Exams

Exam Policy and Procedures
This document would apply to Non Distance Delivery Courses. Distance Delivery requires unique

policy and procedures.

General Rules for Proctoring and Conduct of Final Examinations

Student Policies Governing Final Exams

1. A student shall not be permitted to enter a room in which University examinations are being written

if the student arrives more than one hour after the commencement of writing.

2. There shall be no extension of time for candidates who are allowed to sit the examination after

arriving late.

3. At 15 minutes before the conclusion of the examination period, the proctor shall announce the time

remaining.

4. No student shall be allowed in the examination room during the course of examination except the

candidates concerned.

5. Students must place their student ID cards, or another piece of photo identification, on the desk, or

be able to establish their identities in a manner satisfactory to the proctor and sign the attendance

sheet when presented to them.

6. Each student must submit all required exam materials before leaving the exam room. Candidates

must leave the room immediately after handing in their examination materials. Any materials

removed from the room will not be accepted for submission.

7. Students shall not be permitted to submit their exam and leave the exam room within the first hours

of the scheduled exam.

8. If a student becomes ill or receives word of a domestic emergency during an examination, the

student must hand in all exam materials at once to a proctor and request the exam paper be

cancelled. In the case of illness, the students must arrange immediately for a medical examination

so that a medical certificate is available to support any request for a deferred examination. The

candidate may then apply for a special examination in accordance with the published special final

examinations procedures.

9. If a student fails to appear for a scheduled examination, the candidate may apply for a special

examination in accordance with the special final examinations procedures.

10. All inquiries and requests must be addressed to proctors only and candidates must not leave their

seats except when granted permission by the proctor.

11. Candidates must not:

a. impersonate another student;

b. speak to other candidates or communicate with them under any circumstances whatsoever;

c. leave answer papers exposed to view.

The published policy for “Academic Dishonesty” will apply to anyone found cheating.

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12. No materials or electronic devices shall be brought to the desk or used at an examination except

those authorized by the proctor. Unauthorized materials include, but are not limited to: books, class

notes, or aid sheets. Unauthorized electronic devices include, but are not limited to: cellular

telephones, laptop computers, programmable calculators, palm pilots or pagers. All electronic

devices must be turned off and kept out of view.

13. Students may not bring food or drink into the exam room. Those who must do so for medical

reasons must identify himself/herself to the Exam Invigilator.

14. In consideration of those who have allergies, students and proctors shall refrain from wearing

fragrances.

15. There are no personal belongings allowed on the desks except those directly required for the exam.

16. Students are discouraged from bringing personal belongings into the exam room. Small belongings

may be placed under the seats, but exam supervisors may request that all personal belongings be

left along the edges of the room. In either case, the University will assume no responsibility for lost

articles.

17. Any student leaving the examination shall do so with the least distraction to the students still

working. Students shall not congregate outside the examination room.

18. Instructors shall proctor their own final examinations. If this is not possible, the Instructor shall

arrange for an alternate who is familiar with the subject of the examination. Students should not be

used as alternates.

19. The Instructor or alternate shall be the proctor for that course and is responsible for the conduct of

the examinations and the enforcement of the examination regulations.

20. When multiple exams are held in one room, the Assistant Registrar shall appoint a Chief

Supervisor. The Chief Supervisor is responsible for the conduct of examinations and the

enforcement of examination regulations.

21. When examinations are scheduled in the gym, the Registrar’s office staff will bring the exams to

that location. When examinations are not scheduled in the gym, it is the responsibility of the

Proctor to ensure that exams and any booklets may be picked up from the Registrar’s office the day

of the exam.

22. The Registrar’s office will be responsible for hiring additional Exam Proctors so that large exams

may have more than one proctor and so that supervisors of smaller exams may be relieved for short

periods of time.

Emergency Procedures

1. Examination Cancellation Contingency Plan:

a) The Assistant Registrar, or designate, will decide in consultation with the Deans, or designate,

whether to proceed with or to postpone examinations in the event of extreme weather

conditions or any other general emergency which occurs when final examinations are in

session. Notification of the postponement of an exam(s) will be posted on the Nipissing

University Portal as early as possible and the local media will be contacted.

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b) If students have seen the examination, the examination should be cancelled and rescheduled.

