Submit an Academic Appeal

If you have some concerns with your result, please speak to your School in the first instance. The appropriate person to advise you may be your Course Leader, Module Leader, Personal Tutor or School Administrator.

If you remain unsatisfied after speaking to the appropriate person in your School, and you feel you meet one or more of the grounds, you may submit a Request for Reconsideration (R4R). An R4R allows you to appeal against the decision of a Board of Examiners. It is a formal request for your result to be reconsidered and comprises the first stage of the Academic Appeals Process.

Please note that you can submit an R4R only after the Board of Examiners have met and your results have been published.

If you have received the outcome of your R4R and you feel that you meet one or more of the grounds for appeal, then you may submit an Academic Appeal. An Academic Appeal allows you to appeal against the decision of the Reconsideration Panel or the Board of Examiners. It is the second and final stage of the Academic Appeals processes.

Separate arrangements exist for complaints about the learning experience. See the NTU Complaints Procedure for Students.

Under the Academic Appeals Policy and Process an R4R must be submitted no later than 10 working days from the date on which your results are published after a Board of Examiners. Submissions made after 10 working days must clearly evidence the reason for the lateness.

You can submit a Request for Reconsideration (R4R) using the online Academic Appeals Portal. For guidance on using the portal, please download the Appeal Portal FAQs.

You will need to be clear on:

• The grounds on which you are seeking reconsideration
• The module(s) that are affected
• The outcome you are seeking.

You will also need to provide appropriate evidence to support your R4R application.

Submission of your R4R or Academic Appeal application is not evidence in itself. You need to be able to substantiate your case with independent documentary evidence (i.e. something which is not your assertion alone). The evidence should normally be original (i.e. a doctor's note) and not a copy. If you have difficulty with this, then you should contact your School Administrator immediately. Please refer to Appendix 2 of Section 17B: Academic Appeals Policy and Process for further information on appropriate evidence.

There are three grounds:

1. The student believes that there has been a material error or irregularity by the University in the assessment process.
2. One or more of the constituent parts which have made up a student’s final outcome are incorrect.
3. The student has additional material information which could not have previously been made available through the Notification of Extenuating Circumstances (NEC) policy or to the Board of Examiners.

Please note that we're experiencing technical issues with our portal and you will only have two options to choose from when submitting your R4R or Appeal. Therefore, please use one of the following options when using the portal:

1. If you are submitting on grounds A or B please select:
   • A - If you believe that there was a material error or irregularity in the assessment process, or one or more of the constituent parts which make up your final outcome are incorrect.
2. If you are submitting on ground C please select:
   • B - If you have additional material information which could not have previously been made available through the NEC process or to the Board of Examiners.

Dissatisfaction with your result in an assessment, module, or final award is not grounds for submitting an Academic Appeal because it constitutes disagreement with academic judgement.

The University defines academic judgement as "a judgement that is made about a matter where only the opinion of an academic expert will suffice. For example, a judgement about assessment or degree classification or a judgement about a decision where a student is required to repeat or take further assessment will usually be academic judgement, and a student cannot appeal simply because they believe they ought to have received a higher grade or mark" (Quality Handbook Section 17B, paragraph 2.6).

For clarification on the R4R procedure please contact your School in the first instance. The appropriate person to advise you might be your Course Leader, Personal Tutor, or School Administrator.

For independent advice you can contact the Nottingham Trent Students' Union Information & Advice Service.

For additional support you can contact the University's Student Support Services. A wide range of services, including Health and Wellbeing support, is available to all students.

The Reconsideration Panel (RP) will review your Request for Reconsideration. Your application may be either substantiated or unsubstantiated.

It may be unsubstantiated and rejected for various reasons including, for example, if your application was submitted out of time; if your application was not made on one of the permitted grounds; or if you have not provided appropriate evidence to support your application.

Please note: Where an R4R or Academic Appeal is substantiated and upheld, it is not the policy of the University to adjust marks, grades or degree classifications, but to provide circumstances in which a student can demonstrate their academic ability unhindered.

