ACADEMIC ISSUES
WE WANT ALL STUDENTS TO ENJOY THEIR TIME AT MMU AND TO COMPLETE THEIR STUDIES SUCCESSFULLY. HOWEVER, ISSUES CAN ARISE AND THIS BOOKLET WILL GIVE YOU THE INFORMATION YOU NEED TO RESOLVE THEM AS QUICKLY AND EFFECTIVELY AS POSSIBLE.
CONTENTS 2 ACADEMIC APPEALS 4 EXCEPTIONAL FACTORS 6 PLAGIARISM
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ACADEMIC APPEALS You can appeal your end of year results and decisions by the Board of Examiners and the Assessment Disciplinary Committee.
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You can appeal if you fulfil one or both of the following:
EXCEPTIONAL FACTORS If you can evidence that exceptional factors adversely affected your performance in assessments and you can explain why you could not notify the University of these factors before the Board met. Examples: Illness and personal issues.
MATERIAL IRREGULARITY If you can show that an irregularity or error occurred in the conduct of your assessment or with the actions of the Board of Examiners. Examples: Invigilators stopping the exam early and the Board of Examiners applying course regulations incorrectly. You must submit an appeal within 14 days of receiving the decision.
STEPS WHEN DECIDING TO APPEAL There are a number of steps you should take when deciding whether to appeal a decision. These include: • Attending a results surgery • Discussing the result with your tutor or Head of Department.
• Checking the course regulations. • Gathering documentary evidence. • Asking to see your university file under the Data Protection Act. • Reviewing MMU’s website for more information on Appeals.
THE APPEAL PROCESS To begin an appeal you must submit an academic appeal form to the Faculty Exceptional Factors and Assessment Review Panel. You will need to provide a supporting statement and independent professional evidence. Download a copy of our template for you to include in your supporting statement.
IF YOUR APPEAL IS SUCCESSFUL: The Board of Examiners must reconsider their decision and will inform you of the outcome within 14 days of the panel meeting.
IF YOUR APPEAL IS UNSUCCESSFUL: You will be told why and your case will be sent to the Student Case Management Team for review by the Appeals Panel. This is the formal stage of the appeals process. Your case will be looked at again and you can provide more evidence to support your case. You may be invited to a hearing to discuss your case if it is complex.
REMEMBER YOU MUST HAVE CLEAR GROUNDS TO APPEAL A DECISION – YOU CANNOT APPEAL JUST BECAUSE YOU DISAGREE WITH THE EXAMINERS OR YOU THINK THE RESULT UNFAIR. The Appeals Panel will include a Student Officer from The Union. A decision will be made within 28 days but you will receive a summary of the decision within seven calendar days of the meeting.
IF YOU REMAIN UNSATISFIED WITH THE DECISION: You can ask for a review of the Appeals Panel decision if you fit the review grounds. Once all internal procedures are completed you can send your case to the Office of Independent Adjudicator and/or seek a Judicial Review in the High Court within three months of the decision. Submit your completed appeal, with evidence, to your local Student Hub. mber to keep a copy of everything you send.
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EXCEPTIONAL FACTORS If you have been affected by problems preventing you from attending an exam, submitting an assessment on time or that significantly affected your performance in an assessment, you can submit an appeal for Exceptional Factors.
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AN EXCEPTIONAL FACTOR MUST BE:
Check our template for the statement, which is required on page three of the form.
• Severe: The event or circumstance must have had a serious impact on your performance.
The forms should usually be submitted within five days of the assessment or exam date.
• Unexpected: There were no reasonable steps you could have taken to prevent these factors.
The Exceptional Factors Panel will inform you of the outcome of the case within five working days of their meeting.
• Relevant: The event or circumstance must have happened at the time of assessment.
If successful, you will normally get:
• Corroborated: You must provide supporting documentary evidence for your case.
EXAMPLES OF EXCEPTIONAL FACTORS: • Illness • Bereavement • Personal trauma Long-term issues are not generally regarded as relevant unless they have had a specific bearing at the time of assessment.
THE EXCEPTIONAL FACTORS PROCESS
• Extra time to complete your assessment • Or the chance to sit your examination one more time • Or the chance to sit your examination without a cap If your application is refused: You can appeal the decision – please come and talk to the Advice Centre if this is the case. The regulations can be seen in full here http://www.mmu.ac.uk/sas/ studentservices/guidance/
To submit Exceptional Factors you must complete an EF1 form, with supporting evidence, to your local Student Hub. All information you provide will be treated as confidential. Ask for a receipt when you hand in the form and keep copies of everything you submit.
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PLAGIARISM Plagiarism means passing someone else’s work off as your own. Poor referencing is also considered as plagiarism and usually receives a penalty.
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You can be penalised for: • Plagiarism: copying from authors, not using quotation marks or taking sections from other people’s work and altering it to make it look like your own. • Collusion: copying from other students or allowing your work to be copied. Be especially mindful when completing group work. • Attempting to gain unfair advantage: paying someone to do your work or falsifying data. • Cheating: taking unauthorised material into an exam. If you receive a letter accusing you of plagiarism, you will need to attend a meeting. This will be with your Programme Leader or Head of Department – we can go with you, but we will need plenty of notice in order to attend. If you do not attend, a decision will usually be made in your absence. The penalty for plagiarism depends on your year and whether you have done it before. The general rules are: Level 3/4 – If this is your first offence and your work is less than 20% plagiarised then it will be marked normally and you will get a warning. If your work is over 20% plagiarised you will receive a mark of zero. You may have to repeat the
REMEMBER ALL WORK SUBMITTED IS CHECKED FOR PLAGIARISM. assignment but this will be capped at 40%. Level 5/6 – If this is your first offence and your work is less than 20% plagiarised it will be capped at 40%. If your work is more than 20% plagiarised you will receive zero. You may have to repeat the assignment but this will be capped at 40%. If you are a final year student this could affect when you graduate. Where there are multiple assignments involved that were submitted at around the same time they should be treated as a single case. The penalties are more serious if you have been accused of cheating before or if you are a postgraduate student. Come and talk to the Advice Centre if you wish to appeal any decision or if you need help with any part of the process.
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CONTACT US
T: 0161 247 6533 E: s.u.advice@mmu.ac.uk W: theunionmmu.org/your-advice-centre
The Union, Manchester Metropolitan University Publication 2015 Disclaimer: The Union has made every effort to ensure that the information in this leaflet is accurate. The Union cannot be held responsible for the consequences of any action taken as a result of reading this leaflet. Before taking any action you are advised to visit the Advice Centre.