Aren't they home for like a month? What's the big deal?

I really hate to point this out, but this posts smacks of privilege. Not everyone celebrates Christmas. It is not outrageous to the many people who don’t count Christmas as their holiday. I would like to hear your outrage when exams are scheduled for Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur— on the actual days, not even two days before the holiday. I have no sympathy for you OP. Just deal!

Like all college faculty, I have times of day when I prefer to teach, and because we schedule collaboratively in my department, I usually get those slots. That in turn means that my finals are usually at the same time every semester - first thing in the morning on almost the last day of exams. It's an algorithm, and we're stuck with it.

OP, exams have to be offered on equal terms to every member of a course, with the only exceptions being dire health emergencies or documented SN accommodations. If one kid is allowed to take the exam remotely or at a different time, that chance has to be given to everyone - and then you open up all kinds of potential problems:

- New possibilities for academic dishonesty: safeguards for remote exams are different from those for in-person ones and sometimes involve changes in exam format; multiple administrations mean that you have to create multiple but somehow still equivalent versions of the same test.
- Student complaints triggered by the flexibility itself: "X took the early version of this exam on Monday, but I couldn't because I had a different exam scheduled at that time, so now X in my course gets to go home early and I have to stay until Friday. That's not my fault and it's not fair."
- Violations of school policy: faculty at my school are not actually allowed to administer finals before exam week begins.

As many PPs have noted, don't blame the professor. They didn't choose this. Next semester, ask DC in January to email or text you the recorded and publicized dates of all of their final exams if the springtime departure date is a potential issue.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OMG OP, that is so outrageous...because...because. I can't think of why.

Ok, this made me laugh.

-- not the OP

+1.

Seriously. The OP's outrage is like a huge gust of wind blowing by. It took me a bit to figure out what she was so worked up about.

It always seemed like I had one or two finals at the very tail end of the exam period. Somebody has to get assigned to that day. And think about it. It’s a huge scheduling nightmare for the University to space out classrooms and times for all of the hundreds of classes in six or seven days. Plus, finals are typically scheduled for 2x the normal class period. So, the Registrar has to schedule a 3 hour block of time in some classroom for a typical 1.5 hour class.

I had a final on the morning of the 24th once.

It happens.

Get over it.

Anonymous wrote:I loved my SLAC’s self-scheduled exams. Another thing to consider when your child is looking at schools.

Yep. I posted earlier about the professors at my kid's college setting exam dates, and others came to post that professors don't get choices, it's dictated by a larger schedule etc. That's true in most places and most cases, but DC is at a SLAC with small classes all four years, and the professors, though hey do get a college-wide exam schedule given to them, have a lot more leeway to alter exam dates.

If you mean by "self-scheduled exams," the students themselves pick when to take an exam, our kid's SLAC is not quite that flexible yet! But it's not always as set in stone as it is at some PPs' kids' colleges, either.

I think you should email the professor directly and explain that your child already booked a flight that day and must take the exam earlier.


Just kidding.

This is life. You and your kid need to roll with the punches.

Just wait until 10 years from now when your kid is married with children and announces they can’t come home for Christmas at all.

Anonymous wrote:OMG OP, that is so outrageous...because...because. I can't think of why.

Ok, this made me laugh.

-- not the OP

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If your daughter has an exam on the 23rd just know that means their professor will be grading multiple exams right up until Christmas since most universities require final grades to be submitted within 72 hours of the exam, which is decided by the REGISTRAR. So I feel more sorry for the professor than your child, tbh

thank you!!!!

dp But this is their job. Do you feel sorry for other professionals working on holidays?

Yes I do! That's why many stores are closed on Christmas and unionized workers who are required to work are paid double time. Do you work on Christmas or even Christmas Eve?

Totally fair game that the exam is scheduled on the 23rd, so long as it’s during the college’s exam period. In fact, it’s probably to your student’s benefit—it gives him or her more time to study and prepare for the exam. I liked it when my exams were spaced out throughout the entire exam period—I could focus on one class, take the exam, and then turn to the next class’s exam. This is far better than having all of the exams bunched together.

My DC always seemed to have finals on the last day of the exam period, which was usually the 22 or 23rd. DC went to Michigan which has a late semester end because they start classes after Labor Day.

So strange that OP doesn't know how this actually works.

I loved my SLAC’s self-scheduled exams. Another thing to consider when your child is looking at schools.

My HS and college kids both have school scheduled for this day.