Examination Categories
At the beginning of each term, course heads will receive a Final Examination Request form for each course they teach and will be asked to classify their courses according to the following categories:
A. Standard Three-hour Examination Required (No Substitutions)
All students enrolled in this course are expected to write a three-hour examination scheduled by the Office of the Registrar during the exam period and proctored by instructional staff of the course.
B. Standard Three-hour Examination for All Undergraduates, Substitutions for All Graduates
All undergraduates will write a three-hour examination and all graduate students will submit an examination substitution (a paper, project, take-home examination, etc.). All substitutions should be completed by the last day of Reading Period.
C1. No Three-Hour Examination for Any Student (Lower Enrollment Courses Only)
Low enrollment (undergraduate course with enrollment of less than 20 students or combined graduate/undergraduate course with fewer than 30 students) or undergraduate tutorial, seminar, or research course primarily for graduate students receive automatic approval. All substitutions should be completed by the last day of Reading Period.
C2. No Three-hour Examination for Any Student
Final exam substitution is preferable for all students. (See Requesting a Substitution.) All substitutions should be completed by the last day of Reading Period.
D. Optional Examination Substitution for Certain Students, Standard Three-hour Examination for All Other Students
An alternative means of evaluation offered to a certain academic grouping of students in lieu of the final three-hour exam. Ordinarily, substitution for an
individual student is not allowed. (See Requesting a Substitution.) All substitutions should be completed by the last day of Reading Period.
Requesting a Substitution
When petitioning for an exam substitution, the course head must describe the alternative form of evaluation and explain why it is more appropriate than a three-hour examination. All substitutions should be completed by the last day of Reading Period. In courses in which the number of students is large (over 30) or where a range of different types of work will be accepted in lieu of the examination, the course head must indicate the steps that will be taken to ensure equity in grading. Course heads should also indicate the other course assignments (hour examinations, laboratory reports, papers, etc.) that will be included in the final evaluation of the students’ performance.
Course heads who plan to petition the appropriate dean for permission to substitute should announce their intention at the first class meeting, and on the course syllabus. However, only after the petition has been formally approved by the dean should course heads announce the cancellation of a midyear or final examination. Course heads may submit petitions for exam substitutions to the Office of the Registrar any time before the first meeting of class with a special request for early decision.
Note that all students who are in the AB/AM degree program are to be treated as undergraduates for the purposes of completing all of the course requirements by the end of the final exam period, for exam substitutions, and for grading. The one exception is that the course head may treat AB/AM students as graduate students, for the purpose of exam substitutions, if the student has bracketed the course toward the AM degree. See Take-Home Examinations.
Completion of Work Assigned for Substitutions
Course heads should not assign any work to be done during the Examination Period. Faculty policy stipulates that this time should be reserved for standard three-hour exams. Any work assigned as a substitution for a midyear or final examination must be completed before the end of Reading Period.
Take-Home Examinations
Take-home examinations are considered substitutions and, like other substitutions, must be due before the end of Reading Period. When assigning a take home exam it is imperative that the instructor be mindful of student obligations to other courses, some of which continue to meet during the Reading Period. Course heads should be careful to explain to students in writing the extent of collaboration and any source materials that may be permitted in the preparation of the examination.
