Petition & Appeals

Matters concerning term work normally fall within the authority of the instructor.  Students unable to comply with given deadlines must contact their instructor prior to the deadline if an extension is being requested.  Students should expect no consideration if an issue is raised after the assignment deadline.

Normally all term work must be submitted by the last day of classes, unless an earlier date has been specified by the instructor.  Instructors may grant extensions beyond their own deadlines or beyond the last day of classes up until five working days after the end of the examination period, provided that a student presents legitimate reasons with appropriate documentation as determined by the instructor.

Extensions beyond five business days after the end of the examination period can be approved only through a petition.  Such petitions for an extension of time for term work must also be initiated within five business days after the end of the relevant examination period.  Late requests will not be considered. Students must file the petition after consultation with the instructor regarding a suitable extension date.  Students seeking an extension of time for term work are expected to have been in contact with their instructor before the initial deadline and must continue working on the outstanding assignments while they await a decision.

Note that when a term work extension petition has been granted in a course, a notation of "SDF" (standing deferred) will be indicated in place of a course grade.  Students who have the notation of SDF on a course and who have earned a Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of less than 1.50 are strongly encouraged by the Faculty to seek academic advising from the Registrar's Office.

Students may petition for a WDR under the following scenarios:
a) Request to defer a Basic Music course to following year – given that Basic Music courses must be completed in specific years of study, a request to defer a course to the following academic year, will be treated as a late withdrawal from the current academic year, regardless of when the petition is initiated.
b) A student may petition for a late withdrawal from other courses (including arts & science electives), without academic penalty when they are unable to complete a course due to circumstances outside their control. A late withdrawal petition is pursued when no other kind of petition request or special option (like term work extension, or a deferred final exam or LWD) will remedy the situation. These petitions must be submitted by the end of the relevant exam period.
It is important to note that students who intend to finish a course, and who therefore do not drop the course themselves do take on a risk.  The Faculty assumes that students who persist in a course right to the end have assessed their progress and marks and decided to take the course to completion, regardless of any circumstances. Therefore, a late withdrawal without academic penalty petition has a much lower chance of success when a student has taken the course to completion - which means they have written the final exam or final piece of term work (in courses without a final exam). 
If a late withdrawal without academic penalty petition is granted, the course is not removed from the transcript, but the notation "WDR" is placed on the transcript in the place of a final mark.  This will have no impact on the GPA. 
Please note that a granted WDR does not have any impact on fees.  As a WDR is likely granted beyond any fee refund deadlines, students are still responsible for any tuition or other fees incurred. 

Students are expected to write/perform their examinations as scheduled.  Only in cases of documented debilitating illness or legitimate conflict should a student request a deferral of a final examination.  Students who are too ill and/or incapacitated at the time of the examinations should petition to defer the examination they are unable to attend due to their medical condition.  Petitions based on travel, employment, or personal plans will not be considered as students are expected to make themselves available during the published Examination Period to write/perform final examinations.  Satisfactory documentation must be provided to corroborate illness to show that the student was examined at the time of the illness.

In response to a petition for a deferred examination, a student may be granted the opportunity to write a special examination at a subsequent examination period or the regular examination in the next offering of the course. Written deferred exams from the fall term for Music courses are usually written during the following February reading week.

There is a fee of $72.00 per deferred written examination (maximum $144.00 for multiple deferral requests in the same petition).

In the petition decision, students are notified of the examination period in which the deferred examination will take place, and if the examination will be a regular or special examination.  They must pay the fee by the deadline given, so that the deferred examination can be scheduled appropriately.

Juries/Recitals deferred from the April/May exam period are required to be completed in the fall and by the 30th of September of the next academic session as scheduled by the Performance Office. If the deferral was based on a medical disability that persists beyond this date, the student may not remain registered in any courses requiring performance(for example: Applied Music, Ensembles etc), but may petition for special consideration and/or part-time status, after discussion with the Performance Division and the Registrar.

Note that when a deferred examination has been granted in a course, a notation of "SDF" (standing deferred) will be indicated in place of a final grade. A further deferral of an examination is only granted in very exceptional circumstances.  Students are charged a further fee of $72 for each subsequent deferred examination.  If the student does not write the deferred examination, the "SDF" notation will be replaced by the original grade with a grade of "0" for the final examination in the calculation of the final grade.

Students who have the notation of SDF on a course and who have earned a Cumulative Grade Point Average (cGPA) of less than 1.50 are strongly encouraged by the Faculty to seek academic advising from the Registrar's Office. 

Students in the degree program at the Faculty of Music are required to be registered in a full-time course load in all four years of study. 4.0 credits is the minimum required course load for the fall-winter session. The maximum permitted load is 6.0 credits. Those with a “B” standing or higher in the previous academic year, may petition to take up to 6.5 credits during the academic year. The petition must be submitted prior to the beginning of course enrolment in the summer. 

Students will not receive any special consideration in any of their courses due to the overload. It is your responsibility to manage your time appropriately, and drop courses (if necessary), by the deadlines, so that you do not incur any academic penalties. Note that students are required to register in a full-time course load (4.0 cr minimum) for all four years of study. Students will not be permitted to enrol as a part time student in your final year, by taking a larger load in your previous years.

Students also have the option of enrolling in more courses than what is required for fulfilling degree requirements. The grades achieved in these courses will be factored into the GPA. Therefore, it is important to realistically assess your ability to handle the extra courses, and remove them from your record by the appropriate deadlines. No special consideration will be given to students because of their “extra” course load.

Students may petition their final grade and their academic standing, such as a suspension from the Faculty of Music.  Issues arising within a course that concern the pedagogical relationship of the instructor and the student, such as essays, term work, term tests, grading practices, or conduct of instructors, can also be petitioned. Students have 30 days from the release of the final grades to submit the petition.  Students are strongly advised to consult with the Registrar around the feasibility of filing a petition.  All petitions require supporting documentation. 

If you are facing a one-year suspension due to your academic standing, you can request to have the suspension uplifted to allow you to continue with your studies through a successful petition to the Committee on Academic Standing. A lift of suspension petition will allow you to highlight documented extenuating circumstances that led to your suspension and request to continue with classes. 
 
If a lift of suspension petition is granted, it reverses the academic standing. Therefore, it will permit you to continue your studies on academic probation. If upon your return, you do not meet the necessary minimum Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) or Annual/Sessional Grade Point Average (A/SGPA), or successfully complete the specific Music course you previously failed, you will be suspended again (i.e., you will serve the same suspension as the one that was lifted) or refused further registration at the Faculty of Music.  

Personal Statement for a Lift of Suspension Petition 

Your personal statement should explain the following:

• The circumstances that led to your current academic standing, the impact the circumstances had on your academic performance, whether these circumstances continue to impact your life, and if so, how;
• How you will mitigate or reduce your circumstances if you are permitted to resume studies. Examples include:
  • Consider addressing any campus resources or health support you would access
  • Changes in your housing and/or financial situation
• Your academic plan for moving forward successfully if you are permitted to resume studies (e.g., getting supports, reducing your course load, change in program, etc.)
• Supporting documents are extremely crucial; refer to the section above for details.