S.02-56
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SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY
MEMORANDUM
To: ?
Senate
From:
?
Allan MacKinnon, Chair
Senate Committee on Undergraduate Studies
Subject: ?
WE (Withdrawal under Extenuating Circumstances) Proposal
(SCUS Reference 02
-
19)
(Rev. 1)
Date:
?
June
19, 2002
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Action undertaken by the Senate Committee on Undergraduate Studies at its meeting of
June 18, 2002 gives rise to the following motion:
Motion:
"That Senate approve the changes to the existing procedures, criteria and
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guidelines for withdrawal under extenuating circumstances outlined in the
proposal as set forth in S. 02-56 , effective Fall Semester 2003."
Rationale:
At the prompting of the Committee of Chairs, SCUS examined how to improve the way
in which we handle requests by students for course withdrawal under extenuating
circumstances (WE). Roger Blackman chaired a SCUS subcommittee that produced the
attached proposal for revising policy and procedure for handling both timely (within-
semester) and retroactive
WE
requests.
The current procedure for timely WE requests calls for the student to pick up a form from
the Registrar's Office, have the form assessed and signed by each course instructor and
each department chair, and then return the completed form to the Registrar's Office.
Among the perceived difficulties with this process are the following:
a)
From the student's view: Many students seeking a WE are not in a fit condition to
be seeking signatures from as many as
5
different instructors and
5
different
department chairs.
b)
From the instructor's view: Many instructors and chairs feel they lack the
information needed to make a well-considered decision. Some routinely support
WE requests. Others do so only if there is relevant documentation. Few attempt
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to check documentation. Very few have a clear set of guidelines to help them
make a consistent decision.
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c) From the health professional's view: We have often been called to task by SFU's
Health Services personnel for encouraging students to seek medical notes,
sometimes retrospectively, simply for the purpose of satisfying the procedures for
granting academic relief (such as WE). They see this largely as a waste of time.
The problems for retroactive WE requests are similar in nature but often worse in degree.
We believe the revised proposal improves upon existing policy and procedure in several
significant ways.
Students making WE requests will benefit from a "one-stop" service, and from
having their requests assessed through the consistent application of explicit
criteria.
2.
The primary responsibility for deciding most WE requests will be made by one or
two trained staff persons rather than by hundreds of untrained academics. This is
appropriate where the precipitating factors are primarily health-related or
employment-related and are essentially non-academic.
3.
In the minority of cases where academic issues are deemed to be relevant, the WE
request will be decided at the Dean's level after appropriate academic
consultation. ?
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4.
Faculties may arrange with the front-line staff to have all cases within a category
of WE request (e.g., selective) passed on to the Dean's office for decision.
This proposal has the support of the Committee of Chairs and of SCUS. In addition, the
principles on which the proposal is based were seen as appropriate by the great majority
of faculty and students who offered feedback on various drafts
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SCUSO2-19
(rev. 1)
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Withdrawal Under Extenuating Circumstances:
Procedures, Criteria and Guidelines
During Weeks 4-12 of the semester, a student may apply for permission to drop a course under
Extenuating Circumstances. These are defined in the Calendar as "unusual circumstances
beyond the student's control which make it impossible for the course to be completed". If the
application is successful, a WE notation will appear after the course on the student's transcript
(note that during Weeks
4-5,
a student wanting to withdraw from a course for any reason may
choose to receive a WD, which is automatically granted). This document specifies the
procedures to be followed in submitting WE applications and the criteria that will be used in
evaluating them, and it offers guidelines to assist students in the presentation of their case.
I. ?
PROCEDURES
a.
Students considering making a WE application should seek advice from staff in
Student Services in the Maggie Benston Building.
b. As soon as a decision is made to pursue a WE request, the WE Application Form
should be completed, relevant documentation appended, and the package submitted to
Student Services (not to the department offering the course).
c. The application will be reviewed by Student Services staff to determine whether it
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should be decided directly or referred to the student's Faculty of registration. Such
referral may be required by a Faculty because of the general type of withdrawal
requested (e.g., selective), or may be warranted by the characteristics of the individual
case. If the request is decided directly by staff, the student will be notified of the
decision, normally within a few days, with copies going to the course instructor and
to the department chair or faculty dean. The WE annotation will be placed on the
student's transcript a week or so later.
d.
If the WE request is referred to the relevant Faculty Dean's office, information may
then be collected by the Dean's office from the course instructor and/or department
chair before it is decided whether or not to approve the application. That decision
will be communicated to Student Services, who will notify the student, normally
within 2 weeks.
e. Requests arising after the 12th week of the semester, or requests relating to a course
taken in a previous semester, are referred to as "retroactive". Retroactive WE
applications follow the procedures laid out above for "in-semester" requests, but may
take longer to adjudicate.
