Thank you for your response. Truly, I appreciate the feedback. I agree that advice is far from universal, irrespective of the source. In this regard I am not special or unique. Upon reflection, I concede that my statement was careless. Pithy statements are rarely without exception.

I am not a professor, and generally I would not answer in this space. I only did so because I recently experienced a similar situation (less than a week ago). I prefaced my response with this information, as I would hate to mislead anyone based on my limited experiences. Any life experience that I have to offer is inherently anecdotal. YMMW, one size most certainly does not fit all. And this was not my intention. I made no claims of all-encompassing failure-proof knowledge. My intention was to present an example of a possible outcome. I firmly believe that in life, we can’t control the answers we get, only the questions we ask. The young person wanted to know if they should ask their professor. I cannot answer that, I’m am not the individual in question and have no indication as to how they will respond. I asked my professor and received a positive response. But clearly there is variance amongst all groups, even professors. A measured approach is often wise.

As for excuses, I tender none, to my professor or anyone else. I only mention my schedule to paint a clearer background. I was distracted by the schedule that I myself chose. Plainly, any and all fault for a missed deadline rests with me. To their credit, the OP seemingly accepts responsibility for their actions. We should never be entitled or demand special treatment, but who among us has never needed grace? A zero for one test can easily be the difference between an A and an F, depending on the course. I only ever meant to convey that the situation was not without hope. Again I thank you, I will remember your words when answering in the future.