Attendance and religious observance

If religious observance affects your attendance at normal teaching and learning activities including any assessments in ways that will cause problems, you should discuss the issue with the Senior Advisor.

The University will make every effort, in its timetabling of examinations, to avoid holding examinations on religious days or festivals which occur during examination periods for those students whose commitment to the observance of their faith would otherwise cause them to miss the examination.  If this affects you, you must fill in the Examination and Religious Observance form from the Student Services Centre by the dates given in the form.  For guidance on the University’s examinations and religious observance policy please see http://www.exams.manchester.ac.uk/exam-timetable/#religious-observance where you can also download an Examinations & Religious Observance form.

The School will also give sympathetic consideration to your problems and will try to make reasonable adjustments. However, adjustments can only be made provided they maintain the standard of your degree (e.g. you will not simply be excused from parts of the programme affected by your religious observance or from satisfying overall attendance requirements).  If religious observance means that you miss a lecture or other class, supporting material may be provided via Blackboard.  However, if you want further notes from the lecture you must make your own arrangements to copy them from another student.  Similar principles apply if religious observance affects your attendance at assessments (e.g. presentations or practical tests). Because lectures, practicals and assessments for the semester are scheduled in advance, you must notify the Senior Advisor of your requests for allowances for religious observance by the Thursday before the start of teaching each semester, and the School will use its best efforts to reschedule the assessment to accommodate your needs (e.g. by changing your scheduled slot in a programme of assessed presentations). 

Deadlines for handing in assessed work will not normally be extended to allow for religious observance, and you must therefore plan your work accordingly.