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BTEC HND Academic Appeals

BTEC HND Student Academic Appeals – Policy & Procedure

1: BTEC HND Student Academic Appeal Policy & Procedure

The City College believes that all students are entitled to appeal against an assessment decision or grade in accordance with the College policy and procedure which complies with the requirements of QAA and the awarding body.

2: Principles involved

The principles involved are that:

  • Staff and students are partners in the overall process of learning, development and assessment
  • As an element in this partnership, students are encouraged to discuss their grades with tutors so that they may explore and understand the underlying reasons for the grade recorded. This discussion can take place at any time without resort to the formal appeals process
  • Assessment and internal verification of HND programmes always takes place within the guidelines set by BTEC and is the subject of external verification via the annual visits of Pearson External Examiners.
  • The involvement of The City College in appeals should always comply with the process and procedure developed by the College.
  • The procedure must be followed by students as well as by the College itself.

 

Academic Appeal Procedure

3: Stage One

A student wishing to appeal against an assignment grade must register their intention to do this within five working days after the assignment grade has been sent. This means that the student should obtain the Stage 1 academic appeal form from the Admin Office and then complete and return it to Admin within the next five working days. The form can also be downloaded from Sharepoint.

The assessor concerned will then be asked for a written response based on the evidence and competence needed to gain the grades for the assignment and this will be sent to the student. The tutor will respond, in essay writing, within five working days of receiving the appeal.

4: Stage Two

If the appeal is not resolved at this point, the student should request the Stage 2 academic appeal form. This can also be downloaded from Sharepoint. After completion, the form must be returned it with a hard copy of the original assignment exactly as it was submitted plus a hard copy of the grading form to the Admin Office who will the pass both to the appropriate Internal Verifier (IV). This must be done within five working days of receiving the assessor’s response to the appeal.

The IV will review the assignment (or exam script), the reasons for the appeal and the assessor’s response. The Internal Verifier will give a written response to the student within five working days.

5: Stage Three

If the matter remains unresolved, the student should request the Stage 3 academic appeal form. This can be downloaded from Sharepoint too. This form must be completed and returned within five working days. Then all the papers will be passed to the Appeals Panel who will consider the appeal and, if appropriate, set a date for a Hearing, within five working days.

The Appeals Panel will consist of the Lead Internal Verifier, Director of Studies, Principal and a specialist subject assessor. The student, assessor and/ or IV will be asked to make a case to the Panel. The final decision made by the Panel will be communicated to the student and the assessor within five working days.

The student has the right to be accompanied by a ‘Friend’ if a Hearing is held. The definition of a ‘friend’ is the same as contained in the Academic Conduct and Practice procedure.

6: Stage Four

If the matter is still not resolved by the Appeals Panel, it will be referred to Pearson by the Quality Nominee and the student will be offered the opportunity to make a formal appeal to Pearson.

It should be noted that all academic appeals must be dealt with according to the procedure set out here. The City College Complaints Procedure does not apply to academic appeals.

7: Office of the Independent Adjudicator

Once this process has been completed and the student remains dis-satisfied, he or she is entitled to receive a Completion of Procedures letter and ask the Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OIA) to review the outcome of the College’s appeals procedure. The complaint should be submitted to the OIA within 12 months of a Completion of Procedures letter being issued. The OIA may be contacted by ringing 0118 959 9813. Details of the OIA may be found at http://www.oiahe.org.uk

 

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