Course and Department Policies

Course Policies

Late Assignment Policy

Please plan your academic work carefully, keeping in mind the deadlines for assignments in all your courses. Complete assignments on time, according to deadlines in the Course Schedule. Your instructor will do their best to grade and return them in a timely manner. I am generally amenable to requests for extensions in situations of illness, emergencies, or family/personal crises. I do expect that you consult with the instructor about an extension BEFORE the assignment is due.

Written assignments submitted past the due date without any prior consultation with the instructor will be subject to a grading penalty of 2% per day.

Late posts for the group discussion activity will not be marked. The intent of the activity is to engage with your classmates on the course material, which is not possible to do after the discussion forum closes. There will be no makeup assignments for missed discussion activities, other than in exceptional circumstances (documented illness or emergency).

Communicating with the Instructor

I will do my best to respond to your emails within 48 hours.  Before you make an inquiry about assignments etc., please do check the course content first to see whether the information you need is there.  All requests for assignment extensions or other special arrangements must be confirmed with me by email. All emails to the instructor should be sent through the Learn environment or from your .uwaterloo email address. When sending emails to the instructor, please ensure that your message is clear, polite, and includes your full name in the message itself.

Self-care

An important part of academic success is personal well-being. Eat well, sleep sufficiently, get some exercise, spend time outdoors, and don’t abuse your body. If you are struggling with more-than-normal (debilitating) stress, anxiety, lack of motivation and/or depression, please talk to friends, family, or relevant professionals. Take responsibility for yourself and look out for others.

There are many supports at University of Waterloo and in the community.

Here are some mental health supports:

On Campus

  • Counselling Services: counselling.services@uwaterloo.ca / 519-888-4567 xt 32655
  • MATES: one-to-one peer support program offered by Waterloo Undergraduate Student Association (WUSA) and Counselling Services
  • Health Services Emergency service: located across the creek form Student Life Centre

Off campus, 24/7

  • Good2Talk: Free confidential help line for post-secondary students. Phone: 1-866-925-5454
  • Grand River Hospital: Emergency care for mental health crisis. Phone: 519-749-433 ext. 6880
  • Here 24/7: Mental Health and Crisis Service Team. Phone: 1-844-437-3247
  • OK2BME: set of support services for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or questioning teens in Waterloo. 

Full details can be found at the Faculty of ARTS website: Get mental health support when you need it

Writing Aids

Citation requirements: For written assignments requiring citations, please use either Chicago Style with Notes and Bibliography, OR APA Style (American Psychological Association) Style. You can find information about citation styles in the Peace and Conflict Studies Library Subject Guide.

Here are guides that I use and find helpful:

Writing help: The Writing and Communication Centre at University of Waterloo has many programs to help you improve your writing. Please check them out.