Step 1: Create your notification

Once you know any dates that might impact your exams due to religious commitments or essential beliefs, go to the Exam notification for your religious commitments or essential beliefs form.

Step 2: Choose dates

• Select a religion from the list provided, or select 'other'.
• Many commitment dates may already be pre-populated. Remove the dates that don't apply to you.
• Add any commitment dates not already listed.

Step 3: Attach supporting documents

You'll need to attach an official letter from your imam, pastor, rabbi or equivalent spiritual or community leader that includes:

• your full name
• a brief statement about how your religious commitments or essentials beliefs might impact your ability to sit exams during the formal exam period
• a physical signature and phone number of an appropriate representative
• the date the letter was created.

What happens next

Once we've reviewed the information you've provided, we'll send you an email to let you know that your notification has been processed. Our Exams Team will do their best to schedule your formal exams around your commitment dates. Your notification will remain in effect until the end of the calendar year.

If your form is declined, we'll send you an email explaining why.

If you need to update your information

If your commitment dates change after you submit your form, you can submit a new form. You'll need to list all relevant commitment dates on your new form.

Notify us each year

You'll need to submit a new form each calendar year, listing the dates of your religious commitments or essential beliefs for that year.

The University expects you to act honestly and with integrity in all academic matters, and to uphold our Academic Integrity Policy 2022. This includes meeting integrity standards when you submit your form for religious commitments or essential beliefs.

Only submit information that is true, accurate and complete; and provided without the intent to mislead or gain advantage. If you wish to change information or documents once you’ve submitted, you'll need to submit a new form.

Fraudulent documents

Be aware of unregistered or fraudulent operators who claim to be able to provide the supporting documents you need for your application. There are strict requirements for who can provide you with your supporting documents.

Penalties

Submitting a fraudulent document or false information is considered misconduct under the University of Sydney (Student Discipline) Rule and will be treated seriously. If found guilty the University may initiate civil or criminal proceedings. We may also impose penalties such as:

• a fail grade and mark of zero for the affected unit on your transcript
• expulsion from the University without refund.

The University of Sydney will collect and use the information you submit with this form to process your application for an exam date variation to support your religious or spiritual observance.

The form requires you to upload a letter from a spiritual or community leader to support your exam date variation request. It also asks you to name your religion and to specify the dates on which important religious or spiritual commitments may impact your exam schedule.

The information you provide will be stored securely with strict access controls. It will only be accessed by a small number of University staff responsible for assessing your application. If your application is approved, your name and the dates you have identified will be used for exam scheduling and the attachment from your community leader will be purged. If your application is not successful, your community leader’s letter will be kept securely for one year to support any appeal you may wish to raise. For successful and unsuccessful applications, the data you submit on your form will be securely kept for one year to support any appeal processes and then it will be securely deleted.

Information you submit will also be used for de-identified, aggregated statistical reporting to help us assess and better understand and support the needs of students in exam scheduling.

We will not share your information with anyone outside the University without your consent unless we are required or authorised to do so by law.

We will store and dispose of your personal information securely in accordance with our Recordkeeping Policy.

Providing the information requested on this form is voluntary, however if you do not provide all requested information we may not be able to process your application.

To learn more about how we will handle your personal and health information, how you can request to access or correct the personal information we hold about you, and who to contact if you have a privacy enquiry or complaint, please visit our privacy webpage.