Different kinds of appeal : University of Sussex

Check your options so you submit the right appeal for your situation.

What you can appeal

The different appeals cover:

Important: You cannot appeal the academic judgment of a mark you have been given.

Exams and other assessments

You might be eligible to appeal the decision of an exam board in relation to one of your assessments.

This could be an exam, a presentation or other form of assessment.

This appeal is only for undergraduate and Masters students. If you’re a PhD student, see details about progession through a research degree.

Check how to appeal an exam board decision.

Partner institutions

If you are doing a course through one of our partner institutions, and you appealed the outcome of an assessment, you may be able to ask for Sussex to review the decision.

If your case is subject to review by Sussex, we will consider whether the academic appeals procedure in your partner institution has been correctly and fairly applied.

We cannot review issues relating to academic judgment, because these are not subject to appeal.

Important: You must fully exhaust your partner institution’s appeals process before you can ask Sussex for a review.

To request a review, fill in the partner institution appeal review form [DOC 25KB].

This is different from asking us to review a complaint you made to your partner institution.

Suitability for professional practice

You can appeal the decision of a suitability for professional practice panel, but only if one of the relevant grounds are met.

These are that:

there is evidence material to the decision that was not considered by the suitability for professional practice panel and which could not reasonably have been presented to the panel
there was a procedural irregularity in the suitability for professional practice process of such a nature as to cause doubt as to whether the result might have been different had there not been such an irregularity
the panel failed to comply with the guidance of the relevant professional body.

If you decide to appeal, you must do this within 21 calendar days of getting your decision.

To submit your appeal, fill in the suitability for professional practice panel appeal form [DOC 29KB].

See our suitability for professional practice policy for more information.

You can also go to the School office for Education and Social Work to access its own procedures.

Reasonable adjustment panel decisions

You can appeal the decision of a reasonable adjustment panel, but only if one of the relevant grounds are met.

These are that there:

is evidence of procedural irregularity (including administrative error) in the consideration of your case of such a nature as to cause doubt whether the result might have been different had there not been such an irregularity
existed circumstances affecting your case, material to the decision, of which the reasonable adjustment panel was not aware at the time it made its decision, and which could not reasonably have been made known to the panel in advance
exists evidence of prejudice or of bias on the part of those making the decision.

The academic basis of the panel’s decision is not itself subject to appeal since this is a matter of academic judgment.

This includes a judgment of the panel, based on advice from your School, that giving you a different mode of assessment would not deliver the same academic standards.

If you decide to appeal, you must do this within seven working days of getting your decision.

To submit an appeal, fill in the reasonable adjustment panel appeal form [DOC 28KB].

PhDs and other research degrees

You can appeal a decision relating to:

the outcome of your Viva
the outcome of a Formal Progression Review meeting, whether that is a withdrawal, a downgrade, or other outcome.

The grounds for appeal are as follows:

ground a: illness or other mitigating circumstances: there exists evidence of circumstances that have impacted on a student’s studies which could not reasonably have been presented to the decision making body and/or
ground b: procedural irregularity or error; where the University has not acted in accordance with its own regulations or procedures, and this has had a detrimental effect on the outcome. Procedural irregularity does not include disagreement with an academic judgement or the application of discretionary rules within the regulations. An appeal on the basis of procedural irregularity must be supported by evidence; and/or
ground c: prejudice or bias: there exists evidence of prejudice or of bias or a reasonable perception of prejudice or bias on the part of the decision making body.

Find out more information regarding the academic appeal process.

Please read this information together with the Academic Appeal regulations carefully before submitting your appeal, as appeals can only be considered on the evidence and information that you provide.

To submit your appeal, fill in the research degree appeal form [DOC 31KB] and submit it by email to the Appeals Office at appeals@sussex.ac.uk.

Find out more about the relevant regulations and procedures for postgraduate research degrees appeals.

Appealing a complaint

If someone complains about you, it is possible to appeal the outcome of this.

This is not an academic appeal. Instead you are appealing a discipline decision.

See more from Academic appeals