Note: McGill’s new Course Catalogue will replace the eCalendar. The Course Catalogue is expected to go live the week of April 22nd. When the new site is published, "mcgill.ca/study" will be redirected to the new Course Catalogue website.
Course information on this site is not reflective of offerings for the 2025–2026 academic year. Some irregularities may occur as we move operations to the incoming Course Catalogue.
Final examinations in regularly scheduled courses are held during the final examination period at the end of the term. The format of the final exams can be either online or in person, depending on the situation. The dates of the final examination periods are listed at mcgill.ca/exams.
In some courses there is no final examination; your final grade in these courses is determined by different forms of assessment(s) indicated in the course outline. During the first week of class, students will be provided with a course outline, which along with other details, will include the types of assessment to be used in the course and the weight accorded to each assessment.
Preamble
The objectives of these regulations are as follows:
Regulations
Note for Continuing Studies: Regulation 1 also applies to graduate-level courses.
Note for Continuing Studies: Regulation 9 is not applicable to Continuing Studies students.
Note for Continuing Studies: Regulation 10 is not applicable to Continuing Studies students.
Instructors are not permitted to grant any special treatment regarding examinations to any student. Students who believe there are circumstances that might justify making special examination arrangements for them or that might legitimately be taken into account in evaluating their performance should apply to the Associate Dean or Director of their faculty.
It is the responsibility of the student to confirm the date, time, and place of the examination by checking examination schedules posted on notice boards on campus and at www.mcgill.ca/students. This information is not available by telephone. No student will be allowed to enter an examination later than one hour after it has started.
If, for serious reasons such as illness or family affliction, you have not written one or more examinations, you may receive the permission of your Faculty Client Services Office upon providing supporting documentation to defer the examination to the next supplemental examination period, except in the Faculty of Engineering (where students write the examination the next time the course is given); see University Regulations and Resources > Undergraduate > Examinations: General Information > Final Examinations > Deferred Examinations: Faculty of Engineering. You should be aware that the University will only defer examinations for compelling reasons, verified and accepted by the Client Services Office. You must provide supporting evidence such as an appropriate medical report, and you must inform the Client Services Office as soon as possible to explain why you missed the examination.
You must apply for deferred examinations on Minerva if you are in one of the following faculties and schools:
If you do not belong to one of the above faculties, consult your faculty for application procedures.
The final application deadline for deferred examinations is January 15 (for Fall term courses), and May 15 (for Winter term courses and courses that span the Fall and Winter terms) for the following faculties and schools:
If your request is approved, an L will appear in place of a grade in those courses. The grade you obtain on the deferred examination will replace the grade of L on your official transcript.
If you receive a grade of D, F, J, or U in a course after a deferred examination, no supplemental examinations will be available. You must either re-register in the same course the following term or in an approved course substitute.
If you are not granted deferred status, you will receive a grade of J in the course, which will count as a failure in the TGPA and CGPA. You may, however, be allowed to write a supplemental examination. Please note there are no supplemental exams in Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Management courses, or for the School of Continuing Studies. For the Faculty of Engineering, supplemental exams are exceptionally offered for some Science, Humanities, and Social Sciences courses. For a list of these courses, see the Faculty of Engineering website (www.mcgill.ca/engineering).
For Summer term courses, check with your Client Services Office on the availability and restrictions on deferred and supplemental examinations.
If you have already written an examination, you cannot later request for the exam to be deferred. You should consult your Client Services Office regarding the availability of supplemental examinations.
If you have an examination conflict, you must complete an “Examination Conflict Form” and return it to the Client Services Office for approval at least 20 days before the start of the examination schedule. The form must be accompanied by supporting documentation, and there is a $45.16 fee (non-refundable) for rescheduling an examination. Only under exceptional circumstances are examinations rescheduled.
If you are in satisfactory or probationary standing and received a grade of D, F, J, or U, you may be eligible to write a supplemental exam, which will count for a substantial percentage of your final grade. Your initial grade will still appear on your transcript, and both will be calculated into your CGPA.
To apply for a supplemental examination for a course, you must submit a request on Minerva (mcgill.ca/minerva) by going to Student Menu > Student Records Menu > Supplemental Exam Application.
The following rules and conditions apply:
You must frequently verify the status of your supplemental exam application on Minerva for any additional information required by your Student Affairs Office or Service Point. Once your application has been approved, you will receive a confirmation email at your McGill email address.
If you register for a supplemental examination but find yourself unprepared for it, you should not take the exam; except for the loss of the application fee, there is no penalty for missing a supplemental examination. You should consult your Student Affairs Office for further information. It is important that you also see a Faculty advisor to talk about your options and the effects that your request may have on your studies. For more information, see mcgill.ca/students/advising.
