please note that this information is aimed at providing general guidance for students, it should not be seen as an authoritative statement of policy and procedures. please also refer to the Academic Regulation: 8 (Taught Courses) or 9 (Research Courses): Academic Appeals here

an Academic Appeal is defined as a ‘request for a review of a decision of an assessment board charged with decision on student progress, assessment and awards’.

is there a deadline to submit my appeal?

in the first instance, appeals must initially be made within 15 University Working days of the publication of your results on OSIS or the decision of the programme assessment board.

what grounds can I appeal on?

a student has the right to appeal against the decision of an assessment board if there is evidence of one or more of the following:

  1. 1. there has been a significant irregularity in the assessment process
  2. 2. there is evidence of bias or a perception of bias in the assessment process
  3. 3. the assessment board was not aware of a significant factor relating to the assessment of one or more students. this includes mitigating circumstances that could not be presented to the assessment board when it made its original decision.

 

student’s wishing to appeal using ground 3 (noted above) are advised to also read  Academic Regulations 5: Mitigating Circumstances and Student Assessment prior to submitting an appeal.

the following are not considered to be legitimate grounds for an appeal:

*complaints about the academic judgement of the assessment board, including complaints about grades and classifications of awards

*complaints about the way in which mitigating circumstances were considered unless there is clear evidence that the defined procedures were not followed by the mitigating circumstances panel and/or the mitigating circumstances panel’s recommendation was not appropriately considered by the assessment board information such as evidence of mitigating circumstances when there is no evidence to show why it could not have been presented at the correct time

you cannot appeal because you disagree with your grade or classification. the university will not accept appeals based upon Academic judgment. the University defines this 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, a degree classification, fitness to practise, research methodology or course content/outcomes’

preparing an appeal

how can student advice help?

  • *explain the appeals process 
  • *help you decide whether an appeal is the right approach
  • *provide knowledge and guidance on academic policies
  • *review your draft appeal forms and help you write the statements as clearly as possible
  • *advise you on how best to structure your appeal and what evidence to provide
  • *accompany you to appeal hearings

 

what are valid forms of evidence?

depending on your circumstances, types of valid evidence can vary. evidence might be any of the following; medical evidence, death certificates, emails, invigilators reports, letters, police reports, court documents, summary of support needs, transcripts and so on (please note that this list is not exhaustive)

you must provide evidence to support your appeal. appeals without evidence will be rejected, unless there are exceptional circumstances that have prevented you collecting evidence within the permitted timeframe. in such a case, the appeal should be submitted on time, and you should indicate that you will provide evidence at a later date when it has become available. please contact the advisors for further support if this relates to your appeal.

how do I submit my appeal?

you will need to complete a submission using the online appeals system on OSIS. you log into your OSIS account and click on the “your studies” tab. In the list below you will find “appeals” which has a link to be able to submit your appeal. appeals must initially be submitted within 15 University working days of the publication of your results on OSIS or the decision of the programme assesment board.

if you are prevented from using the system in OSIS for any reason, you may be able to submit completed forms by email or hard copy. you should contact the academic registry (Academicregistry@Kingston.ac.uk) for a copy of the form. you will be instructed where you can submit your completed forms.

what happens after I have submitted my appeal?

you will receive confirmation via OSIS once you have submitted your appeal and you can expect to receive a full response to your appeal within 20 university working days.

if my appeal is rejected, how do I submit it to Stage 2?

if you are not satisfied that the matter has been resolved through stage 1 appeal, you may proceed to stage 2 within 10 University working days of the stage 1 decision. you should submit your stage 2 appeal using the same online appeal system. if you cannot access the system you can use a form supplied by the academic registry.

you have the right to request a review of a stage 1 appeal if there is evidence of one or more of the following:

  • *there was an irregularity in the application of the academic appeals regulations at stage 1
  • *there is evidence that the outcome of the stage 1 appeal was unreasonable in one or more circumstances
  • *there is new evidence available which the student was unable, for valid reasons, to provide earlier in the process

you will need to submit the appeal to academic registrar using the same online appeal system in OSIS. you will receive an acknowledgment of the receipt of your appeal  and you can expect to receive a full response to your appeal within 20 university working days.

completion of procedures & OIA

if a stage 2 appeal is not upheld then there is no further opportunity for appeal within the University regulations. you will receive a ‘Completion of Procedures’ letter to confirm this.

if a student remains dissatisfied with the outcome of an appeal it may be possible to make a complaint to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OIA) for Higher Education.

contact us

although we are not working on campus, our advice team are still working remotely. you can contact them by emailing support@kingston.ac.uk. we can then either advice by email or arrange a virtual meeting using Zoom or MS Teams.