Campus Closures
The University may cancel or reschedule academic activities and reduce non-essential services in response to extreme weather conditions or other unforeseen circumstances. Updates and alerts regarding campus closures will be posted on ubc.ca
The information below applies to ALL students registered in COMM, COHR, COMR, BUSI and COEC courses.
How will I know if my classes or exams are cancelled?
Always check ubc.ca for the most up-to-date information about campus closures.
If COMM, COHR, COMR, COEC or BUSI classes or midterm exams are cancelled:
- Please monitor your Canvas Announcements and your email for direction from your instructors.
If any final exams are cancelled:
- A notice will be posted at students.ubc.ca/enrolment/exams.
- UBC Enrolment Services will inform affected students via email and provide directions on the next steps.
- Instructors may also provide additional information via Canvas Announcements and/or email. Click here to learn how to personalize your notifications in Canvas.
A campus closure was announced at ubc.ca on the day and time of my exam. What should I do?
If classes or midterm exams are cancelled:
- Confirm closure announcements on ubc.ca, Canvas announcements, and your email.
- Note that your instructor may choose to replace your midterm exam with a live online class via Zoom on that day. Check Canvas to confirm.
- Continue preparing for all your exams until you receive updated information about new arrangements and assume that the midterm exams will be rescheduled rather than cancelled.
- CFA clients should discuss their CFA-approved accommodations for the rescheduled sitting(s) with their instructor(s).
If any final exams are cancelled:
Monitor closure announcements on ubc.ca
- You will receive an email notification if in-person exams are cancelled that will include the general dates for any rescheduled exams. Be sure to check Canvas notifications and your email regularly for the latest updates.
- Continue preparing for all exams until you receive information about the new arrangements.
- Rescheduling Information:
Cancelled exams will be rescheduled as follows:
- Winter Term 1: Examinations will be rescheduled on the Saturday (and, if necessary, the Sunday) following the first full week of classes in Winter Term 2.
- Winter Term 2 and Summer: Examinations will be rescheduled on the day(s) following the last day of the formal final exam period for that term.
- The location, time, and date for your rescheduled final exam will be posted at students.ubc.ca/enrolment/exams/exam-schedule
- Students registered with the Centre for Accessibility (CFA) who require exam accommodations that cannot be provided for during the rescheduled exam should contact the Office of Student Academic Services (bcomquestions@sauder.ubc.ca) to discuss their case.
What do I do if there is a conflict with my rescheduled exam?
There may be situations in which a rescheduled exam conflicts with another course or pre-existing commitment.
For in-term evaluations/midterms: Unless you have been given different instructions on who to contact, the expectation is that you will contact the course instructor directly to understand how this will be resolved.
For rescheduled COMM, COHR, COEC, BUSI, COMR final exams: The Office of Student Academic Services will send a survey to students who have indicated that they are not able to sit the rescheduled exam as planned and determine if they eligible to write the exam at an alternate time. Your instructor may post an announcement on Canvas informing you about this survey.
NOTE: The survey link will only be available via Canvas Announcement or sent to you via email. This survey will not be published elsewhere.
For rescheduled final exams, the Centre for Accessibility (CFA) will provide support to eligible students with approved exam accommodations. You must be a registered client of CFA to receive this support.
Other Considerations
- Non-Commerce courses: Note that faculties and their affiliated courses may approach how to address campus closures differently. Please be sure to follow any instructions provided by your course instructor as courses may have their own specific set of instructions.
In the event of a campus closure, some NON-COMMERCE in-person exams may be moved to an online, remote format. If this shift in format presents a challenge for you, contact your instructor and OSAS.
If extenuating circumstances UNRELATED to the campus closure prevent you from writing an exam as scheduled, please review the information on academic concessions to determine whether your situation warrants submitting a petition for academic concessions.
For students who already have an approved academic concession for the originally scheduled exam: if you wish to attend the rescheduled exam rather than write during the official SD period, you must inform your instructor and OSAS to ensure that an exam will be available for you.
- Please note that during a campus closure, the University remains open in principle, but some services may be limited in response to the conditions. We appreciate your patience and hope you stay safe and healthy.