Final examinations for students in isolation housing

[Summary: Faculty may accommodate students who are in isolation housing and unable to write an in-person final examination at the scheduled time by offering an alternative assessment, remote exam, or a make-up exam at a later date.]

May 4, 2022

To: Spring 2022 Yale College instructors
cc: FAS Steering; FAS Dean’s Office; Yale College Dean’s Office; GSAS Dean’s Office; Poorvu Center; President’s Office; Provost’s Office; Registrar’s Office; FAS Department Lead Administrators, Operations Managers, Chair’s Assistants, and Registrars

Dear colleagues:

As final examinations approach, we expect that some portion of the student population may be in COVID isolation housing and unable to sit their exams in person. We write with clarification on the steps that you may take if you have students in that circumstance.

Alternative assessments and remote examinations

If you have students who are in isolation housing and are unable to attend an in-person exam but are well enough to sit the exam, you may consider offering an alternative assessment or remote examination. The Poorvu Center for Teaching and Learning has developed guidance on remote or online forms of assessment and recommended procedures for proctoring remote examinations. The Poorvu Center can assign remote proctors for online exams; if you require proctors to administer remote final exams please email the Poorvu Center with the date of the remote exam, start time for the exam, end time for the exam, and the ideal number of remote proctors needed. Poorvu Center staff are also available to consult with faculty on such matters; you can request an appointment by emailing askpoorvucenter@yale.edu.

Make-up/ABX exams

If an alternative or remote exam is not possible, eligible students may request an ABX (“Absent from Exam”) accommodation from their residential college dean. You may then provide a make-up examination at a later date. We encourage you to administer make-up exams as soon as possible, particularly in those courses that rely heavily on memorization. In such cases, if you expect your teaching fellows to administer and grade the exams, the exams should be scheduled such that all grading can be completed by May 31, 2022, the final date of Teaching Fellow appointments for the current term. If this is not possible, the examination may need to be deferred until Fall 2022. While the residential college deans cannot provide proctoring services, they are excellent sources to answer questions you might have about the administration of make-up final exams.

Thank you for your understanding; we are grateful  for all that you do to support our students.

Best wishes,

Tamar, Marvin, and Lynn