Reasonable adjustments

There are many reasons for this - daycare centre closures, a child's illness or pregnancy complaints can be taken into account, as can caring for a relative in need of care. Close relatives according to the Caregiver Leave Act include Grandparents, parents, parents-in-law, step-parents, spouses, life partners, partners in a marriage-like or life partnership-like relationship, siblings, spouses of siblings and siblings of spouses, life partners of siblings and siblings of life partners, children, adopted or foster children, the children, adopted or foster children of the spouse or life partner, children-in-law and grandchildren.

Health-related reasons are also a possibility if they make studying more difficult.

The Regulations for Admission, Studies, and Examinations at Humboldt-Universität (ZSP-HU) govern reasonable adjustments (accommodations) for students with disabilities in Section 109. These adjustments can be claimed if a disability, chronic illness, or family obligations prevent students from completing coursework or examinations in the prescribed format, either in whole or in part.

At Humboldt-Universität, accommodations are differentiated for:

• Coursework (e.g., presentations, participation in lectures) – these can be requested informally from the instructor.
• Examinations – these must be requested in writing from the examination board, explaining and proving the reason for the modification.

The required coursework or examination must be equivalent. The instructors or the examination board will work with you to determine the measures for achieving equivalent results (e.g., extended time, breaks, a separate room, a different format, or additional personal or technical support). You should request a specific form of adjustment. Depending on the faculty's organization, the examination offices will accept and forward the application. Therefore, check your examination office's website or contact them directly for more information.

For state examinations, the application for reasonable adjustments must be submitted to the respective state examination office. The application must be submitted well in advance.

Submit your application as early as possible; processing can take up to six weeks.

As soon as it becomes clear that you will be unable to participate in a scheduled exam or submit a seminar paper or thesis by the deadline due to family or disability-related reasons, you can submit a written application for adjustments to the relevant examination board. 

Depending on the type of examination, you can propose adjustments yourself.

There is no prescribed form for accommodations, nor can they be requested for multiple semesters. They must always be tailored to the individual case, the specific condition, the study and examination regulations, and the current exam requirements, and must be precisely described. Therefore, there are no set criteria that dictate which adjustments are possible or necessary for which conditions.

Please note: Applications based on disability-related reasons must also include a specialist medical certificate. It should be given by a specialist in German language stating the symptoms of your disability in relation to the exam-related difficulty. It must be no more than six months old. For chronic medical conditions, there are exceptions. The medical proof should be written in laymen terms, so that the staff dealing with your request can comprehend your disability as well as your study related difficulty. For more information, please see the PDF document at the bottom of this website.

Here are some frequently requested adjustments :

Extension of processing deadlines

Family or disability-related reasons may mean that you are unable to complete a term paper or your final thesis within the specified deadline. Depending on how much time will be lost, you can propose a postponement of the deadline by this period.

Admission to another form of examination

In justified individual cases, a form of examination other than the one planned can be agreed, but it must be of equal value. If, for example, an examination in the laboratory conflicts with maternity protection regulations, the responsible examination board must decide whether an equivalent examination is possible without endangering mother and child. This may include theoretical work or a practical examination using harmless substances.

Arrangement of an individual examination date

In justified individual cases, an individual examination date can be arranged, but the decision on this must always be made individually and by the respective examination board. Please note that arranging an individual examination date involves a great deal of organisational effort and is an exception.

Applications for reasonable adjustments relating to coursework should be submitted directly to your lecturer. In addition to an oral agreement, you should record the agreement in writing by email.

How do I justify the request?

Requests for reasonable adjustments must always be clearly justified. Describe specifically why you are unable to complete the coursework in the required time or form and, if possible, submit supporting documents.

What can such an application look like?

Applications can be informal. An application for an extension of the processing time can be formulated as follows, for example:

"Request for compensation for disadvantages: deadline extension
During the processing period for homework XY, my child's daycare centre was closed for a week and no other childcare was available. I am applying for an extension of my deadline by one week in accordance with § 109 ZSP-HU. Please find attached the birth certificate and the information from the daycare centre about the closing times."