UCT commitment to completing exams

Released: 16h30, 8 November 2015

Dear colleagues and students 

This is a further update to the University community concerning the exams that continue this coming week, and the ongoing engagements that we are having with certain student groupings and workers. 

Exams 

Exams are going ahead. 

We have at all times maintained an open door to students and staff through proper channels of communication, and we have spent many long hours in engagements this week. We will continue to do so, in good faith. But we will not allow those engagements to take place under the threat of unlawful disruptions and violation of the rights of other students. Threats of this kind are made in bad faith, and are illegitimate and unacceptable within the democratic culture of the University and of the country as a whole. Unfortunately, we cannot now exclude the possibility that some students or workers may attempt to disrupt exams next week. 

We have put together a detailed plan to secure the exams and to deal with any possible disruptions to campus or to exams. Students and workers who attempt to disrupt exams will be identified. Appropriate, fair and speedy disciplinary processes will follow, which may lead to expulsion of students and dismissal of workers. A student who is expelled will not be back next year, and a worker who is dismissed will not be insourced.

We hope very much that this does not happen. Some students have objected to the fact that the University has mentioned the possibility of expulsion as a consequence of actions of this kind. In all cases due process will be followed. But the fact of the matter is that there are around 17,000 students who have elected to write exams now rather than early next year. For many of them, these exams will be decisive in their degrees. The University has a clear duty to do everything possible to give them this opportunity and cannot reasonably be expected to tolerate unlawful violations of rights on its campus. 

The libraries have been open since 2pm today (Sunday) and the exams will continue as scheduled. 

The Jammie Shuttle and the libraries will operate as usual as from Monday, 9 November 2015. 

Ongoing engagement with student groups 

During the course of this week the University has had a range of lengthy engagements with a group of students organised as the Rhodes Must Fall and Fees Must Fall formations. The group has presented a detailed list of demands and proposals, and the university executive has engaged extensively with them over many hours, on one occasion throughout the night. We believe that significant progress has been made in identifying common ground, despite some sharp differences, and we believe that we have reached broad consensus on the essence of a compact that would bind stakeholders going forward. 

A number of different stakeholder groups, equally important to the University community, have expressed concern that a final agreement may be reached with these student formations without engaging with them or soliciting their views. The University's approach is that we will engage as fully as possible with the student groupings who have made proposals or demands, but of course we accept that any formal compact must be concluded with the appropriate prior involvement or engagement with the SRC, other student bodies/formations, staff, unions, Senate and Council. 

We remain committed to ongoing engagement in good faith through all established channels of communication with staff and students. 

Please watch the UCT homepage for further updates. 

Sincerely

Dr Max Price

Vice-Chancellor

Update:

Campus Announcement, 8 November - Exams

Released: 17h26, 8 November 2015

8 November 2015

Dear colleagues and students

1. Exams will proceed as scheduled for students who wish to proceed with the November 2015 exams.

2. The option to defer to January 2016 has been re-opened. It will remain open until 27 November 2015. All students eligible for this choice will receive full details within the next 24 hours. What this means is that students who wish to defer their full block of November 2015 exams to January 2016 may do so, and this deferment will be granted automatically.

3. A student who has any of his / her / their exam(s) in the November block disrupted, will have the right to defer the disrupted November 2015 exam to January 2016, and will also have the right to take the rest of their exams (i.e. the remaining November 2015 exams scheduled after the initial disruption) in January 2016. Students who take some of their exams in the November block, and who without having any of their exams disrupted feel that at any point they are not able to complete their full suite of November exams given the circumstances that prevail, should visit the self service site to defer their remaining exams to January 2016. Results for exams taken will stand.

4. Academic departments will also explore options for substitute assessments during this period.

5. Students who qualify for a supplementary exam (in respect of exams written in November 2015) will write the exam in January 2016.

6. Students who fail exams written in the deferred January 2016 block who would ordinarily qualify for a supp will be offered an additional assessment but there is no automatic right to an additional assessment in cases of poor exam performance.

Sincerely 

Hugh Amoore

Registrar

University of Cape Town

Issued by UCT, 8 November 2015