Joint PhD in Communication Studies statement for CODO Preamble: Doctoral students of the Joint Program in Communication Studies met to collectively discuss our concerns regarding the ongoing student strikes against tuition hikes in Quebec. Students from Concordia, UdeM and UQAM were present at the meeting that initiated this collective statement, and those unable to attend were consulted. We think that every CODO student should be given equal accommodation with regards to the strike. Even though we come from different universities with different administrative policies, all academic considerations should be equitable. For example, at UdM and UQAM there may be no "in progress" grades since the semester is already extended to June 3rd and 15th, while the Concordia administration has made no such provisions. Regardless of the three different university responses towards the strike, we should all be considered under the same evaluation criteria and deadlines. Our requests respond to conditions: - Regarding the ongoing strike against tuition hikes as voted by the general assemblies of graduate student associations of all three universities; - Regarding that we are a joint PhD program, which implies that all students from the three universities should operate within the same academic conditions and measures; - Regarding that the strike is a collective action, which also requires that the students be considered collectively at the administrative level; - Regarding that the strike is a refusal to attend class, and that actions and class time would be meaningless if we were obliged to submit class assignments before the end of the strike; - Regarding the fact that the semester cannot be cancelled for many reasons, including economic ones; As students of the Joint PhD in Communication at Concordia, UdM and UQAM, we: * Request that submission deadlines of each class be extended beyond the last day of the strike, the equivalent amount of class weeks missed due to the strike; * Appeal to all professors to honour student requests for temporary grade notations—IP (In Progress - Concordia), Enpr (En progression, UdM), Enpr (En progression, UQAM); * Request that the 1st year PhD students are permitted to do their doctoral exams, even if they have not completed 9 credits due to strike-related extensions. * Request for flexibility in the exam schedule during the duration of the strike; * Appeal to CODO and individual faculty to ensure that academic measures taken in response to the strike, such as temporary grades, will not affect Canadian, provincial, internal and international student funding or academic standing; * Request that the two current Doctoral forums work together in order that all enrolled students be given equal consideration. * Request that a CODO reconvene in May to address these strike-related issues based on the status of the strike at that time. Communication Joint PhD students

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