student could reasonably have avoided the situation or acted to limit the impact of the circumstances.
Supporting evidence is just confirmation of the circumstances. This must include:
a) Your name.
b) The date that the note/evidence was provided.
d) A description of the circumstances, the impact on your studies, and dates impacted.
e) It must be from a third-party (not from you) with contact details.
*Please do not submit photos of your injury, your health issue or any image/photo which does not include the details needed, as we will not be able to accept this.*
If submitting evidence relating to the circumstances of a third-party, you must obtain the permission of the third party before doing so (with the exception of death certificates).
Please note that while emails/letters/notes from friends and family will be considered, if the extenuating circumstances have longer-term impacts on your academic performance, we may request that you provide a letter from a medical professional or professional third party (rather than from a friend or relative).
Please note as well that all evidence must be provided in English. In addition to the original document, students are required to submit a translation into English that has been provided either by an accredited organisation or verified in writing by a member of University staff fluent in the original language.
You can self-certify (and not provide further third-party confirmation) if you have eligible extenuating circumstances, and the self-certified period coincides with non-submission of assessment, late submission, absence from practical assessments and examinations.
Self-certification can be used to cover up to seven calendar days at a time.
Mitigation requests where self-certification is used will only be considered if you provide detailed information regarding the circumstances, the impact on your studies, and the dates affected. Further information may be requested if these details are not provided in the initial application, and this will delay any review and notification of outcome.
For assessments during term-time (in-course assessments), self-certification is limited to two seven calendar day periods. This limit is in place so that we can ensure that you have appropriate support if you have ongoing or more long-term circumstances. Repeated self-certification may be a sign that you need a different type of support.
If you have already self-certified twice for in-course requests during the academic year, any further mitigation applications must be accompanied by alternative evidence.
Self-certification for examinations and End of Year Mitigation is unlimited and does not count towards the two period, term-time, limit.
When ILPs count as evidence:
For students with ILPs, please note that only ILPs that include specific adjustments for deadlines/extensions will count as "evidence" for mitigation requests.
If you have an ILP for a fluctuating condition and experience a sudden worsening or acute episode, you do not need to provide new medical evidence for that condition when applying for mitigation. The ILP already serves as the evidence for this, and you should have an adjustment in your ILP specifying that you may need extensions for deadlines.
If you have an ILP that include adjustments for deadlines/extensions, you do not need to provide any other confirmation, and you do not need to provide a copy of your ILP, but please mention in your statement that you have an ILP with adjustments around deadlines and that your ILP relates to the request you are making.
When ILPs do not count as evidence:
For students who have ILPs but do not have a specific adjustment around deadlines/extensions, then the ILP does not count as evidence, and you will need to provide other outside confirmation of your current circumstances and of the need for mitigation.
If you have a Disability Advisor, Counsellor or Mentor through Student Support and Wellbeing, then you can simply ask them to provide an email as your confirmation. If you have questions about what type of additional confirmation will be required, please speak to the Engagement Support team and we can advise.