500 signatures reached
To: The ANU
ANU Students: Protect Our Mid-Semester Break!
The ANU has made us aware that it is in the process of trying to place mid-Semester exams within the mid-semester break, beginning Semester 1, 2027; this is a period understood by students and staff alike as a well-deserved and vital teaching break. This is the time students use to visit family, work to survive, catch up on study, and protect their mental health.
The absence of student consultation on a change of this scale is unacceptable. We demand a university that does not treat student wellbeing as an afterthought when making major structural changes; we’ve seen where this leads us.
The absence of student consultation on a change of this scale is unacceptable. We demand a university that does not treat student wellbeing as an afterthought when making major structural changes; we’ve seen where this leads us.
Why is this important?
Justification centres around a lack of venue availability to accommodate increasing demand for centrally supported mid-semester examinations, and a proposal to reduce the minimum enrolment threshold for central support from 100 to 20 students; whilst we recognise that there is room for improvement and increased efficiency of implementation within our current system, the proposed solution of moving exam periods into the mid-semester itself is one that is short-sighted and based on information that neglects any form of student input. Furthermore, with minimal projected data indicating what the increased demand looks like, it is concerning that this proposed change is being promoted without a publicly available justification of what Semester 1 2027 will entail in terms of demand and capacity.
This proposal effectively stretches a 12‑week semester with a two‑week break into a 14‑week semester with zero certainty about when exams will fall. And with Student Hub already struggling to process ECAs and deferred exams, it is unclear how the University expects to cope with the inevitable surge – especially for students who have already made plans for next year.
This proposal effectively stretches a 12‑week semester with a two‑week break into a 14‑week semester with zero certainty about when exams will fall. And with Student Hub already struggling to process ECAs and deferred exams, it is unclear how the University expects to cope with the inevitable surge – especially for students who have already made plans for next year.