II. ?
CRITERIA
It is not possible to lay down clear rules specifying precisely how WE applications will
be assessed because the reasons for such requests are so varied. However, the following
WE Proposal (rev. June 19/02)
page 1
criteria are stated in a manner intended to help students determine whether they are
eligible to apply for withdrawal under extenuating circumstances.
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a.
Medical Grounds
Students have grounds for a WE request if they suffer a medical condition during the
semester which so impairs their ability to study that course requirements cannot be
satisfied. Hospitalization for a week or more is almost certain to be regarded as
sufficient evidence, while the sort of minor transient ailment that many students
experience is most likely to be insufficient.
b. Employment Grounds
Students have grounds for a WE request if they experience an unexpected change in
conditions of employment that is so disrupting that course requirements cannot be
completed. Transfer to a remote location is almost certain to be regarded as sufficient
evidence, while a requirement to work occasional overtime is most likely to be
insufficient.
c. Compassionate Grounds
Students have grounds for a WE request if they have a traumatic experience that
renders them unfit to complete course requirements. An extended period of intense
grief following the death of an immediate family member is almost certain to be
regarded as sufficient evidence, while short-term anxiety associated with a friend's
illness is most likely to be insufficient.
d.
Other Grounds
It is unusual for students to apply for a
WE
on grounds that are not medical,
employment-related or compassionate.
III. GUIDELINES
Compassion and Equity
The dominant principles governing the WE process are compassion and equity. The
university is prepared to help students who experience unexpected and uncontrollable
events that seriously threaten their academic studies. But in doing so it must be careful
not to disadvantage students who continue their studies when faced with similar
circumstances. In practice, this means that
WE
requests are approved only when there is
compelling evidence that the student really has no alternative to withdrawal. Students
who do not take reasonable steps to resolve existing problems before the end of Week
5
will have difficulty meeting this standard.
Selective vs. Complete Withdrawal
Since the reasons for a WE request are likely to have a pervasive influence on a student's
academic performance, they will typically affect all the courses in which a student is
enrolled. For this reason, most WE requests are for complete withdrawal from all courses
in a semester. Occasionally, however, circumstances may be such that not all courses are
WE Proposal (rev. June 19/02)
page 2
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affected, in which case the request is for selective withdrawal. A student applying for
selective withdrawal must specify the reasons why one course is affected but another is
not.
Poor Course Performance
Although most students requesting a WE have experienced academic difficulties in the
course in question, the fear of a poor grade is not, in and of itself, acceptable as a basis
for granting withdrawal. The assessment of a WE request is based on the nature and
severity of the reasons for the poor performance. It is important for students requesting
selective withdrawal to keep this point in mind, particularly where performance is weak
in the course from which withdrawal is sought and noticeably stronger in courses in
which the student wishes to stay registered.
Medical Documentation
Students with a medical condition severe enough to warrant a WE request will normally
have consulted a medical practitioner and can document that consultation. Such
documentation must be attached to the WE application. Students who did not see a
doctor at the time of the accident or illness are advised not to seek medical
documentation at a later time. Little useful information can be gained from retrospective
medical notes written by health care professionals who were not consulted at the time the
student was experiencing poor health.
Employment Documentation
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Students appealing on employment grounds should submit a letter from their employer
that supplies such information as the nature of the change, its date of onset and duration,
and where relevant, the impact it has on the student's ability to maintain academic
commitments.
Covering Letter
WE applicants should state their reasons clearly but succinctly in a covering letter. They
may do so in the knowledge that the letter will be read only by the staff and faculty
members who are responsible for assessing the application. The letter should link as
clearly as possible the claimed causes (e.g., health problems) and effects (e.g., missed
assignments). This may include setting out a chronology specifying the dates of relevant
events. The more complete the documentation and the clearer the covering letter, the
more likely the application is to be decided promptly.
Consultation
Students considering withdrawing from a course are required to seek counsel from
Student Services. They may also wish to consult their course instructor and departmental
advisor.
IV. REVIEW
It is expected to implement these procedures in the semester following their approval by
Senate. After they have been in force for one year, Student Services will provide to
SCUS a descriptive and statistical summary of the revised WE procedures.
WE Proposal (rev. June 19/02)
page 3
SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY
SCHOOL OF CRIMINOLOGY
MMO4NfJUM
To: ?
The Chair and Members of Senate (via Bobbie Grant)
From:
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Dr. Robert Gordon, Professor and Director
School of Criminology
Re:
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New WE Policy and Procedure
Date: ?
June 21, 2002
This is to confirm that at the last meeting of the Chairs' and Directors' Committee (May
23', 2002) the members voted overwhelmingly to support the proposed changes to the
WE procedure.
The Chairs and Directors have long called for the kinds of changes being proposed and
urge Senate to adopt the new policy and procedure.
S
