Coronavirus Grad Exams

Important information about graduate and exchange student exams and Zoom discussion Friday, April 17

Dear Graduate and Exchange Students,

This is a long message, so please read it all the way through.

On April 9, Dean Orenstein sent this email regarding exams. We are writing with a few updates specific to graduate and exchange students. Please read this message, and then join the Zoom conversation about exams at noon EDT (Bloomington time) on Friday, April 17 to ask any questions you have. Students who began the LLM or exchange program in January should definitely attend because Maurer School of Law exams are new for you.

The Spring 2020 final exam schedule can be found here. Exams begin Monday, April 27 and finish on Friday, May 8, 2020.

EXAM NUMBERS

• Every student is assigned a unique exam number every semester. You will use this number on your exams or final papers for your classes. NEVER WRITE YOUR NAME ON AN EXAM. This allows us to have anonymous grading because professors will not know your name until after they have submitted their preliminary grades.
• Your exam number can be found in CareerNet. The spring exam number is four digits and starts with 3[xxx].
• Instructions for finding your exam number on CareerNet:
  • Log in to CareerNet. Every Law School student was assigned a CareerNet account when they enrolled in their first semester, but you may have never accessed your account. If you follow the link above, then use your regular CAS two-step login (with Duo); it should take you directly into the CareerNet site. If you successfully use your CAS login and you do not get access to the CareerNet site, it may mean that an account was never created for you (for example, if you arrived and registered late). In that case, email Elizabeth at lawintl@indiana.edu and she will make sure that a CareerNet account is created for you. This can take 24-48 hours to create, which is another reason to do this NOW.
  • Everyone who does not already have their exam number should try to log in to CareerNet now. We will not be able to help you find your exam number in the middle of your exam!
  • Once you are in CareerNet, you will see a set of tabs - Overview, Core, Documents, Employment, Pro Bono, etc. Click on the Core. This opens a page with a lot of data, starting with Student ID, Student ID card, name, etc.
  • Scroll a bit down the page, and there is a line for Exam Number—it follows Cell Phone. Write your number down somewhere safe!

INFORMATION ABOUT TAKING EXAMS IN DIFFERENT TIME ZONES

• All exams will be administered on their original day IF YOU ARE IN THE UNITED STATES. Exams that had been scheduled for the morning will start at 12:00 p.m. (noon) EDT (Eastern Daylight Time = Bloomington time). Exams that had been scheduled for the afternoon will start at 1:00 p.m. EDT. See the exam schedule link above if you are not sure if yours is a morning or afternoon exam.
• For students who are NOT IN THE UNITED STATES during the exam period, you have TWO CHOICES, based on where you are:
  1. Take the exam at the regular Bloomington time (even if that is after midnight/early morning the next day wherever you are); OR, preferably,
  2. Take the exam on LOCAL TIME. Please see your choices by country/region:
     1. Ireland: Take your exam at 5 p.m. or 6 p.m. Dublin time (i.e., the same time students are taking it in Bloomington, so it isn’t really any different!).
     2. Asia (including China, Taiwan, Korea, Thailand and any I forgot to mention): Take your exam at 9 a.m. local time in your country on the day after the regular exam date. This is still early enough in the evening in Bloomington so that someone can answer questions in the first couple of hours of your exam.
     3. Elsewhere in Europe/Middle East (Hungary, Italy, KSA): take your exam at 2 p.m. local time on the day after the regular exam date, if you prefer not to choose Option 1 and take it in the evening (i.e., on Bloomington time). 2 p.m. local time is also a reasonable choice because someone in Bloomington will be able to answer exam-related questions.