If you have received the outcome of your R4R and you feel that you meet one or more of the grounds for appeal, then you may submit an Academic Appeal. An Academic Appeal allows you to appeal against the decision of the Reconsideration Panel or the Board of Examiners. It comprises the second and final stage of the Academic Appeals Procedures.

Please note that you can submit an Academic Appeal only after you have completed the R4R stage of the process. This means that you have received an R4R outcome letter from the Reconsideration Panel or the Board of Examiners, whichever is the most recent.

Separate arrangements exist for complaints about the learning experience. See the NTU Complaints Procedure for Students.

You can submit an Academic Appeal using the online Academic Appeals Portal. For guidance on using the portal, please download the Appeal Portal FAQs.

You will need to be clear on:

• The grounds on which you are appealing
• The module(s) which are affected
• The outcome you are seeking.

You will also need to provide appropriate evidence to support your Academic Appeal application.

Under the Academic Appeals Policy and Process an Academic Appeal must be submitted no later than 10 working days from the date on which you receive the outcome of your R4R.

There are two grounds:

• If you believe that the University failed materially to follow its own procedures in an earlier stage of the process; or
• If you have material new information which you could not have previously made available for consideration through the NEC process, to the Board of Examiners, or to the Reconsideration Panel.

Dissatisfaction with your result in an assessment, module, or final award is not grounds for submitting an Academic Appeal because it constitutes disagreement with academic judgement.

Submission of your R4R or Academic Appeal application is not evidence in itself.

You need to be able to substantiate your case with independent documentary evidence (i.e. something which is not your assertion alone). The evidence should normally be original (i.e. a doctor's note) and not a copy. You will need to scan your evidence so that you can upload it to the Appeals Portal. However, you should ensure that you retain the original document in case we ask to see it.

If you have difficulty with this, then you should immediately contact your School Administrator regarding an R4R or the Academic Registry regarding an Academic Appeal.

For clarification on the Academic Appeals procedure please first contact your School. The appropriate person to advise you might be your Course Leader, Personal Tutor, or School Administrator.

For queries about the Academic Appeals Procedures, including the Appeals Portal, you can email the Policy and Regulations Team.

Your application will be investigated by the Academic Registrar (previously the Head of the Academic Office) or their nominee in the Academic Registry (previously the Academic Office). The Academic Registry is a central department in the University which operates independently of your School.

During the investigation, we may contact you if we need further information from you. Please note that your appeal will be on hold until we receive a response from you.

Your application may be upheld, partially upheld, or rejected. In exceptional cases it may be referred to an Appeal Hearing.

If your Academic Appeal is upheld or partially upheld it may be referred to the Board of Examiners to review. Please note that an upheld appeal does not guarantee that your mark will change, or that the outcome of a BoE will change. It is not University policy to adjust results where an appeal is upheld, but to give you a chance to perform to the best of your academic abilities.

Your Academic Appeal may be rejected for various reasons: if it was submitted out of time; if it was not made on one of the permitted grounds; or if you have not provided appropriate evidence to support it. This is not an exhaustive list.

You have no further right of appeal within the University but you may be able to take your case to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education (OIA). The OIA is an independent body that reviews university appeals and complaints.

You must apply to the OIA within 12 months of the date of your Completion of Procedures Letter. There is no cost to NTU students for submitting an application, but you should check to see if your case is eligible under the OIA's Rules.

A student with an ongoing R4R or Academic Appeal may attend their graduation ceremony, however they will not be presented with their certificate, which will be issued once the investigation has been closed.

In the unlikely event that a student attends graduation and receives their certificate but has an R4R/Appeal which is in progress, or at a later date (but within the timeframe) submits an R4R/Appeal, if it is upheld and their classification changes, the student will be required to return their certificate at their own cost before a new certificate is issued. Please note that if a student attends a graduation ceremony and has not submitted an R4R or Appeal, the University will take the view that the student has accepted their award.