So I found out today that my professor re-scheduled at the last minute our final exam for a week earlier and I missed it. At the beginning of the semester the course schedule listed the exam period as Dec 16-22. But she messed up the schedule and had to create a new one, and in the new schedule the exam period was also listed as Dec 16-22. Later I emailed her asking her to clarify when the final exam was due and she once again said Dec 16-22. Some time after Dec 9 she changed the due date to Dec 13-19. She didn’t mention that she had changed the dates, so I didn’t notice. Do you think there is some way this can get resolved so that I can have another date to take the exam? I think all grades were due to be finalized Dec 22. I had an A in the class, and so far have a 4.0 GPA, but the missed exam brings my grade in that class down to a C.
Can’t you talk to the professor and see if there’s any chance to take the exam on another date?
Today is Sunday and the semester is officially over.
[edit]
The semester ends some time today I should have said.
Try tomorrow, I’m sure people missing exams due to stuff outside their control isn’t a new thing, but at least where I live the professors have leeway to decide stuff, no idea how it is in other places.
They have to turn in all grades some time today, so not sure how much leeway they have.
Tell the provost (or academic dean)?
Grades can be changed after the fact, happens all the time.
Remember that it’s also in the teacher’s and school’s interest to have you grade as high as you can. So try to work with them in finding the loopholes in the rules and regulations for amending that C.
Good luck buddy!
Start with documenting the originally posted due dates in an email to the professor. My advice on whether or not you should copy the department head and/or dean depends on the general tone the faculty member has taken on the issue. Also, if your school has a grievance procedure or ombudsperson, that’s what they’re there for.
If you still have all the emails, all you need now is the reason why you missed the announcement specifying the date.
Now you’ve just got to play the system. Email the professor, then email the dean of your department if she doesn’t help. Only email out of the department if you have no other option. Departments can often be petty and political and far more human then maybe they ought to be, and how you approach getting it changed is as important as the merits of your argument. Just don’t skip over their heads until you have no other choice - but don’t hesitate to do so if you have no their option.
There is always a way to fix it. You may have to involve administration, but the professor and documentation should be on your side here.
All good points, but I think the dean needs to know about professors who fuck with students this way, especially when the professor does something like shave a full week off of class.
First, talk to the professor. She will probably understand and take your exam for grading.
Next, she will modify your grade, but the change will need to be signed by the Dean’s office. This is a simple process that will require some sort of sign-off by the office .
Reminds me of something that happened when I was in college. Our final exam was a paper to be turned in on finals day. I did my paper, and i was pleased with the quality. However, when I went to turn it in, I grabbed an old, previously graded paper and turned it in by accident.
I didn’t notice until grades were posted and I had a 0. I talked to the professor who understood, and I followed the process mentioned above and all worked out.
If, the professor is not helpful, then the Dean’s office is who can assist you with that conflict
Okay thanks guys. I hope I will get to take the exam ASAP.
One thing I forgot to mention is that it is an online class, though the campus is not far from me. Not sure if that complicates things.
I hope you resolve this as smoothly and painlessly as possible. If not… check your student handbook. When I went to school the dates in the syllabi were pretty concrete. It’s not a contract persay but there school might actually have policies regarding them.
Not saying this is the case here, but when I was going to school, the professor would post things in the forum you were required to read a few times a week, they would send emails, etc. and people would still claim not to have known.
I would think in this case, if many people missed it, the professor would take it in consideration. If @YakAttack was the only one who missed it, not so much. Most professors will work with you as long you were putting sone effort into the class though.
I have an A in every class.
As someone who did most of his school online, that doesn’t mean much. :-P I had classes that took minimum effort to get an A in.
Were you reading emails and the forum regularly? Did lots of people miss it?
Definitely this. Given it’s an online class I am honestly not sure of the dynamics, but in a more traditional setting you certainly want to approach the professor at least once. If you try and go above her head or around to various colleagues, you know what they are going to do? Tell you to go to her first and also forward those emails on to her without telling you.
Every class online or offline has a forum, but nobody uses it unless they have to. One person in my group didn’t know we had a final exam at all until I told her. And the professor had at different times three different schedules that she messed up.
Yes I did email her.