Faculty Academic Appeals 

There are three possible grounds under which you can appeal to the Faculty:

1. a) There were extenuating circumstances, for example you were adversely affected by illness, which the original decision makers were not aware of, or that you could not disclose at that time to them.

Normally you would be expected to use the Serious Adverse Circumstances (SACS) process as soon as possible (see the Learning and teaching Handbook for more information - 6.2.6: Student Absence, Illness and Adverse Circumstances) to let the University know that there are circumstances which may have affected their performance. Students are notified of deadlines relating to the retrospective submissions of SACS forms which relate to examinations and/or coursework submission. In order to use the appeal process to retrospectively declare adverse circumstances, you must not only be able to present evidence to support your claim but also demonstrate a good reason not to have notified the University at an earlier point.

1. b) There is evidence that procedures were not applied correctly, or marks were calculated incorrectly.

For an appeal on this ground, you should clearly state which procedure was not correctly applied and/or demonstrate why it is believed the marks were incorrectly calculated. Please note that the latter relates to an error in the way an overall mark or grade has been calculated from individual marks. You cannot appeal the award of individual marks for pieces of work, exams etc as this constitutes questioning academic judgement.

1. c) That the original decision was not reasonable in the given circumstances.

You must submit your appeal within 21 calendar days of the date of the notification of the decision to be appealed. For appeals against exam -related results, this means within 21 calendar days of the date that the pass list was published.

How to Appeal

Undergraduate students in the Faculties of Arts and Humanities, Science or Durham University Business School, and all Postgraduate students should complete the Faculty Appeals Proforma which is then emailed to the appropriate email account, with any supporting evidence:

Faculty of Arts and Humanities undergraduate appeals - artsandhumanities.appeals@durham.ac.uk

Faculty of Science undergraduate appeals - sciencefaculty.appeals@durham.ac.uk

Durham Business School undergraduate appeals - business.appeals@durham.ac.uk

All postgraduate appeals - pg.admin@durham.ac.uk

For students in the Faculty of Social Sciences and Health there is an online system which accessed via Social Sciences Faculty Academic Appeals

Your appeal may not be accepted if it is received out of time without good justification as to why it could not be submitted within the specified timeframe; if the form is not completed correctly; if it does not meet one of the three allowable grounds, or if it questions academic judgment. Note that academic judgement includes questioning the marks awarded for a particular piece of work and also the classification of SACS submissions.

Appeal Outcomes

Wherever possible, your Faculty appeal will be considered within 42 days of receipt, however, please note that this may take longer at particularly busy times or during vacation periods.

If an appeal is upheld, it is usual for it to be referred back to the original decision-making body for reconsideration, for example the Board of Examiners. Alternatively, an upheld appeal may also result in the granting of a concession. Note that marks are never changed as the result of an appeal outcome unless there has been an error in the original calculation (ie where marks from assignments are aggregated together).

Note also that an upheld appeal may not necessarily result in a change to the original decision.

Once the final decision of the Faculty Appeal has been communicated, the next stage of the process would be to place a Senate Appeal.

Wherever possible, your Faculty appeal will be considered within 42 days of receipt, however, please note that this may take longer at particularly busy times or during vacation periods.

If an appeal is upheld, it is usual for it to be referred back to the original decision-making body for reconsideration, for example the Board of Examiners. Alternatively, an upheld appeal may also result in the granting of a concession. Note that marks are never changed as the result of an appeal outcome unless there has been an error in the original calculation (ie where marks from assignments are aggregated together).

Note also that an upheld appeal may not necessarily result in a change to the original decision.

Once the final decision of the Faculty Appeal has been communicated, the next stage of the process would be to place a Senate Appeal.

Senate Appeal Process