You must verify the date and time of the supplemental examination and make yourself available to write the exam. Supplemental examinations for courses taken in the Fall term will be written during Reading Break the following Winter term. Supplemental examinations for courses taken in the Winter term will be written in August of that year. Dates can be found at mcgill.ca/exams/dates.
Supplemental examinations are not available for the following Engineering courses: CHEM 233, EPSC 221, MATH 262, MATH 263, MATH 264, MATH 271, MATH 363, and PHYS 271. These courses are offered by the Faculty of Science, but they are administered by the Faculty of Engineering. If you are not sure which courses offer supplemental examinations, please contact the Engineering Student Centre.
In accordance with the Charter of Students' Rights, and subject to the conditions stated therein, students have the right to consult any written submission for which they have received a mark and the right to receive an explanation from the instructor or, as the case may be, the examiner.
Students also have a right to an impartial and competent reread of any written assignment completed during the course of the semester, as well as final exams. However, it is strongly recommended that students meet with the course instructor before requesting a third-party reread.
Reassessments in courses not offered by the School of Continuing Studies (SCS) are subject to the deadlines, rules, and regulations of the relevant Faculty.
Students are required to keep any material, in its wholeness and original form, as it was returned to them. A reassessment request will be refused if the relevant material is not provided in support of the request.
Grades received for course components other than written work or examinations, such as presentations and/or participation marks, are not subject to the procedures noted below. Students should meet with the instructor to address any concerns regarding these forms of assessment.
SCS recognizes four types of reassessment:
This type of reassessment applies to written assignments such as papers, quizzes, and mid-term exams completed during the term. Please also refer to Reread of a Final Exam by a Third Party.
Reassessment of a group-written assignment requires the consent of all members of the group.
Requests for a review of a specific assignment must be made directly to the instructor within 10 working days* of the date of return of the graded material. Requests received after this deadline will not be considered. Results of the reassessment will normally be completed within 20 working days* of the receipt of the request. The grade may be increased, lowered, or remain the same. Whether the reassessed grade is higher or lower, it takes precedence over the original grade.
For the English Intensive Language Program, requests for a review of a specific assignment must be made directly to the instructor within 3 working days* of the date of return of the graded material. Requests received after this deadline will not be considered. Results of the reassessment will normally be completed within 5 working days* of the receipt of the request. The grade may be increased, lowered, or remain the same. Whether the reassessed grade is higher or lower, it takes precedence over the original grade.
* "Working days" means Monday through Friday.
This type of reassessment applies to written assignments such as papers, quizzes, and mid-term exams completed during the term. Please also refer to Reread of a Final Exam by a Third Party.
Students who wish to contest a grade for a specific assignment should first meet with the instructor and discuss their concerns and questions. If a student remains dissatisfied with the grade, he or she may submit a request for a third-party reread of the assignment in question.
A request for third-party rereads involving group work require the consent of all members of the group.
Students seeking a third-party reread must apply to SCS Client Services.
Requests for a third-party reread of a specific assignment must be made within 10 working days* of the date of return of the graded material. Requests received after this deadline will not be considered. Results of the third-party reread will normally be completed within 20 working days* of the receipt of the request. The grade may be increased, lowered, or remain the same. The third-party reviewer’s grade takes precedence over the original grade.
For the English Intensive Language Program, requests for a review of a specific assignment must be made directly to the instructor within 3 working days* of the date of return of the graded material. Requests received after this deadline will not be considered. Results of the reassessment will normally be completed within 5 working days* of the receipt of the request. The grade may be increased, lowered, or remain the same. Whether the reassessed grade is higher or lower, it takes precedence over the original grade.
* "Working days" means Monday through Friday.
It is strongly recommended, though not required, that students meet with the course instructor before requesting a reread of a final exam.
Requests for a reread of a final exam are administered by the Student Affairs Office in the SCS Client Services unit.
Students must apply in writing by the following deadlines:
For English and French Intensive Language Programs, students must apply in writing by the following deadline:
All deadlines are strictly enforced, and no late requests will be accepted. Whether the reassessed grade is higher or lower, it takes precedence over the original grade.
* "Working days" means Monday through Friday.
In a case where a student believes that an error has been made in arriving at the final grade for a course as a whole, a Verification of Grade form must be completed at the SCS Client Services Office requesting that the instructor carry out a detailed check that the final course grade has been computed correctly.
For all courses and programs of study, the request must be made within 10 working days* of the date on which the final grade appears on the student’s transcript. Requests received after this deadline will not be considered. The mark verification process should normally be completed within 20 working days* of receipt of the request by SCS Client Services.
* "Working days" means Monday through Friday.
