Is it possible to be exempted from an exam due to anxiety?

[This_is_me_1]

In two days I have a trial exam for one of my subjects. It does not count towards my grade whatsoever as it is merely seen as a practice for my final exams. However, a part of this trial exam is a summative test and will thus form a small percentage of my grade. My school states that if you have a valid reason, you can be excused from the trial exam.

I have studied to some extent, but every time I try to resume reading over notes and doing practice questions I become very anxious and unhelpful thoughts will creep in that further stress me out. It's gotten to the point that I've become nauseous and headache-y and can't continue studying because I feel hopeless and as if nothing will prepare me adequately. I keep thinking of myself in the exam room not able to answer any questions either from a mental blank or because there's content I haven't covered. This thought alone sends me into a mental whirlwind where I can't stop thinking of detrimental scenarios and i ultimately shut down. It's difficult to explain, but that's a small sense of how I feel. I have two more days to prepare and I can't see it happening as I have yet to fully memorise the content and have other work to complete for school and family commitments as well as time for myself to manage my stress. Even writing this post is making me stressed and I want to cry and close the door and not have to think about this exam that i'm unprepared for and have been trying to tackle for the past week and a half. I don't want a bad grade but I don't see a psychologist and hence cannot speak to him/her about what to do. Is it even possible to be excused from an exam due to anxiety? Who knows? I've always just thought that if you were severely ill or had suffered a family trauma, you'd be excused from the exam, rather than for something silly like stress.

If possible, please help me out a little and let me know if my situation is worth seeing a doctor for (in order to obtain an extension for the summative part of the trial exam).

[geoff]

hello, exam time is always stressful because it's going to be difficult to study before hand or try and remember what is required for this exam, and I would think that your doctor could provide a note saying that you're not well, however I would be talking with the school counsellor or perhaps a psychologist that your doctor could refer you to, because it would be good to try and overcome all of this for the future. Geoff.

[EllieC]

Hi This is Me

First of all, I hope you don't feel alone in having a lot of anxiety about taking this exam. I know this may not be much comfort, but a lot of people (including myself) find exams very stressful. It is unfortunate that in this modern day where our workplaces are built on collaborating with peers and accessing all the wonderful resources we have available that our schools haven't caught up in how they do assessments.

I think seeing your GP would be the wisest way to go here. They can give you a medical certificate to exempt you from exams, and the certificate does not need to include any specifics. It should only say that the doctor believes you are not currently well enough to sit the exam. You are not required to tell your school anything more than that. A doctor can also help you in deciding whether you would like to see a psychologist for advice on coping with this in the future.

Another option, beyond this exam, is to speak to your school counsellors - they really are the experts on helping people to cope with exam stress! If your teacher is fairly approachable they may be able to give you some encouragement and reassurance too.

Please don't think this is a silly thing to worry about, anything that causes you this much upset and impacts your ability to do the things you want to do is significant. And the most important thing, more so than any exam, is keeping yourself mentally healthy so that you can be happy and go on to achieve the goals you've set out for yourself.

I hope you're able to resolve this immediate situation, and good luck with your future study!

Ellie

[Guest_9546]

Hey

I think you are in exactly the same situation as me

I haven't been performing to the highest academic standards all year round (even in the preliminary course) because I wasn't allowed into a subject I was desperate for. I have stressed everyday ever since then and still am stressing today (I'm also feeling awful and full of hate to a teacher at my school in particular)

I do not think you can apply for any sort of misadventure in this case however after your trials, you could apply for EAS (educational access scheme) so then you could benefit from bonus points due to uncontrollable circumstances (though you would need some sort of legitimate evidence)

Good luck with trials 🙂