Academic Appeals

 

It is advised to look at your cohort Academic Regulations before submitting an academic appeal. 

What is an academic appeal?

An academic appeal is a challenge or request for the reconsideration of a decision made by an academic body on student progress, assessment or awards.

If you are unhappy with a decision or an experience at University it is important to understand whether you need to make a complaint or an appeal.

Complaints cover all service issues, academic or non-academic and will not normally result in a change to an academic decision. 

Appeals relate to decisions about your academic progress. For example, failure of programme or capped resits. 

What are the grounds for appeal?

To make an academic appeal you must have one or more of the following grounds:

1. That a procedural irregularity or administrative error has occurred in the process of an assessment which is of such a nature as to create a reasonable possibility that in the absence of the procedural irregularity or administrative error the decision in question would have been different.
2. That the student’s academic performance was materially affected by significant, relevant and uncontrollable circumstances that were unknown to the decision-maker, and which were of such a nature that the student could not with reasonable diligence have disclosed to them before the decision was made.
3. That there is evidence of prejudice or bias on the part of the decision-maker, which is of such a nature as to create a reasonable possibility that in the absence of any prejudice or bias the decision in question would have been different.

Simply being unhappy with your results and thinking you should have been given a higher mark is not grounds for appeal. If an appeal appears to be challenging academic judgement, it will be rejected. 

If you are confused about a grade or classification, you should contact your tutor to discuss feedback on the assignment or examination. However, under no circumstances will a tutor be able to change the grade or classification as a result of this conversation.

Evidence

It is very important that you provide evidence in support of your appeal and the type of evidence will depend on your grounds. 

1. If you are appealing under procedural irregularity or administrative error, you should include a copy of the procedure or evidence of the error you are referring to. You can make direct reference to University Procedures to support your case. 
2. If you are appealing under material circumstances, you will need evidence from a medical or health professional*. This evidence should confirm that you and your studies would have been impacted at the time of assessment and your inability to navigate and engage with the mitigation procedure. It is important that you not only explain the circumstances you were experiencing, but also the reason why you were unable to inform the University at the time. Where possible, you should provide evidence to support both these points. If you have been able to previously engage with the mitigation procedure, the evidence will need to demonstrate why this time was different. 

*A medical or health professional could include GP, therapist, psychotherapist. Evidence from the Wellbeing Services would also be helpful. University services will usually not be able to provide evidence unless they were aware of your circumstances prior to the assessment and your appeal.

Evidence from professional services should be on letter headed paper and in English. Any evidence not in English will need to be translated by an official third-party service. If you are found to have falsified evidence, this could result in disciplinary proceedings.

If you are unsure about what evidence you could include, please do contact us at SU.Advice@roehampton.ac.uk

1. If you are appealing on the grounds of prejudice or bias, you will need to provide strong evidence that demonstrates the marker(s) were prejudiced or bias towards you prior to marking your work, and that this subsequently may have influenced their marking. Without evidence, such as screenshots of emails, eyewitness statements or anything else evidencing that the whole marking process may have been prejudiced or bias towards you, this ground can be difficult to prove. 

When can I submit an academic appeal? 

Appeals must be made within 10 working days (don’t count those weekends) of the official publication of results or decision. You can request an extension by explaining and evidencing why you are unable to meet this deadline; however, late appeals will only be considered if a good reason and evidence is provided as to why there was a delay. 

How do I submit an academic appeal?

Appeals must be submitted using the Academic Appeals Form and sent to StudentCasework@roehampton.ac.uk when complete. Incomplete or incorrect forms may be rejected so it is important to make sure you check it before submitting.

Once ready you can submit a pdf or Word version of the form via email. Alternatively, you can email a scan/photograph of the form or submit a physical copy by post to the Student Casework Team, Legal & Governance Department, Grove House, Roehampton Lane, SW15 5PJ. We would recommend you send it ‘signed for’ if using this option. 

Will I get into trouble for appealing?

Appealing will not reflect negatively on you at all.

However, if you get awarded a resit or remark and your previous mark is disregarded, there is no guarantee that the new mark will be higher.

How will the appeal be considered?

You will be sent an acknowledgement email once your appeal has been received by the Student Casework Team which will contain information about the next steps. The Student Casework Manager or nominee will review the appeal to determine whether grounds have been met. 

If grounds have not been met, your appeal will be rejected, and you will be informed about how to request a review of the decision.

If grounds have been met, the appeal will be forwarded to the University Secretary, or their nominee, for consideration. The Student Casework Team may conduct further enquiries to gather any further information if needed. You will usually be provided with a copy of this information and be asked to comment and when a decision has been made, this will be communicated to you. Occasionally, the University Secretary may decide to hold an academic appeal hearing. If this is the case, you will be asked to attend a meeting and provide information about your appeal. You are permitted to bring a supporter with you who can be a student, a staff member, an officer of Roehampton Students’ Union, or a University Wellbeing Officer. The supporter will not normally be allowed to speak on your behalf. 

This whole process will normally take no longer than 70 days.

What will happen whilst my appeal is under consideration?

Whilst an appeal is under consideration the original decision will stand. This means that if you have had your programme terminated you should not attend classes whilst waiting on an outcome. If you have been granted resits and have not had an appeal outcome, you should still sit them regardless. 

You will still be permitted to graduate, and if the appeal is successful, your original award will be rescinded and a new award will be confirmed by the relevant examination board.

At certain times of the year the University receives a high number of appeals. While they will always endeavour to respond to appeals promptly and without delay, they will normally prioritise appeals from students who have been programme terminated, and who cannot progress, over appeals about degree classifications.

What if I am unhappy with the outcome?

If your appeal is rejected, you will be provided with information about how to request a review. The review request should normally be submitted within 10 working days of the appeal outcome. 

The Chief Operating Officer, or their nominee, will consider the request and determine if grounds have been met for a review. If grounds have not been met, the Chief Operating Officer, or their nominee, will issue a Completion of Procedures Letter (CoP letter).

If grounds have been met, then the appeal will be referred to the University Secretary (for decisions originally made by the Student Casework Manager) or forwarded to the Provost, or their nominee, for consideration (for decisions originally made by the University Secretary). The Provost, or their nominee, will make a decision and this will be communicated to you in writing.

Consideration of a request for a review will normally take no longer than 20 days.

Completion of Procedures letter and The Office of the Independent Adjudicator

If you have received a Completion of Procedures letter, then this means that you have exhausted the University’s processes and may be able to raise a complaint to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education (OIA). 

The OIA is an independent body that reviews individual complaints by students against higher education providers. They have no regulatory powers over the educational institutions and cannot punish or fine them. However, Universities are expected to comply with the decisions and recommendations of the OIA as failing to do so is considered bad practice.

The OIA provides an independent review scheme. In other words, it considers whether the University has correctly applied its regulations and followed its procedures and whether the outcome is reasonable under the circumstances. You have 12 months from receiving your CoP letter to complain to the OIA.

You can find more information, including case summaries and outcomes, on the OIA's website.