Academic Help

Our team are available to provide assistance to students experiencing issues that affect their academic studies.

 

Academic misconduct is the formal language for students accused of cheating. The University have outlined their definition of this here.

Students will be notified of an instance of academic misconduct via an official letter from the University. This will notify the individual of the process the University have chosen to take. We advise all students who receive correspondence to contact our team to seek a meeting before responding.

 

All Extenuating Circumstances can be submitted from your e:vision account. Students are advised to also mention that they will be submitting extenuating circumstances to their Personal Tutor. You can submit your request about Extenuating Circumstances before an assessment or up to 7 days after the assessment. You should make the request even if you don't have very strong evidence, because it's always better to inform the University.

The list of evidence which is helpful includes:
> Medical / health certificate or Doctor's letter with date relating to the period of study and assessment
> Death certificate if a bereavement is involved
> Letter of support / explanation from a Support Service in the University eg. Counselling service, Disabilities Service, IF the student is currently attending, or was attending the Counselling Service when the situation arose.
> Letter of support / explanation from independent third party, such as a religious leader

The University are particularly interested in the following grounds:
> Bereavement – death of close relative/significant other.
> Serious short term illness or accident (of a nature which in an employment context would have led to an absence on sick leave)
> Evidence of a long term health condition worsening
> Other significant / exceptional factors for which there is evidence of stress caused. This could include religious / cultural issues and their impact on individuals and families, but it does particularly depend on reliable evidence from a professional source.

 

Students have a right to appeal a Board of Examiners decision once it has been published, ratifying their previously provisional marks. It can be found in e:vision. A board of examiners decision could include a degree classification, a failed exam, or an assessment that stops you from progressing further on your course.  If you wish to appeal this decision you have 10 working days in which to do this, from the date on the Board of Examiners letter so it is very important and your responsibility to keep an eye out for that.

How to submit an appeal
  • Read the [Appeal Regulations]. To submit an appeal you will need to consider which of the academic regulations your appeal applies to. These can be found in section 3.1 for undergraduates and 4.3 for postgraduates.
  • Complete a "formal stage" [appeal form] with basic details including which ground you are appealing under.
  • You will need to write an accompanying letter to explain the detail of why you are appealing, including dates wherever possible.
  • Include copies of any evidence that supports your case. This could be, for example, a letter from a GP,  or a letter from Counselling Service or Disability Service.
  • Optionally send this to the UBU Advice Centre for checking and feedback.
  • Finally YOU (not UBU) submit the appeal letter, form, and all accompanying evidence by email to complaintsandappeals@bradford.ac.uk

 

You should keep a copy of everything you submit. You should get a receipt within a couple of days. You will then receive a letter  from the Student Casework Team informing you of the outcome. This can take some weeks. If you are successful you will be given details of how to proceed, but you should check in with your Personal Tutor as well. If your appeal is dismissed, you will be given reasons why and can consider asking for a review (see below).  Whilst your appeal is pending you will be permitted to continue with your study. You should continue on the basis that the appeal will be successful, even if it ultimately is not, so that you don't miss any opportunities.
What happens if you are unsuccessful?
If yours appeal is declined you may be eligible to submit a "review stage" appeal. This is when you believe that you can show that the decision is unreasonable. To do this you are required to complete a review stage [appeal form] , and state the reasons why you are not satisfied with the decision.  You will only have 10 working days in which to submit this appeal from the date of the original outcome letter.  A decision will be made which will be the completion of the University’s appeal process. Once the University appeal process is completed, students unhappy with the final decision are able to submit a complaint to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator. For more information please visit the OIA website: http://www.oiahe.org.uk/ 

If your issue isn't outlined in these sections, please don't hesitate to get into contact with us. We are availible throughout the year, in and out of term time, to help with your academic queries.