Appeals

Introduction

If you feel the Board Of Examiners or the Unit Assessment Board have made an error in their decision or have not received all of the information that relates to your circumstances, you have the right to appeal against a decision made.

However, you cannot appeal simply because you do not agree or are unhappy with your mark. A request for re-marking, is not an appeal, and is dealt with within your own department.

Grounds for an appeal

There are only two grounds on which an appeal will be considered:

(1) Administrative Error/Breach of Regulations/Procedural Irregularity.

Examples:

• if the Board of Examiners did not receive the significant material, i.e. Extenuating Circumstances Form (ECF 1), or...
• an exam did not follow the correct procedures e.g. if it is stopped too early.

(2) Extenuating Circumstances that you have not previously revealed.

For example:

• Illness
• Personal circumstances
• A crisis

If you have special circumstances that you do not wish to be made public, you will need to share some information with one of the following people:

• Head of Department
• Personal Tutor
• Course Leader
• Programme Area Director

There must good reasons why you have not followed the extenuating circumstances procedure earlier when wishing to appeal on the grounds of extenuating circumstances.

What do you need to do?

• The first thing to do is to seek an interview with the Chair of the Board of Examiners to clarify your position. (You can normally ask your Head of Faculty to inform you of this person, but your personal tutor should also know.)
• Complete the Complaint/Appeal form (see draft copy on centre pages)
• All circumstances must be supported by evidence such as a medical certificate or appropriate documentation. It is your responsibility to make sure that you supply this information.
• Send the statement of appeal to the Assistant Academic Registrar at the address below within 14 days from when the results were released.

George Allison
Assistant Academic Registrar
University House
Winston Churchill Avenue,
Portsmouth
PO1 2UP.

What happens next?

• If the appeal is not valid, then the registrar will write to you and explain why.
• If the appeal is valid, you will have to be interviewed by the registrar. You are allowed to take a friend or representative from the Student's Union with you.
• If you do not have the evidence to support what you are saying, you will be asked to go back and provide the relevant evidence so that your case may be able to proceed.
• If you have the evidence, then an appeal committee of 3 members of the Academic Council will be formed.
• The appeals committee will carry out an investigation, which takes the form of a hearing. You have to attend but you can take a friend or representative with you.
• You will be informed by the Academic Registrar of the review and any new decision.

The decision by the Academic Registrar is final and no further action can be taken unless it results in your exclusion, to which you have the right to appeal. There is a separate booklet detailing the procedure to appeal against such an event.

Help is at hand

If you need any help or advice, please contact the Education & Representation Officer here, or call into the Sabbatical Office at the Union and speak to the Education & Representation officer.