The Academic Appeal procedure is for use by any person pursuing a taught undergraduate or postgraduate course, module or programme of study offered by the University which leads to an award of or the award of credit by, the University. Separate Academic Appeals procedures exist for students on Research Degrees.
Doctoral Researchers should refer to the separate Academic Appeals procedures for Research Degrees.
If you have any questions regarding these procedures, please contact the Academic Standards Team via email [email protected].
You can also contact the Students Union Advice Service who can provide free, confidential advice and are completely independent of the University. This means they are not involved in any part of the decision-making process. The Advice Team can assist in discussing your case and the procedures applied. To book an appointment visit the Student Union Advice Service.
What is an appeal?
An ‘Academic Appeal’ is defined as a request for a review of a Progression and Award decision or Mitigating Circumstances Board decision.
If you think a mark is missing or incorrectly recorded on your student record, please contact the Student Centre in the first instance.
If you have read your assessment feedback and would like additional feedback, we advise you to contact your Module Leader.
The University has robust procedures in place to make sure that work is marked consistently and fairly. These procedures can be read in Section 12 of our academic regulations.
If personal circumstances have impacted your studies you should submit a mitigating circumstances claim. If you have submitted a mitigating circumstance claim and your claim has been rejected twice by the Mitigating Circumstances Board, an academic appeal can be submitted.
It is not possible to use the academic appeal process to raise a mark for impacted performance in assessments. This is because we cannot quantify the number of marks a student would have received if the circumstances had not occurred. Please see the University’s ‘fit to sit’ policy for further details. If you believe you experienced serious circumstances meaning you were not fit to sit an assessment, then you must refer to the Mitigating Circumstances procedures on how to submit an ‘unfit to sit’ claim.
If you wish to raise matters relating to course provision or delivery, please follow our complaints guidelines.
More information on appeals can be found in Section 16 of our academic regulations. You may also find it helpful to review the following case studies:
Ground a) “that there has been a material irregularity in the assessment process;”
The Progression and Award will decide what remedy is offered to you, but generally if there has been an error in the recording or calculation of your marks or grades, this will normally be remedied through the correction of the error, and, if necessary, the progression or classification of award decision will be reconsidered.
If your submitted work has been mislaid and not marked, but there is evidence that you have submitted it before the appropriate deadline, you may be given another opportunity to submit coursework.
Depending on the circumstances more than one remedy may be made. Remedies are there to put things right, that is to return the student to the position they were in before the circumstances of the academic appeal occurred.
Remedies for academic appeals are made in accordance with the provisions of the academic regulations eg financial compensation would not be offered via an academic appeal.
Ground b) “that there has been a material irregularity in the conduct of the Mitigating Circumstances process”
Where an academic appeal is accepted for mitigating circumstances, the Assessment Board may consider one of the following:
- a retrospective deferral of the assessment affected, providing a further attempt
- to retrospectively accept an allow late claim and provide the student with their original mark
- to allow the student to defer the module to the next academic year without penalty
Remedies for academic appeals are made in accordance with the provisions of the academic regulations eg financial compensation would not be offered via an academic appeal.
Before you decide whether or not to appeal, it's a good idea to talk to your personal tutor or relevant lecturer. It may be that you have a question which could be answered that way, or another process needs to be followed rather than by making an appeal. You may also find it helpful to seek advice from the Student Union Advice Service which can provide you with friendly, independent advice and support.
If you decide to submit an academic appeal, you'll need to complete and submit the Stage 1 Academic Appeals via e:Vision to the Academic Standards team within 15 working days of the publication of the decision which is being appealed. Academic Appeals cannot be submitted for provisional results.
When you submit an academic appeal, please provide all of the evidence that you wish to be considered.
It is your responsibility to ensure that your appeal is received on time. Late appeals will not be considered unless you can demonstrate good reason and provide evidence as to why the appeal has been submitted late.
You can find the area to submit an academic appeal by logging into your SRS web profile on e:Vision and going into the My Self-Service menu. Any documentary evidence to support your appeal request must be included with the form at the time of submission via e:Vision.
Instructions for how to use the appeal task can be found in the Academic Appeals User Guide for Students:
Academic Appeals User Guide for Students (PDF)
Where evidence is in a foreign language it is your responsibility to have this independently translated into English before submission.
Please be aware that, while an electronic copy of a piece of evidence is normally sufficient, the University may ask to see the original evidence if there are any queries. The falsification of evidence will be treated as a very serious matter and, where this is suspected, the student may be referred to the Student Code of Conduct and Student Disciplinary Regulations.
A summary of the appeal process can be viewed on the Academic Appeal Flowchart:
Academic Appeals Process Chart (PDF)
Stage 1 of the appeal procedure is an initial consideration of the appeal request based solely on the form and evidence submitted by the deadline. No-one can appeal on your behalf, only you may prepare and submit your appeal. (An exception may be made in cases where a student is suffering from a mental health condition as defined within the University's relevant Codes).
A member of staff may provide a statement in support of your appeal, but this must be submitted with the appeal if it is to be considered with the other documentation in support of the case.
All appeals must be submitted online via e:Vision.
Your appeal request will be acknowledged normally within five working days of its receipt, which will be confirmed via e:Vision in your academic appeal case.
The University undertakes to treat all appeals with confidentiality. As part of the investigation information may be shared with the following people:
- The Academic Standards Team within the Academic Registrar’s Department
- Any staff member of the University who may be able to contribute to the investigation of your case
- The Chair of Progress and Award Board
- The Chair of the Mitigating Circumstances Board
The Academic Standards Team will review your appeal and determine whether or not there is evidence of the permissible grounds. You will be notified of their decision within 20 working days of receipt of the appeal via e:Vision in the Academic Appeals Area.
Where it is determined that the appeal does present evidence of the permissible grounds, it will be sent to either the Chair of the Progression and Award Board or Chair of the Mitigating Circumstances Board for further investigation. The Chair shall decide one of the following:
- Uphold the appeal on the basis that a material irregularity has occurred and modify the Board’s original decision as appropriate
- Reject the appeal on the basis that a material irregularity has not occurred and the Board’s original decision will stand
Written confirmation of this decision, along with full reasons for that decision will be provided to you within 20 University working days of receipt of the appeal via e:Vision in the Academic Appeals Area.
Whilst your appeal is being investigated the Progression and Award Board decision stands. This means you are expected to abide by the original decision regarding your results, award or progression.
You should therefore meet any requirements for a referral, resubmission of work or resitting an examination, until the appeal is completed. This will not influence the outcome of the appeal.
You are responsible for the consequences of not complying with the original decision of the Progression and Award Board.
Where it is determined that your appeal request does not provide evidence of permissible grounds, you may request that the Deputy Registrar (Quality and Standards) review this decision.
This request must be made within five working days of the notification letter by submitting a completed Request for Review of Stage 1 Academic Appeal Form which can be accessed via e:Vision.
If the Deputy Registrar (Quality and Standards) reviews your original Stage 1 or Stage 2 appeal and determines that the grounds for your appeal have not been met, then you will be issued with a Completion of Procedures letter from the University.
If you are dissatisfied with the University’s final decision you may wish to contact the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education (OIA).
Should you decide to make a complaint to the OIA, your OIA Complaint Form must be received by the OIA within twelve months of the date of the Completion of Procedures letter from the University.
Guidance on submitting a complaint to the OIA can be found on the OIA’s website - Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education - OIAHE