WHAT YOU NEED TO DO IF YOU ARE NOT IN THE UNITED STATES

• If you are not in the United States and you plan to take your exams at the time listed for your region (above), please email Elizabeth Ryba at lawintl@indiana.edu BY MONDAY, APRIL 20 and provide the following information: Your name, your exams, your location. This way we can ensure that your professors know that when you turn in your exam after the normal Bloomington time, your exam will NOT BE CONSIDERED LATE.
• If we do not hear from you, we will assume you are taking your exam on Bloomington time. It is your responsibility to let us know if this is not correct by emailing Elizabeth.
• Be aware that if you take your exam at a different time than Bloomington time, you will see a message in Canvas telling you that your submission is late; however, as long as you have started and finished the exam within the time allowed in your local time zone, it will NOT be considered late. DO NOT WORRY.
• Canvas analytics can show us when you accessed the exam and when you finished. Pay attention to the amount of time you have for the exam and submit it within that amount of time.

INFORMATION ABOUT EXTRA TIME ON EXAMS FOR GRADUATE AND EXCHANGE STUDENTS

• As most of you know from previous semesters, graduate and exchange students who are not native English speakers generally receive either a modified exam OR extra time on the same exam as the JD students take. This semester, it will usually (but not always) mean that you have 6 hours to complete a 4-hour exam. The decision is up to the professor, but this is the standard practice.
• Early next week we will provide you with an exam schedule specifically for graduate and exchange students that lists the extra time or modified exam information for each class. You will probably also receive this information from your professors, but if you do not, feel free to remind them.
• In the small number of cases where there is a different or modified exam for graduate/exchange students and for JD students, make sure you choose the correct exam. If you choose the wrong one, you will not be granted extra time to complete the correct one.
• Please keep in mind that you are NOT obligated to use any or all of the extra time. Given the unusual circumstances this semester, all professors are attempting to give exams that can be easily completed by everybody within 4 hours. If you need the extra time, you may use it, but do not spend the extra time if you are satisfied with your answers.
• Students in classes where there is going to be a final paper that you have had several weeks to work on rather than an exam will not receive extra time to complete the paper.

• If you have two exams on the same day or three or more exams on three consecutive days, you may request to have one of your exams moved to a later date. This is the same whether you are taking your exams in the US or abroad. We cannot move the due dates of any papers or alternative assignments (only your professor can do that), but we may consider the papers you have due on the same day as an exam when you request to move an exam.
• If you have a conflict with exams that meets these criteria, please email Elizabeth at lawintl@indiana.edu by Monday, April 20 with the following information: Your name, description of the exam conflict (e.g., “I have criminal law, torts and property on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday…”), the exam you want to move, and the date you would prefer to move the exam to (e.g., “…and I want to move property to the following Monday.”).
• If your conflict does not meet these criteria but you have another compelling reason to move an exam, please email Dean Davis (leedavis@indiana.edu) AND Ms. Ryba (lawintl@indiana.edu) to explain your situation.

QUESTIONS DURING EXAMS

• If questions arise before or during the exam, please email exam2020@indiana.edu (a dedicated mailbox that the Office of Students Affairs will monitor). This is the place to let us know if you have health or connectivity challenges before the exam or to ask us questions during the exam. Such issues or questions should NOT be raised with your professors.

DOs and DON’Ts FOR EXAMS

• All final exams this semester will be open book, meaning that students are free to consult their books, notes, outlines, dictionaries and other class materials. Professors may prohibit students from consulting other sources, including other people or the Internet. Violating an explicit exam restriction constitutes academic misconduct. Academic misconduct can result in a grade of F.
• For essay questions, students should use their preferred word processing software to type their answers and save them in an electronic format, such as a Word or PDF file.
• The Law School will NOT use any special remote proctoring software (such as Examplify or ExamSoft) during final exams.

LETTER GRADES INSTEAD OF SATISFACTORY/INCOMPLETE/FAIL GRADES
We have emailed all students who we believe need letter grades this semester because you are part of a specific dual-degree or exchange program. If you believe that you need to receive letter grades this semester and you have not been contacted by the Graduate & International Programs Office about it, please email Dean Davis immediately (leedavis@indiana.edu). You should NOT contact your professors to ask about letter grades in order to maintain your anonymity.

Thanks for your attention, everyone! We are always available for your questions, and be sure to join us on Friday, April 17 at NOON on this Zoom link: https://iu.zoom.us/j/504238314.

Dean Davis, Prof. Goodwin and Ms. Ryba