Deferred Exams

Students writing exam

Deadline to petition on eService - Late petitions will not be accepted 

Your petition and  supporting documents need to be submitted within 5 business days from the date of the missed examination. Check eService   regularly as you will receive updates and messages in your inbox. 

  • You may only request a deferred exam if you did not attempt or complete the final exam. Please note: downloading an exam and reviewing it is considered an attempt.
  • Petitions will only be considered in case of illness or extreme emergency at the time of an exam.
  • Use the Absence Declaration tool on ACORN or submit other appropriate supporting documentation within 5 business days from the date of the missed examination. 

What is an already deferred exam? 

Here is an example: You took POLC37H in Fall 2022, but you were unable to write the exam in December 2022 for documented reasons, and deferred it to April 2023. Now you have missed this exam again. 

  • We expect you to write your deferred exam. 
  • Submit a petition for FURTHER deferral of your exam to the following session on eService in the event of exceptional circumstances that prevent you from writing your exam (e.g hospitalization or severe personal emergency). 
  • Petitions to defer an exam based on vacation, employment, or personal plans will not be considered. The final exam start and end dates are published on our website eight months in advance, and you are expected to be available before making plans. 
  • Please provide supporting documents to indicate why the examination was missed. 

Approved deferred exams 

If your petition is approved, you will receive your deferred exam schedule in your eService inbox. These are typically scheduled in the next exam period.  

Access Course Materials  

Quercus courses enter a read-only state after the end-of-term. To access past courses, from the main Quercus menu visit "Courses" and select "All Course" to open. Scroll down to the "Past Enrollments" section to find direct links into previous courses. (PATH: Quercus -> "Courses" -> "All Course" -> "Past Enrollments"). 

Fee for approved UTSC deferred exams  

  • $72 for one exam, or $144 for two or more exams 
  • Your payment deadline will be provided in your petition response on eService.
  • Missing your payment deadline will result in a cancellation of your deferred exam, and your original grade in the course will be reinstated. This will  trigger a reassessment of your GPA, which may result in a change to your academic standing. If you are writing a deferred exam for a course on another campus, you must pay a separate fee at that campus. Payment instructions and deadline will be available in your eService message. 

Students registered with AccessAbility Services 

  • If you are approved to write a deferred final exam and would like to request accommodation, please submit a Deferred Exam Request form by to the Accommodated Tests & Exams office. The form is also available on the AccessAbility Services website
  • It is not necessary for you to provide your deferred exam date prior to submitting the form. Once your petition has been approved by the Office of the Registrar, you should submit a deferred exam accommodation request form as soon as possible.  
  • Deferred exam fee will be waived for students registered with AccessAbility Services and the reason for deferral request is disability-related. We will confirm this with AccessAbility Services.  

Your grades 

  • A notation of SDF (standing deferred) will be placed on your transcript for the course, after the petition is granted. The course will not be included in the calculation of your GPAs (cumulative or sessional) until the exam is written, and a final grade is calculated. 
  • Until your final grade is calculated, your academic standing for the session will not reflect this course. If you are placed on academic suspension even with a notation of SDF for the course, you will not be permitted to take courses in the next session. 
  • You will not be granted a late withdrawal without academic penalty from the course once you have been granted a deferred exam opportunity. 

Missing a deferred exam 

If you miss a deferred exam, you will receive a mark of zero for the exam in the calculation of the final grade. 

  • Only under exceptional circumstances (e.g., hospitalization or severe personal emergency), and when supported with strong and compelling evidence, will a petition for a second deferred exam be considered. 

Reducing your course load 

  • By submitting a petition to write a deferred exam, you do so with the understanding and compliance that you will take a reduced course load in the next semester 
  • Your course load in the following semester is reduced by the credit weight of the exam(s) you are deferring. For a simplified chart, visit the "Eligible Course Load" page under the Courses menu or by clicking the image below. 
  • To request an exception to this course load restriction with deferred exam, please complete this form. You must have a minimum CGPA of 1.85 to make this request.