What are Per Assignment Extensions?

Per Assignment Extension (PAE) is an approved accommodation that may provide limited flexibility with assignment deadlines for students whose chronic physical or mental health condition results in brief, periodic, and unpredictable disability-related impacts. The accommodation is intended to provide equitable access when a temporary flare-up interferes with a student's ability to meet a specific assignment deadline. PAE does not automatically apply to all assignments, does not provide blanket extensions, and is not intended to be applied retroactively. Students remain responsible for meeting course requirements, learning outcomes, and academic standards.

Quick Summary:

  • PAE applies to specific assignments, not all coursework.
  • Extensions are typically up to two additional days.
  • Requests must be made within 24 hours of the assignment due date.
  • Faculty determines the final extension period.
  • The accommodation cannot be applied retroactively.

What PAE Does Not Cover

  • Does not automatically extend every assignment.
  • Does not address ongoing time-management challenges.
  • Does not remove course requirements.
  • Does not change essential academic standards.

Student Responsibilities

  • Share and review your Academic Adjustment Plan with your instructor.
  • Request PAE to the instructor within 24 hours of a specific assignment’s due date when needed.
  • Complete the assignment within the instructor-determined timeframe.

Faculty Responsibilities

  • Review requests.
  • Evaluate essential course requirements.
  • Determine and communicate reasonable extension periods.
  • Contact Disability Resources with any questions as early as possible.

Faculty Considerations

This accommodation assumes that assignments are typically announced in advance and that students have time to plan their work. Faculty should consider course progression and essential learning outcomes when reviewing requests.

Determining Essential Deadlines

In general, up to a two-day extension on an assignment would not constitute a fundamental alteration to a course; however, Disability Resources encourages instructors to consider the following questions for each course when determining whether established due dates are essential.

  1. Are extensions provided routinely? If so, in what circumstances?
  2. What do the course description and syllabus indicate regarding late work or completion deadlines?
  3. Are the due dates arbitrary, or are they essential to course requirements?
  4. Would an extension (or multiple extensions) fundamentally alter the course?
  5. Does the fundamental nature of the course rely upon the timely completion of assignments as an essential method of learning?
  6. Does timely completion of assignments constitute a significant component of the learning process?
  7. To what degree does a student’s failure to submit timely completion of assignments constitute a significant loss of the educational experience for other students in the class?

The ultimate decision regarding due dates and the resulting influence extensions would have on the course is at the instructor’s discretion after a comprehensive examination of the essential course requirements.