2020 has undoubtedly been a difficult year for everyone in the UIUC Vet Med community. Today, we learned that the VM607 Laboratory Exam—an examination that was previously open note—is now a closed book exam. As veterinary students, we understand that a lot of this information is important to us as clinicians. We also understand that our professors have been working hard to provide us with the skills we will need to succeed. However, we feel that making our lab exam closed note seems like a way to penalize us for not being able to be present for most of our VM607 laboratory sessions—a fact that is completely out of our control. This is especially troublesome because it was not something we were made aware of until 2 weeks before our exam.

We, as a class, ask that the upcoming laboratory exam be made open note. We understand that the material is crucial to our development as veterinarians. However, making the exam open note will hopefully alleviate some the sense of overwhelm a lot of us are feeling in the face of a global pandemic.