However, any examinations already submitted will normally be graded.

c) If the examination has not been started but the delay lasts longer than one hour, it is

recommended that the examination be cancelled.

d) In anticipation of the need of such action, each examination schedule will be re-staged, if at all

possible, prior to the end of the current examination period; in particular, the most likely time

is the next Sunday at 1:00 pm. Students will be notified of the exact date and location through

their Nipissing Student email account.

e) Faculty will enter their final grades into the Student Information System within seven days of the

date of the final exam or, if there is no final exam, within seven days of the end of the term.

2. If a Fire Alarm Sounds and the building must be evacuated:

a) If the alarm is intermittent, then it is not necessary to leave the building and additional time will

be added.

b) If the alarm is continuous, then Proctors will announce that “Students must turn over their

papers and leave all exam materials on their desk. They are to take any personal belongings at

their desk but are not to attempt to get personal belongings from the front of the room and to

exit the building immediately. If re-entry to the building is permitted within 30 minutes, then

each exam supervisor will decide on a course-by-course basis whether or not to continue their

exam. After 30 minutes, students may leave and should check the Nipissing University portal

for announcements regarding their exam(s)”.

c) Proctors will ensure that everyone exits the building.

i. Proctors and students will wait at the entrances for instructions.

ii. The Assistant Registrar, or designate, will go to the location of the fire alarm annunciator

panel to wait for confirmation from the Police and/or Fire Department that the alarm

was false and the building may be re-entered or that the alarm is genuine.

iii. If the alarm was false and re-entry is permitted within 30 minutes, the proctors will tell

students to either, a) enter the building and exam room(s) to continue the exam or b)

the proctors will collect the examinations and students will then be permitted into the

exam rooms to collect personal belongings.

iv. Those proctoring the exams will inform the Assistant Registrar, or designate, whether the

exam is to be re-scheduled or, if 50% or more of the exam time has elapsed, they may

elect to prorate the exam rather than schedule a new exam.

3. Power Outage:

a) Students must turn over their exam papers and remain in their seats.

b) Students will be asked to remain silent.

c) The Assistant Registrar, or designate, will contact Security to find out an estimated time for the

duration of the blackout. At that time, it will be determined whether or not the exam will

continue. If 50% or more of the exam time has elapsed, they may elect to prorate the exam

rather than re-schedule a new exam

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Scheduling and Administration

4. Except where otherwise approved by Senate, final examinations are mandatory in 1000 and 2000

level courses. Final examinations are not mandatory in creative writing, studio art courses, or other

courses so designated by Senate.

5. Faculty will provide the FASS office (or equivalent in Bracebridge and Brantford) with a copy of

their final exam at least five working days in advance of the exam date. FASS will provide the

Registrar’s Office with sufficient copies for each exam in advance of the exam day. The cover

booklet design is included at the end of the document and different colours will be used on the

cover to reduce the chance of students bringing exam booklets with them to the examination.

6. Faculty will enter their final grades into the Student Information System within five days of the date

of the final exam or, if there is no final exam, within five days of the end of the term.

7. Final exams are scheduled by the Registrar’s Office and must take place within the dates published

for final exams.

8. Instructors of 3000, 4000 and 5000 level courses may assign final examinations as part of their

course assessment strategies.

9. Spring/Summer courses will normally have an extra day scheduled and the final exam will be on

the last scheduled day of classes beginning at the same time as the class schedule.

10. In courses with final examinations, the exam must constitute a minimum of 30% and a maximum of

70% of the final grade.

11. Punctual and regular attendance is essential for the successful completion of a course. When

absenteeism exceeds 20%, the student may be excluded from writing the final examination. If an

instructor would like to exclude a student from writing a final examination, the Dean and the

student must be notified in writing at least two weeks prior to the exam. Students who wish to

appeal this decision may appeal to the Dean.

12. Final examinations for all courses of three credits or above will be three hours in length. The length

of final examinations for courses that are less than three credits will be determined by the instructor.

13. No student will be required to write more than one Nipissing University exam during the same

exam time period, or more than three Nipissing University final examinations in any 48-hour

period.

14. Students are responsible to be at the designated place and time for their exam(s). Misreading the

exam schedule will not be accepted as the basis for a special examination.

15. Each term, soon after classes begin, the Faculty offices will provide the Registrar’s office with a

summary of which courses require a final examination.

16. Final examinations normally run from Monday to Saturday. Exams may be scheduled day or

evening regardless of when the class was scheduled. Make-up exams may be scheduled on Sunday

afternoon.

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