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A Student Guide

This Guide is intended for use by postgraduate research students who wish to appeal a decision of their School Postgraduate Research Committee (SPRC) on student progression, assessment and/or award or against an examiners’ decision regarding the outcome of an oral examination. 

You should read this Guide in conjunction with the Academic Appeal Regulations (Research Degree Programmes) and the General Provisions Relating to Academic Appeals, Conduct, Academic Offences, and Student Complaints. Where there is any doubt the Regulations take precedence over these guidelines.

You may appeal against decisions relating to the following:

(i) That you cannot progress to the next stage of a phase of research study, i.e. that your current programme of study is terminated or you are transferred to another course of study.

(ii) An appeal against a decision not to award the qualification for which you are registered (i.e. a decision made at the end of your research degree).

You may not appeal against the academic judgement of an examining or decision-making body.  Academic judgement relates to the expertise of the examiners within the subject area, and their judgements on whether or not the work that was produced in the thesis was original, at the forefront of the discipline, and was of the standard required for the research programme.  It is a judgement made about a matter where only the opinion of an academic expert will suffice.  

FSRAC Appeal Form                         CSRAC Appeal Form

  • What happens at the CSRAC meeting?

    The CSRAC meeting will follow the following format:

    1. Introductions will be made and the meeting format will be explained.
    2. You will be invited to briefly outline the decision you are appealing against and the grounds on which you are appealing. It may help to prepare a short statement which highlights important points and/or to comment on the response from your School or University department, or the FSRAC decision.
    3. The FSRAC Chair (or nominee) will be asked to explain the FSRAC decision.
    4. If in attendance, the representative from your School/University department will be invited to briefly outline the School response to your appeal.
    5. The Committee will then ask questions to clarify some of the issues you have raised in your appeal.
    6. You, the School representative and/or the FSRAC Chair will be asked for any closing remarks.

    The Chair of the FSRAC (or nominee), the School/University department representative and you will enter and leave the room at the same time. 

    Only members of the CSRAC and the secretariat (Academic Affairs) will be present while the decision is being made. 

    The CSRAC reserves the right to request and/or consider further evidence as it deems necessary and may reconvene to allow further information to be gathered and deliberations to be concluded.

    You will be notified in writing of the decision of the CSRAC, normally within eight working days of the decision being taken.

  • Dismiss your appeal, giving reasons.
  • Uphold your appeal in part or in full by varying the progression decision made by the SPRC in one of the following ways as appropriate to the appeal case:
    • Declare the APR (including differentiation) null and void and direct that a new APR be held.
    • Recommend to the SPRC that it reconsider its decision.
  • Uphold your appeal in part or in full with regard to final examination (assessment/award) and take action in one of the following ways as appropriate to the appeal case:
  • Declare the oral examination null and void - new examiners will be appointed.
  • Recommend that the examiners reconsider their decision.
  • Permit you to revise and resubmit your thesis or to re-register and undertake more research before re-submitting your thesis. The CSRAC will specify whether the thesis will be examined by the same or new examiners.  If the appeal is upheld on the ground of inadequate supervision, the CSRAC will recommend that one or more supervisors be replaced for the further period of research.
  • Apply on your behalf for a concession to the Study Regulations for Research Degree Programmes

If the appeal has been upheld on the ground of inadequate supervision, the CSRAC shall recommend to the School that one or more supervisors be replaced.

 

 

  • Confidentiality and Data Protection

     All appeals will be treated with the appropriate level of confidentiality, with information being released only to those who need to see it.

    In accordance with the Academic Appeal Regulations (Research Degree Programmes), all information submitted by you and by the School will be shared with the members of the Committees.  You, the Chair of the FSRAC (or nominee) and/or the School will be sent copies of the information sent to the members of the CSRAC.  You should not include in your appeal any information which you do not wish to be shared.  You should also ensure that your appeal documentation does not contain any information relating to third parties; the names or any information by which a third party could be identified should be redacted, unless the third party consents to the information being shared.  The information must also comply with the University's Policy on Data Protection.

    You may withdraw consent to sharing any information at any time (unless it has already been shared) by contacting Academic Affairs (academic-affairs@qub.ac.uk).

    You should also be careful not to make unsubstantiated or defamatory allegations or comments about other persons.  The University may require any such comments to be deleted before accepting your appeal.