Academic Related Regulations and Appeals

An appeal must be supported by valid evidence and can be made on any or combination of the following grounds:

1. Circumstances affected the student’s performance of which the Examination Board may not have been aware and which might have had a material effect on the decision; (Note: if students wish to appeal on such grounds, they must give credible and compelling reasons with supporting documentation explaining why this information was not made available prior to the decision being made by the Examination Board).
2. A material administrative error or procedural irregularity in the assessment process causes significant doubt as to whether the decision might have been different had the irregularity not occurred;
3. There is evidence or prejudice or bias or lack of proper assessment on the part of one or more of the examiners;
4. The supervision or training of the student in respect of research for a dissertation or equivalent work was unsatisfactory to the point that their performance was seriously affected. (Note: if students wish to appeal on such grounds but the supervisory concerns arose significantly before the assessment result against which they are appealing, and without it having been raised in writing with the School before the appeal, the student must provide credible and compelling reasons for only raising these concerns at appeal).

Before initiating an appeal and, in order to better understand the reason for the result or decision against which you wish to appeal, you are strongly advised to discuss the matter with your Academic Advisor, Programme Director, the Student Support and Guidance Team or other appropriate person in the School.

If you remain dissatisfied once these channels have been explored and believe that you have valid grounds for an appeal, the Students’ Union Advice Centre or University’s Information, Advice and Guidance Service can help to clarify your concerns and help you prepare an appeals form to submit to the School for a review of your case.

Where possible you should aim to resolve an appeal informally in the first instance i.e. at School level. This does not mean that you forego the opportunity to pursue a formal appeal through the University. If, once your appeal has been considered by the School, you are unhappy with the outcome you still have the right to pursue a formal appeal.

Any case for appeal should be set down on a University Appeals form. The form can be downloaded via the following link Regulation XIX (Academic Appeals). (Note: although it says on the form that you should submit this to your Faculty Office, at this informal stage, you should submit the form to the School.) The grounds for appeal must be clearly set out and any relevant documentary information (eg medical certificate) should be attached.

The appeal (and accompanying evidence) should be submitted by email to Rashida Timol, Student Support and Guidance Manager, AMBS (rashida.timol@manchester.ac.uk) and/or the Student Support & Guidance Team (studentsupport.ambs@manchester.ac.uk) within twenty working days of notification of the result/decision against which you are appealing. Appeals received within this time frame will be considered by an Appeals Review Panel.

In AMBS, any appeals received are considered by an Appeals Review Panel which meets following the deadline date by which appeals should be submitted. The Panel is chaired by the AMBS Director for Teaching and Learning and membership consists of the Director of Undergraduate Studies/Postgraduate Studies (as appropriate), Programme Directors and the Student Support and Guidance Manager.

The Panel will consider the appeal according to the case presented on the appeals form and the documentary evidence in support. The contents of a student’s appeal shall remain confidential but the School reserves the right to seek information/clarification if necessary for the purposes of the review (an example of this would be consulting the University’s Disability Advisory and Support Service).

If the case clearly satisfies one or more of the grounds allowed for an appeal and the Appeals Review Panel is clearly satisfied that, given the evidence submitted the appeal should be upheld, the Panel shall recommend that Chair’s Action be taken by the Chair of the Board of Examiners to revise the earlier decision made.

Where the Appeals Review Panel rejects the appeal because the case does not satisfy the grounds allowed for an appeal you will be notified giving the reasons for the rejection.

Following the informal review by the School if you feel that you have reasonable grounds for dissatisfaction with the outcome, you may invoke the formal appeals process and pursue your case through the University’s Regulation XIX (Academic Appeals).

The purpose of this regulation is to safeguard the interests of students and may only be used when there are adequate grounds for doing so. As mentioned above, it may not be used simply because a student is dissatisfied with the outcome of their assessment or other decision concerning their academic progress. Appeals based upon provisional decision of the University cannot be considered.

A Basic Guide to Academic Appeals aims to make Regulation XIX easier to understand.

The Faculty of Humanities Appeals, Complaints and Malpractice Office handle formal appeals by AMBS students. Your case for appeal should be submitted by email to humsacm@manchester.ac.uk within twenty working days of notification of the School’s decision.

The first stage of any complaint should be informal ie raised in the School with the appropriate member of staff to seek a possible resolution. Matters that are dealt with informally at an early stage have the best chance of being resolved effectively. Much depends on the nature of the complaint but those to contact could be.

When there is an issue that relates to the quality of your educational experience the first person to approach is the Course Co-ordinator responsible for the course unit. This could be verbally, at the start or end of a class, or via email. Anonymous complaints will not be accepted; if a student feels uncomfortable discussing concerns with a Course Co-ordinator they may refer the matter to their student representative to make the approach on their behalf. A list of student representatives is available via the Online Handbook.

Your Academic Advisor is responsible for advising and assisting students and can provide guidance on how a complaint should be dealt with.

Report the matter to a member of staff on the front desk in AMBS 2.091 or email undergrad.ambs@manchester.ac.uk.

Ask your student representative to raise the matter at your Programme Committee or when they attend Staff Student Liaison Committee.

Whoever you raise your complaint with will follow the same process as highlighted in the flow chart in seeking a resolution. If you consider your complaint is not being dealt with adequately then you can approach your Programme Director who will liaise with the Director of Undergraduate Studies. Having followed the above, should you feel that the matter of concern has still not been satisfactorily resolved, you have the right to approach the Head of School.

A student will normally receive an oral or written acknowledgement within five working days and a full response within fifteen working days of receipt of the complaint by the School, although the full response may take slightly longer depending on the extent of the investigations to be made.

Ultimately, if you have pursued your complaint through the School and feel that this has been unsuccessful or that you have reasonable grounds for dissatisfaction with the outcome, you may invoke the formal complaints process and pursue the matter through the University’s Regulation XVII: Student Complaints Procedure. In respect of particularly serious complaints, the formal process may be invoked straight away.

Regulation XVII covers issues concerning the provision of programmes, or parts of programmes, services or facilities by the University or the actions or lack of actions by University staff. It does not cover matters relating to assessment and progression, nor complaints involving allegations of misconduct or harassment as these are covered by separate procedures.

• A Basic Guide to Student Complaints

This document aims to make Regulation XVII easier to understand. It provides information about the procedure for students who want to make a complaint to the University including the kinds of complaints that are covered and how to make a complaint.

If you are considering making a complaint, you are advised to read this document and, if you do decide to go ahead, follow the details set out within it and the main Regulation XVII: Student Complaints Procedure. You should download and complete a Complaints Form. The completed Complaints Form should be submitted to the Faculty of Humanities Appeals, Complaints and Malpractice office by email to humsacm@manchester.ac.uk.

Formal complaints will be considered in accordance with the time limits contained in Regulation XVII.