Cancellation & no-show policy

When you are enrolled for a doctoral school activity and after e-mail confirmation by the doctoral schools*, you are expected to be present. Many of the activities are in high demand, so we kindly ask you to inform us as soon as possible if you have to cancel your enrolment.
Since you are expected to inform your supervisor of your enrolment for any type of doctoral school activity, please also inform them in case of a cancellation.

Late cancellations or no-shows have at least four negative consequences:

• Other interested young researchers have no chance to participate.
• The cost per participant increases substantially.
• Resources are being wasted.
• In case of too small groups, the quality of courses/workshops cannot be guaranteed or their organisation is cancelled.

In order to prevent this, the following rules apply until further notice. 

• If you cancel up to 1 week before the activity, you do not need to provide a reason for your absence. You simply send an email to doctoralschools@uhasselt.be.
  
  
• Cancellations less than 1 week (< 7 days) before the activity are only allowed in case of illness/quarantine or an unexpected personal emergency.
  
  
  • In case of absence related to illness:
    • If you suffer from illness, a doctor's certificate is not needed, provided that you contact the DS team BEFORE the activity by sending an email to doctoralschools@uhasselt.be with your supervisor in CC.
    • If you fail to cancel in advance following the rules as described above, a doctor's certificate or other type of proof* is required to document your absence.
      
      
  • In case of an unexpected personal emergency / circumstances beyond your control:
    • A delegation of the doctoral school council will evaluate your case and decide whether or not it is a valid reason for late cancellation or no-show. You need to be able to show* that you only became aware of the circumstances later than 1 week before the start of the activity.
      
      
  • In case of technical issues during online sessions:
    • Please send an email to the doctoral schools and the trainer no later than the same day (or as soon as possible) if you encounter any technical issues during online sessions. Be sure to include proof, such as a screenshot. Do not wait for us to follow up regarding your absence. For example, in case of internet problems, notify us immediately. If the technical issues persist, you must be able to provide appropriate evidence.

• For some activities, individual costs are made before the actual start (e.g. access to online tool, questionnaire, …). In case of cancellation after these costs have been made, personal reimbursement will need to occur (except when participating in a later edition). This applies regardless of when the cancellation occurs (i.e. ≥ or < 7 days). For workshops for which this is the case, it is clearly mentioned on the website.

• After a first late cancellation or no-show without valid reason or proof, you will receive a warning. An email will be sent to both you and your supervisor explaining that a next late cancellation or no-show will lead to a fee.

• After a second late cancellation or no-show, you will be charged with a fee of 250 euros.

• For courses consisting of several sessions including individual (coaching)sessions (spread out over several weeks), participants are not allowed to cancel follow-up sessions after the start of a course without a valid reason, even if it is longer than a week in advance. Valid reasons are: illness, unexpected personal emergency / circumstances beyond your control (see above). Cancelling parts of the course will have implications on the acknowledgement in your portfolio.
  
  
• The same rules apply to courses/workshops attended at other Flemish universities.

• When registering for a doctoral school activity, you will need to endorse the cancellation and no-show policy as described above.

*As places are mostly limited, registering does not automatically imply that you will be able to participate. You will be notified by the doctoral schools by email.

*The documents may be sent by email (doctoralschools@uhasselt.be) or by regular mail and should reach us within 10 working days after the activity. If not, the warning or fee will still be taking effect.