Appeals

This is when you request a formal review of an academic decision within Birkbeck. 

Birkbeck will expect students to have tried to resolve matters informally directly with their Department (and show evidence of this) before submitting under the formal Appeals policy (please see Early Resolution below). 

(This list is not exhaustive and other grounds maybe considered)

• A decision on a Mitigating Circumstances claim

• A mark awarded for an assessment

• A degree classification 

• Termination (only if academic reasons were applied)

• An Academic Offence allegation (Plagiarism, Collusion, Cheating, etc.)

• A Disciplinary

There are only three specific areas on which you can appeal:

1. Undisclosed illness or other mitigating circumstances which you were unable (or for valid reasons unwilling) to inform the Sub-Board Examiners about before they reached their decision.

2. An administrative error, e.g. not having your Special Assessment Conditions implemented, you were given someone else’s mark or other administrative errors out of your control.

3. An assessment decision was not conducted in accordance with relevant regulations.

All of these reasons will need to be supported with evidence, in order to ensure your appeal is robust and can be considered.

You should submit an appeal as soon as possible and no later than 4 weeks from the date of the incident/notification of results.  

Before submitting an appeal, you should try and speak to members of your Department informally to gain clarification or further guidance on the issues you face. You should be seeking to understand the reasons behind the decision and the implications for you and your studies along with what options are open to you.  

There are many people you can speak to and these could include your Personal Tutor, Programme Director, Head of Department/School, Supervisor, Module Co-ordinator or Programme Administrator. 

If you do not know who your personal tutor is, please contact your Programme Administrator or check your MyBirkbeck Profile. 

Before submitting your appeal, ensure you cover the key points below. Do not forget to supply evidence if something undisclosed has occurred. If issues happened within examination rooms, please explain that you are unable to provide information due to the lack of devices permitted within the examination room to record or capture evidence.

Points to include: 

• What you are appealing against; 

• What has happened or led to the academic decision (here you would disclose any mitigating circumstances or errors that the Sub-Board of Examiners were not aware of before); 

• Why you feel it is important to make the appeal; 

• What your preferred resolution is (it is crucial that you carefully consider what resolution you are seeking and include as much detail on this as possible in your application).   

You must submit your Appeal to studentappeals@bbk.ac.uk, or by post to: Academic Standards and Quality (Registry Services), Birkbeck, Malet Street, London, WC1E 7HX. 

This will be reviewed and investigated by staff within the Academic Standards and Quality Team.

The team will endeavour to provide confirmation of receipt within 7 calendar days and try and provide a date by which you should receive a formal outcome (usually 21 calendar days). 

If you need further information or to discuss your case then we can offer you an appointment with one of our advisors. Please complete our case consent formhere and we will be in touch to arrange an appointment.