Assignment Extension Accommodation

This accommodation is intended to provide reasonable flexibility for students with disabilities in the event that episodic and/or acute disability symptoms interfere with the student’s ability to meet an assignment deadline. Instructors should provide the accommodation unless it would significantly compromise the integrity of the course as offered.

There may be classes or specific instances for which a due date cannot be adjusted for one student without fundamentally altering the course. Such instances might include, but are not limited to, the following:

• courses that rely on project-based learning, for which sequential assignments intentionally build upon material learned in previous class sessions
• classes for which students are expected to work in groups, and thus failure to complete an assignment or project on time would compromise the educational experience of other students

The assignment extension is not a substitute for proper time and workload management. If a student experiences continuous difficulties with meeting course deadlines, typically they should address them through time management support, a reduced course load or through other support resources, such as the Center for Arts & Language.

The number of days given for each assignment extension is determined by the instructor and depends on the nature of the course.

The accommodation is commonly used when:

• an assignment not listed on the course syllabus is given to students with two weeks or fewer to complete it.
• an assignment deadline is listed on the syllabus but the student with the accommodation did not receive necessary information to complete it until one week or fewer before the deadline.
• an unexpected medical or physical episode interferes with the student’s ability to complete work in the expected timeframe.