Le Fer Hall

Grade Appeal Policy

A student who believes that a grade awarded is in error may appeal that grade through the following procedure.

  1. The student must first exhaust all possibilities for resolution of the problem through discussion, dialogue, and written communication with the instructor.
  2. If the student is unable to resolve the problem by these efforts, the student may appeal to the chair of the department in which the course is offered. If the dispute involves the department chair, the student should direct her appeal to the vice president for Academic Affairs. The appeal consists of a letter clearly describing the grounds for the appeal, together with unaltered copies of all relevant examinations or assignments. If the dispute involves a grade for an entire course, the appeal must be delivered to the chair (or vice president for Academic Affairs) within one month after the course grade is posted in the Office of the Registrar. If the dispute concerns a grade for work done within a course, the appeal must be delivered within a month after the student receives the grade.
  3. The chair (or vice president for Academic Affairs) shall notify the faculty member of the appeal and shall seek to mediate the dispute.
  4. If mediation is unsuccessful, the student may request a second reading of the examination or assignments. In this case, the chair (or vice president for Academic Affairs) may ask another faculty member whom she or he deems qualified to evaluate the work in question. The second reader will submit an evaluation to the chair (the vice president for Academic Affairs) who will decide the grade. The decision may be to raise the grade, let the original grade stand, or to lower the grade.
  5. A department chair who receives a grade appeal shall notify the vice president for Academic Affairs of the dispute and of the chair’s decision.
  6. If the dispute involves work done within a course, the decision of the chair is final. If the dispute involves a grade for an entire course, the student may further appeal to the vice president for Academic Affairs within 30 days. In this case, the decision of the vice president for Academic Affairs is final.
  7. In all cases, the vice president for Academic Affairs will be responsible for notifying the Registrar of any changes in course grades resulting from a grade appeal.