Academic Appeals

To submit an academic appeal, you must complete the Academic Appeal Form and provide details of the circumstances you would like the University to consider.

 When completing the form, you should:

 Select the most relevant ground(s) for your appeal.

• Clearly explain your circumstances relevant to your appeal
• Explain how the circumstances affected your studies, assessments, or academic performance
• Include any information you feel is important to help the University understand your situation

The Academic Appeals Team will have no prior knowledge of your circumstances, so it is essential that you explain your situation clearly and provide sufficient information to enable your appeal to be considered.

Academic Appeals Form

Supporting evidence helps the University understand the circumstances you have described and the impact they may have had on your studies.

Your evidence should:

• Support the circumstances described in your appeal
• Relate to the relevant time period
• Help explain the impact the circumstances had on your studies, assessments or academic performance.
• Be provided from the original source where possible
• Include clear dates and times where relevant

It is important that any evidence submitted is relevant to the circumstances and time period being considered.

Submit your completed Academic Appeal Form and any supporting evidence to:

appeals@derby.ac.uk

Before submitting, ensure you have attached all relevant supporting documentation.

Once your appeal has been acknowledged, a Case Officer will review your submission within 5 working days.

The Case Officer does not decide on the outcome of your appeal. Their role is to review the information provided and determine the appropriate next steps under the Academic Appeals Procedure.

The Case Officer will review:

• Whether your appeal form has been completed fully
• Whether the circumstances raised meet the relevant grounds for appeal
• Whether sufficient information and supporting evidence have been provided
• Whether any further information/evidence is required

Following this review, one of the following actions may be taken;

• The appeal may be rejected
• Further information or evidence may be requested
• A local resolution may be explored where appropriate
• The appeal may be referred for a formal investigation

• The appeal does not explain why the circumstances could not reasonably have been reported earlier or raised through the appropriate process at the relevant time (for example, through a Request for Additional Consideration, or by responding to W14 notifications regarding attendance and engagement.
• Insufficient evidence has been provided to support the circumstances being relied upon.
• The evidence submitted does not demonstrate the impact the circumstances had on your studies, assessments or academic performance.
• The appeal is seeking to challenge academic judgement.
• The evidence submitted does not relate to the relevant assessment period, progression decision, or withdrawal.
• The appeal has been submitted outside the 10-working day timeframe without evidence to support the reason for delay.
• No independent third-party evidence has been provided where such evidence would reasonably be expected (for example, medical evidence, evidence relating to bereavement or other official documentation)
• The formal assessment result or progression decision has not yet been formally released.

The formal investigation stage should normally be completed within 20 working days of an investigator being appointed.

In some cases, delays may occur where the matters being investigated are particularly complex. The investigator may also need to speak with multiple individuals or review additional evidence before reaching a decision. Where delays occur, you will be kept informed and provided with an updated timeframe.

The investigator has found that the appeal is supported by the circumstances and evidence provided.

The investigator has found that some aspects of the appeal are supported by the circumstances and evidence provided, while others are not.

The investigator has found that the appeal is not supported by the circumstances and evidence provided.