Exams go ahead as scheduled

UCT's final exams started smoothly this morning, with upper campus peaceful and test venues quiet, but for the usual exam stress.

"This morning things are going fine at the Sports Centre," said Dr Andrew Hamilton of the Department of Physics. "It's a relief to get things going. The uncertainty must be very stressful for the students. I hope they are relaxed enough to get on with it."

"No news is good news. Exams are going ahead as scheduled," said registrar-designate Royston Pillay. Pillay added that the overwhelming majority of students had elected to write in November. Students have until 27 November, the last day of the November exam block, to defer their exams.

Tanaka Hingi, a first-year social work student, was relieved that exams were going ahead as planned. He has chosen to write his exams now, and admitted (with a wry smile) that his first year at university had been "interesting".

Preparing for exams amid constant interruptions and the air of uncertainty had been less than ideal for Anam Dweba. The first-year engineering student was glad that exams had started, but said she found it hard to maintain a studying rhythm.

"The uncertainty is the worst," said a PGCE student. "But now that exams have started, myself and my classmates just want to get it over with."

The PGCE class had an exam cancelled on 20 October, the day after the #FeesMustFall protests started. They wrote their first exam on 9 November.

"I prefer to study on campus, so campus being closed was a real inconvenience," she added.