Policies and Procedures

The University of Guelph is committed to creating a barrier-free environment.  Providing services for students is a shared responsibility among students, faculty and administrators.  This relationship is based on respect of individual rights, the dignity of the individual, and the University community's shared commitment to an open and supportive learning environment. 

If you are a continuing education student who requires special service or accommodation, whether due to an identified, ongoing, or short-term disability, please contact the Open Learning program Counsellor before the end of the first week of your course (every semester) in order to avoid any delays in support.  Documentation from a health professional is required for all academic accommodations.  Please note that all information provided will be held in confidence.

If you require course materials produced in an alternate format (e.g., DAISY, Braille, large print or eText), please contact the Open Learning program Counsellor at least two months prior to the course start date. If contact is not made within the suggested time frame, support may be delayed. It is recommended that you refer to the course outline before beginning your course in order to determine the required readings.

The University of Guelph will consider granting academic consideration for courses if there are sufficient extenuating medical, psychological or compassionate reasons. Academic consideration may take the form of an extended deadline, a deferred assessment, a late drop of a course with or without academic failure, withdrawal from a semester with or without academic failure, or permission to continue on probationary status. A deferred assessment could take the form of approval to complete a course requirement after the end of the semester.

If you require academic consideration before the final class day of a semester, please contact the course instructor by email, if possible, prior to the date that the work is due.

Instructors cannot grant deferred assessments. They can only grant academic consideration for work that is due during the semester and cannot grant extensions beyond their deadline for submission of final grades.

If you require academic consideration beyond the end of the semester, please contact the Open Learning program Counsellor immediately for guidance regarding next steps. You will be asked to submit the following:

• A personal letter or email stating your request and outlining the medical, psychological or compassionate grounds for your request
• Documentation supporting your request
• A completed Request for Academic Consideration form

Academic consideration requests are reviewed by OpenEd's Academic Review Sub-Committee. Once a decision has been made, you will be sent a letter notifying you of the outcome and next steps.

Students must normally complete a deferred condition by the due date provided in the decision letter. An extension beyond this due date will be granted only in extreme circumstances—with provision of additional documentation—and must be completed within the same semester the original deferred condition was missed.

Academic integrity is a code of ethics for teachers, students, researchers and writers. Trust in the integrity of scholarly work is the foundation of academic life and the value of our University's degrees, diplomas and certificates.

For more information about academic integrity, see the University of Guelph Academic Integrity Tutorial.

For information on academic misconduct, see the Academic Misconduct section of the University of Guelph Undergraduate Calendar.

To read about our policies, please visit our Withdrawal, Transfer and Refund Policy page on the OpenEd Student Portal.

Open Learning and Educational Support (OpenEd) reserves the right to change or cancel a course at any time.  When it is necessary to cancel or postpone a course, we will make every effort to notify all participants.  It is important that you provide your home and business telephone numbers and email address when registering.  In such cases, the paid course fee(s) will be refunded.

OpenEd's liability is limited to the reimbursement of paid course fee(s) and will not be responsible for travel or other related expenses incurred by the registrant.

Some of our programs have multiple certificates. You may apply for a second certificate or diploma if at least 50% of the courses in your second certificate or diploma have not already been counted towards any other certificate or diploma program.

Grade Reassessment of In-Course Work

Continuing education students wanting to have an in-course assessment reassessed, for a course that is still underway, must submit a request in writing to the instructor of the course. By asking for a grade reassessment, a student accepts that their grade may increase, decrease, or stay the same. The detection of errors or omissions in the calculation of grades will result in the assignment of a revised grade. Instructors will update reassessed in-course grades in CourseLink as necessary. Students normally initiate grade reassessments, but instructors may also initiate this process.

Grade Reassessment of In-Course Work (Post-Completion of Course)

Students who believe there have been errors or omissions in the calculation of their final grade for a course, or simply disagree with the final grade they have received, may request a grade reassessment. They must submit a request in writing to the manager, program development, Open Learning and Educational Support of the continuing education certificate or diploma program the course is included in no later than the 10th class day of the subsequent semester. The request must pertain to a specific in-course assessment. Reassessment of all course assessments is not possible.

The manager, program development shall forward the student's request to the instructor and the instructor shall respond to the manager, program development within five class days. In addition to ensuring the accuracy and integrity of the assessment itself, the instructor has the responsibility of ensuring that the calculation and totaling of marks is accurate. The instructor must reply to the manager, program development in writing, giving assurance that the review is complete.

Where there is a change in the grade, the manager, program development signs the 'Grade Reassessment' form and forwards it to the Open Learning program counsellor for filing. The manager, program development will advise the student in writing of a change of grade. If there is no change to a grade, it is the manager, program development's responsibility to inform the student in writing.

Grade Reassessment by a "Third-Party"

If a student remains dissatisfied after the instructor reviews, reassesses, and explains the rationale for the grade, students can request a formal regrading of their work by a "third party"—someone other than the instructor; in most cases, another instructor within the student’s program of study. This reassessment is permitted when:

1. A student does not accept the instructor’s re-grading after the instructor has provided a rational/explanation
2. The instructor does not respond to the manager, program development within five days
3. The student does not feel they can discuss the matter with the instructor for any number of reasons

A student must submit their request and reasons to have an assessment reassessed by a "third party", in writing, to the manager, program development. Students must explain why the original grade and, if applicable, the instructor’s revised grade, was inappropriate, based on evidence from the course outline, course notes, textbooks etc.

Upon receipt of a student’s request and explanation, the manager, program development will:

1. Review the appeal, and discuss the appeal with the student and with the instructor to gain both perspectives
2. Identify an appropriate individual who can objectively re-evaluate the assessment
3. Request a clean original copy of the assessment without instructor notes if re-evaluation is undertaken
4. Communicate to both the student and the instructor, with rationale, the outcome of the assignment grade reassessment
5. Request that the instructor recalculate course grades, as needed, to incorporate the reassessed assignment grade

Once again, by asking for a grade reassessment by a "third party", a student accepts that their grade may increase, decrease, or stay the same. The decision of a "third-party" regrade is final. A student cannot ask for a subsequent regrade from an alternative "third-party".