U of T will not hold any more in-person exams starting December 16, as part of new measures to limit the spread of the Omicron variant of COVID-19. Exams may be moved to a different delivery mode or cancelled.
The Faculty of Arts & Science (FAS) will not conduct any remaining exams currently scheduled to be in person, meaning that grades will be determined with existing marks, according to a message from FAS Dean Melanie Woodin. Courses with online final assessments will “continue as planned.”
The Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering also announced on December 15 that the rest of the in-person exams will be cancelled going forward, so they will not be moved online or otherwise modified. Online exams will continue as planned, but petition deadlines have been extended for students in the faculty.
These decisions follow other universities across Ontario, including Queen’s University and Western University, that cancelled in-person exams last week in response to the rapidly spreading Omicron variant.
For students in the FAS, when marks are uploaded to ACORN in January, they can use the credit/no credit (CR/NCR) or late withdrawal option for the course. The Arts & Science Students’ Union plans to meet with the Dean’s office before the start of the winter break to clarify how these accommodations will work, including whether students will be allowed to credit/no credit program requirements.
In response to questions from The Varsity about the details of the policy, including whether students who didn’t have in-person exams scheduled will be able to use the CR/NCR, a spokesperson for the university wrote “We are still working to clarify the answers to your questions.”
For the winter semester, classes will take place online until Monday, January 31, except for some in-person practical courses and some courses in the health sciences. Winter 2022 study abroad programs have also been cancelled.
Additionally, employees will be moved to remote work wherever possible until January 31. Residences will remain open as scheduled, and libraries will be open over break with reduced hours to ensure that students have access to the internet and computers.
“We appreciate the stress that these rapidly changing circumstances may have on members of our community. We will continue to update you with information to support your current activities and decisions about winter plans,” reads the announcement from U of T.
Editor’s note (December 16): This article has been updated to include an announcement from the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering and comment from ASSU and U of T.
