AIBU in my interpretation here or is the Uni?

[Welshmaenad]

I'm a first year full time student working towards a degree and professional qualification.

On Mother's Day I was bitten by a dog. It fractured the top of the index finger on my dominant hand and bit through my nail down to the bone. There was a lot of concern as I'm a diabetic and an infection in a compound fracture could be very serious. There was talk of keeping me in on IV antibiotics but they agreed to let me home on strong oral antibiotics and painkillers. I was seen several times at fracture clinic, am now discharged, but was under strict orders to rest until the wound was fully healed - it's getting there but still not healed and is still painful. I also reacted very badly to the tetanus jab and was ill for over a week.

I have applied for an extension to one essay via extenuating circumstances through student services. The original submission date has passed. I was advised to ask for 4 weeks and my module leader supported my application (she actually wants me to apply for extensions for other essays too). I submitted a 2 week sick note supplied by fracture clinic, my clinic appt card, and actually showed them the wound.

They've come back and asked for a further sick note up to the amended submission date I've requested. My argument is, when submitting via Turnitin we are required to initial a field to confirm we are 'fit to sit'. If I'm expected to be signed off as 'unfit' until the date I submit, where is my 'fit time' to complete the work, and why am I being asked to simultaneously declare myself fit and provide a note saying I'm unfit?

I don't think I should require documentation saying I'm unfit for the entire length of the extension and gave communicated thus. I'm waiting to hear back but would like to know if I'm BU.

Before anyone points out I've typed this, yes I have, with one finger, and it took me ages, it's not feasible for a 2000 word essay.

If it's relevant, all other work has been submitted on time, I've not asked for EC before, my attendance is good and I'm getting 1:1 equivalent marks on most things submitted.

Formulating the ideas of the paper can be done without typing. Her finger is hurt, not her brain.

Maybe spend less time obtaining sick notes and just get on with the paper.

Oh, answering your actual question - as far as the university are concerned, they have agreed something with you. They don't care what Turnitin says, it's just a useful piece of software for them.

I'd be happy with that Tiggie.

So you really think that having a 2 week extension means you should be able to sit on your area until that 2 weeks is up and you are totally healed before you have to start your essay? When you have shown that you can type?

I once had a student who submitted an 8000 word appeal against having an extension for a 1500 word report turned down. Just write the essay and stop distracting yourself.

Sorry but YABU. You are perfectly capable of producing your essay so stop moaning about semantics and get on with it.

But an extension of that length gives you a significant advantage over those who were not injured and only had x weeks to prepare, plan and research their essay. A single fractured finger cannot have prevented you from reading around the subject, forming your argument, finding relevant quotations, and generally polishing the whole thing.

If you had been in hospital for that whole time without access to the course material, I could understand your point, but you have been able to do literally everything except put the words on the page (unless you count the 800 or so you have managed on here). The university has to be fair to everyone, not just those who have an injury and I think an entire day to type 2000 words of an essay that should already exist in your head is plenty.

I can type NOW, gin,slowly, and am working on it now. I have not been able to type or write for the last two weeks, of the four week extension that was recommended and supported by my lecturer, in line with dr's recommendation that I not type for a couple of weeks because it would impede healing, which for me personally could have nasty consequences. Far from sitting on my arse for the last two weeks, though, I've been attending lectures, getting photocopied notes and reading and collecting references for the other essays I have coming up.

Again, though, not what I'm asking.

Well now you obviously can type so stop whinging and get on with it. You must be up to a 1000 words on here by now. You realise that's half the essay?

Get off mumsnet and go get on with it!

Slow going, but you have one good hand and probably some other fingers too - not just one finger.

I can see your point op, but, I think you're being needlessly pedantic. From your point of view you can easily get a line to that date, so no harm done. From uni's perspective they need to prove a need for the allowed lateness of submission in case of appeals/external invigilation etc. So what's the harm? In a workplace scenario you would be signed off until day of return, effectively the submission in this case is day of return.

One of my colleagues got signed off for a month with a fractured thumb, and we work in an office. Just as a matter of interest. The rest of us couldn't believe it.

I'm doing it now, Alternative, but I can;t help coming back to check on my thread

Anyone who describes thier degree as a 1:1, is either lying or doesn't deserve a first.

I really could hardly walk recently. I really could not walk 100 yards, but I got a lift to work and worked all day. People kindly made me drinks and I walked very slowly and painfully to the loo.

I'm better now, but some people go to work everyday who have that level of permanent disability and they just Get on with it and smile too.

Op: just do it.
I type with one finger. I could type with one finger on my other hand if I had to.
You are letting yourself down by being to Woe Is Me.

Get on with it and get a good mark.

Just think how much finger strength you have wasted typing away on here.

As an aside, I know we're not supposed to bring posts from other threads into this, but you were posting quite a bit on the disabled toilet thread this weekend... Obviously your typing isn't too problematic. And while you say you're typing slowly. You're replying to people pretty quickly on here.

I get what you're saying about the contradiction but you're being needlessly pedantic. You can type and you've had loads more time an your peers for the research and planning stage. As you note above, you haven't been spending your time sitting on sitting on your arse. If you were my student when I taught at university level, I would have expected you to have done most of the work before your finger was bitten, and only need a few days at most to type it up.

If you put as much effort into actually writing the essay as you have into applying for an extension and Mning you'd be done by now!
And I say that as someone who has 6500 words due tomorrow

Mum just had a two week extension on a 5000 word essay for her Masters degree, so I think two weeks seems to be the normal length. She was ill with flu, but started working on the essay as soon as she was able to stay awake. Most of the research was already done, it was just the writing to do. She also went in before the end of her sick period to do a spoken exam, she's a trainee health visitor, so this was to check her assessment abilities with a "service user".

She did have to approach it differently from usual, as wasn't able to sit extended periods, and I helped her a little with her references, just checking that they were accurate and properly set out, and with general encouragement as she was pretty anxious, not having ever needed to do so before.

She also didn't manage much prep for the exam, but as I said to her, she was doing her best at the time given her circumstances.

I think if you only have two weeks, you are probably going to have to grin and bear it. You might find some sort of voice to text programme helps if writing takes too long. Just sit down for twenty minutes a time, if you are in a lot of pain, and slowly you'll get there. I know it's odd to expect you to work in sick time, but since courses are time limited, I guess they expect a degree of sacrifice to achieve what you need to.

I've been ill and studying, and it was still expected that I manage to achieve while I was, although a little extra time was given in understanding that I wasn't my usual self.

Personally, I want to study, and I know it's going to be tough because I am constantly ill due to disabilities. It's going to take a level of sacrifice to my own comfort to get where I want. I'll have to go in to college when I don't feel up to it, and work at home when I'd rather sleep because I hurt.

YANBU. It obviously depends on the uni and department but where I worked before DC they would have been very understanding. Can you ask for a scribe? Temporary health conditions should also qualify you for a notetaker and someone to type for you, via the disability services. If that takes too long to sort out perhaps you could pay someone to type for you while you dictate?

If you've already had most of the prep time, then you've only got the actual typing of the 2000 words to go. So a bit less time bemoaning your fate and just getting on with it. It's university, not high school, and no one is going to hold your hand. You've made no attempt to find solutions - using a voice to text, asking a friend (or hiring someone to type for you), recording voice - just 'oh I can't type for four weeks' (all evidence to the contrary).

You were injured one week before the due date, you should only need one week to be able to submit.

I'm sure also that universities have a deadline for assessments to be handed in, at least the uni I'm doing my PhD at does. There's a final deadline for all assessment work to be submitted, regardless of sick notes or extensions.