What to do if you are sick or have an emergency on the day of your exam:

If you are sick and cannot attend an exam, only the official TASC Senior Secondary External Assessment Medical Certificate will be accepted as evidence. The form requires you to have a medical consultation to provide specific evidence of your illness. TASC will use this evidence to decide if you qualify for derived exam results.

A medical practitioner (registered GP, paediatrician or a hospital doctor) must complete the medical certificate. They provide a specific medical diagnosis of your illness and an assessment of whether you are fit to sit an exam due to a condition that is newly diagnosed/temporary or deterioration in an ongoing condition. Other health professionals (such as pharmacists, nurses and psychologists) cannot provide the same level of medical diagnosis of an illness. A medical certificate that simply states you were unfit for work/study is not acceptable.

The medical consultation must be:

  • no more than seven (7) days before the exam (ideally, the GP appointment should be on the day of the exam).
  • no more than two (2) business days after the exam.

Your GP is to submit the form directly to TASC within three (3) days of your appointment. You will be advised by TASC by email if your medical certificate has been accepted and you will receive derived results.

Form completion formats:
  • Use the fillable PDF form functions: The TASC Senior Secondary External Assessment Medical Certificate can be electronically completed on a range of devices including mobile phones and computer tablets. Download the free Adobe Acrobat App from your Appstore to use the fillable functions.
  • Use a printed copy of the form: The TASC Senior Secondary External Assessment Medical Certificate can be printed or is available as a printed form in your copy of the 2023 Student Exam Guide. An electronic copy (scan) of the completed form should be submitted by email.

If you are sick for any reason (including COVID-19):

  1. Tell your school the reason you can’t attend the exam.
  2. Immediately arrange an appointment with a GP (in-person or telehealth). The appointment should be the same day as your exam. If this isn’t possible, it should be no more than seven days before OR two business days after the exam.
  3. Complete Section A of the TASC Medical Certificate and provide it to the GP.
  4. The GP needs to provide TASC with your completed Section A and their completed Section B by email or by mail within three days of the appointment.
  5. You will be advised by TASC by email if your medical certificate has been accepted and you will receive derived results.
    1. Tell the Exam Supervisor that you are unwell and need to leave the exam. The Exam Supervisor must record your name and the time for TASC to accept a medical certificate and provide derived results for an exam that you attended.
    2. Immediately arrange an appointment with a GP (in-person or telehealth). The appointment should be the same day as your exam (or no more than two business days after the exam).
    3. Complete Section A of the TASC Medical Certificate and provide it to your GP.
    4. Your GP needs to provide TASC with your completed Section A and their completed Section B by email or by mail within three days of the appointment.
    5. You will be advised by TASC by email if your medical certificate has been accepted and you will receive derived results.
    1. Tell your school the reason you can’t attend the exam.
    2. Write to the Deputy Director, TASC at deputydirector@tasc.tas.gov.au on the same day as your exam (or no more than two business days after the exam) to apply for an emergency special arrangement. You must detail the reasons for your absence, and provide supporting evidence as outlined in the Emergency special arrangement application checklist below.
    3. You will be advised by TASC by email if your application has been accepted and you will receive derived results.

    Emergency special arrangement application checklist

    This checklist is to help you include all the information needed to assess if an emergency special arrangement should apply and make a decision about deriving your exam results.

    If the reason you cannot attend an exam is that you are sick, complete the TASC Senior Secondary External Assessment Medical Certificate.

    To apply for an emergency special arrangement your email to the Deputy Director, TASC at deputydirector@tasc.tas.gov.au needs to include:

    Your details

     
    • Full name.
    • TASC ID.
    • Phone number and email address.
    Details of exam/s you are applying for derived exam rating/s for
    • List the course/s and exam date/s.
    • If a course has a practical externally assessed exam (such as a performance, display or oral exam), state if you are applying for derived ratings for the written and/or practical exam.
    Description of circumstances

     
    • Describe the reason why you can’t attend your exam and an emergency special arrangement should apply. Ensure you include relevant details, where possible, such as dates, times, and locations.
    Supporting evidence

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    		 Required supporting evidence will vary based on the specific circumstances of the application. Please refer to the suggested forms of evidence below for general guidance.

    • An unexpected death during the exam period.
      Evidence: Signed letter/email from a medical practitioner or allied health professional (i.e. GP or psychologist/social worker) or the school Principal. This letter should describe the relationship with the deceased individual and how the death will impact the student’s ability to sit their exam.
    • Other sudden, traumatic event/emergency during the exam period.
      Evidence: Signed letter/email from a medical practitioner or allied health professional (i.e. GP or psychologist/social worker) or the school Principal. This letter should outline the impact of the traumatic event or emergency on the student’s ability to sit their exam.
    • Student unexpectedly selected to take part in a recognised National or International sporting, academic or cultural event that will occur at the same time as their exam.
      Evidence: Submit all the materials (1-3) listed below:

      1. Official letter of selection confirming:
        – the date of selection
        – that the event is a National or International event (is officially sanctioned by a central organisation and has a limited entry basis where a restricted number of young people represent the State of Tasmania, nation of Australia, or a specific cultural group).
      2. The organisation’s contact details.
      3. A travel schedule/itinerary and competition/performance schedule with the following evidence of clashing with the same (2-3hr) time period as the scheduled exam:
            • If the air travel clashes with the same time as the exam, that the air travel cannot be re-booked earlier/later so the student is available to sit the exam (either in Tasmania or at a special exam centre) and/or
            • That the main competition/performance/essential ceremony clashes with the same time as the exam and is an essential component that cannot be missed.

        Note: Students must submit an application for a special exam centre if their recognised National or International sporting, academic or cultural event attendance is likely to overlap with the two-week written exam period, and the date of their selection for the event is before 1 July (the closing date for special exam centre applications). As the exam schedule, National or International event competition/performance schedule, and travel schedule/itinerary become known it will be possible to determine if there is a same (2-3hr) time period clash with the student’s exam/s and if a special exam centre is able to go ahead without risk to the integrity of the exam paper. If TASC determines that a special exam centre cannot go ahead the student will be eligible to receive derived exam ratings for that exam.

    Remember:

    • Double check that you have used the correct email address: deputydirector@tasc.tas.gov.au. TASC will email you to confirm we have received your application.

    Derived exam ratings will be applied to determine your results, if it is accepted that you are sick or experience an emergency and can’t attend your exam (either in whole or in part).

    Derived exam ratings are restricted to students experiencing unfortunate and unplanned circumstances, such as being sick, an emergency or other exceptional unexpected circumstances.

    The process to determine a derived exam rating is designed to ensure you receive a fair and equitable course result based on your internal assessments during the year and determined by the external assessment performance of other students in your course who have performed at a similar level in their internal assessments.

    For more information about derived exam ratings, see the information sheet on Student Results using Derived Exam Ratings.