Academic Appeals

 

If you believe your performance in an assessment was significantly affected by mitigating circumstances or an administrative error on the part of the College, you can lodge an appeal to request a further attempt at the assessment.  

Please see below for further details and to find out how we can support you through the process.  

 

The Appeals Procedure

You can submit an appeal by completing the webform available here. You will need to be logged into your KCL account to submit the webform.

Provided that the appeal is submitted on time, meets the appeals criteria and contains suitable supporting evidence, it will be forwarded to your Faculty Assessment Board (a group of academics who make decisions about assessments) for consideration. 

You have 15 working days (which is usually 21 calendar days) to submit the webform after the publication of your ratified (officially confirmed) result. You can check on student records to see if your result is ratified. The webform automatically sends to Student Conduct and Appeals. You can tick a box to request that you are sent a copy too – we strongly recommend doing this.


There are only two main grounds for appealing: 

  1. That you had mitigating circumstances that you could not tell the College about at the time. 
  2. That there was a serious administrative error by the College.  

However, if you submitted a Mitigating Circumstances Form at the time of your assessment(s) and it was declined, you can also appeal that decision on these two grounds:

  1. There is new evidence that you couldn’t provide at the time you submitted your MCF, which shows that your case should be reconsidered.
  2. There was a significant administrative error made by the College when they considered your MCF, which shows your case should be reconsidered.

Unfortunately, the College doesn't accept appeals on the basis of what is known as 'academic judgement', which is when a student disagrees with the mark they have received. Unfortunately, any appeals that are submitted without evidence of mitigating circumstances or an administrative error are likely to be rejected by Student Conduct and Appeals, so would not be forwarded to the Assessment Board for consideration. If you are concerned there has been an error with your mark, then you can contact your department to request a clerical check.

The most important part of the appeal form is the statement, which must be backed up by independent third party evidence (such as from a doctor, counsellor or similar professional). Please see below for guidance on completing these and get in touch if you need further support.

Our Triage Advisor can provide you with guidance on completing the appeal form, and a Caseworker can check over your statement and evidence before you submit it to the College. You should receive an outcome (via e-mail) within 42 days of your ratified results being published.   

College regulations regarding appeals can be found here. 

Stage One Appeal Form
Stage One Appeal Guidance (Admin Error)
Stage One Appeal Guidance (Mitigating Circumstances)
Evidence Guidance
Sample appear structure

Please be aware that you can only appeal once your result or decision has been ratified by the Board of Examiners.

How We Can Help

Our friendly caseworkers can talk you through the appeals procedure, answer any questions you might have about the process, and assist you to complete your appeal. 

We can: 

  • Talk through your circumstances with you to determine if you are able to meet one of the two regulations for making an appeal. 
  • Assist you in ensuring that you complete the Stage One Appeal form clearly and accurately. 
  • Advise on what you should include your statement and also provide feedback on it before you submit the appeal. Please note, the written statement for an appeal is extremely important – you should not submit your appeal without seeking feedback from KCLSU. Please take a look at our guides below and get in touch (link to online form) if you need any further support.  
  • Help you make sense of your outcome and discuss the formal appeal process if you are not satisfied with the decision. 

 

FAQs

What does it mean that you cannot appeal until your marks are ratified?  

Once the marking procedure for assessments is complete, marks are reviewed and validated by a Faculty Assessment Board. Until this has happened, marks are not official, they are only provisional. Once they have been validated by the Board, they become official, or “ratified”. Appeals can only be submitted for an assessment once the mark has been ratified.   

How will I know if my marks have been ratified and when?  

Sometimes when your marks are released it will be clear if they are provisional or ratified results. If you are in any doubt, contact the administrative team in your department.  

I don’t think I will be able to get evidence within 21 days, what can I do?  

It is important to try to submit the appeal and evidence within the 21 days. Sometimes, though, this just isn’t possible as you need letters from professionals which can take time. If this is the case, you can write to Student Conduct & Appeals to request an extension. You will need to provide a valid reason as to why you can’t provide the evidence on time. They may be able to offer you a short extension but this is at their discretion and is not guaranteed.  This means that you can submit an MCF up to 7 days after your assessment or submission deadline, but you will be asked to provide a good reason as to why you did not follow the normal mitigating circumstances procedure before you presented yourself for an examination or submitted coursework (T43.6). 

I want to appeal but I am outside of the 21-day deadline, is there anything I can do?  

If you have a legitimate reason as to why the appeal is late, we would usually recommend submitting the appeal anyway. We advise students to submit a covering letter with the appeal outlining why it is late. The evidence submitted with the appeal should support the reasons given for the late submission. It is not guaranteed that your appeal will be accepted; it is at the discretion of the Student Conduct & Appeals Office whether to forward the appeal on to the Assessment Board for review. 

What evidence do I need to send with my appeal?  

Evidence needs to be from a third party i.e. not from family, friends or anyone personally linked to you. It needs to signed, dated and on headed paper. Evidence should come from recognized practitioners such as doctors, counsellors, therapists etc.  

The evidence should ideally be contemporary i.e. from the time of the assessment or from a professional who saw you at around that time.  

The evidence needs to be in English or be translated into English. It needs to be clear who carried out the translation. It is better if it is done by a third party.  

Further information can be found in our Appeals Guidance. 

Will the information I disclose in the appeal be kept confidentially?  

All information disclosed will be treated sensitively. Details will only be shared with those involved in the appeals process and will be kept confidential.  

Is there any way I can appeal but not have to retake the assessment? Can the exam board reconsider my marks?  

Marks can never be changed as a result of an appeal. Only a replacement attempt can be offered if an appeal is successful.  

What happens if I want to appeal final year exams? Will I still be able to graduate?  

As long as you have acquired enough credits, you will still be able to graduate. If you lodge a successful appeal, you would re-sit the appealed assessments at the next possible opportunity. If the results are different, your transcript and certificate would be modified accordingly.  

If you do not have sufficient credits you will not be able to graduate but, if you gain these following a successful appeal, you can graduate at a later date. 

Can I appeal if my case doesn’t match either of the criteria? 

The only two grounds for appeal are those set out in the Introduction. You appeal must meet one or both of these criteria (backed up with evidence) in order for your appeal to be forwarded to the exam board for review.  

I don’t feel that my assessment was marked fairly, can I appeal?  

Appealing because you disagree with your mark is considered a challenge to academic judgement and will not be accepted. 

The Student Conduct & Appeals Office have declined to forward my appeal to the exam board, is there anything I can do?  

Appeals are sometimes rejected at the initial filtering stage meaning they are not passed on to the Faculty Assessment Board for review. This decision is made by the Student Conduct & Appeals Office and can be for a number of reasons such as the appeal being submitted late, the appeal not meeting the grounds or a lack of evidence provided.   

It is possible to contest this decision. Please get in touch for further support with this.  

My appeal was rejected, what happens now?  

It is possible to submit a Stage Two Appeal to have your case considered by a hearing committee. These must be submitted within 10 working days of receiving the Stage One outcome.  

Please get in touch if you would like support lodging a Stage Two Appeal.  

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