• Section 1 - INTRODUCTION  
• Purpose and Parent Policy  
• Responsibilities  
• Student Responsibilities  
• Staff Responsibilities  
• Faculty Responsibilities  
• Section 2 - PROCEDURE FOR THE REVIEW OF A PROVISIONAL ASSESSMENT DECISION  
• Two Types of Appeal   
• Submitting an Application for a Review  
• Assessing the Validity of the Application  
• Outcomes 
• Communications  
• Right of Appeal  

Section 1 - INTRODUCTION  

Purpose and Parent Policy  

(1) This procedure sets out the steps for a student to seek a review of a provisional assessment decision under the Appeals Policy. The procedure also supports implementation of the Assessment, Grading and Certification Policy.  

Responsibilities  

Student Responsibilities  

(2) The student is responsible for seeking a review within the allotted timeframe of  5 working days from the release of provisional assessment results.  

(3) The student is responsible for ensuring that they complete the correct form.  

(4) The student is also responsible for providing verifiable evidence in support of their application.  

Staff Responsibilities  

(5) Staff involved in the processing of a review application are required to process their decisions in a timely and transparent manner.  

Faculty Responsibilities  

(6) The Assessment and Awards Manager, within the Department of the Registrar, is responsible for the implementation of this procedure.  

(7) Faculty involved in reviewing a provisional assessment decision are required to uphold the principles for assessment and appeals set out in the Assessment, Grading and Certification Policy and the Appeals Policy.   

Section 2 - PROCEDURE FOR THE REVIEW OF A PROVISIONAL ASSESSMENT DECISION  

Two Types of Appeal   

(8) As indicated in the Appeals Policy, learners may choose from one of the two following options when seeking to challenge a decision specified in the Appeals Policy. This document describes the process for a review — the first of these options, conducted at programme level for provisional assessment decisions.  

(9) A review is a request by a student that the Programme Director (or nominee acting on their behalf) reviews a provisional assessment result. It is conducted at programme level and addresses the marking of an assessment. It is based on one (or more) of the 3 grounds of appeal.    

Submitting an Application for a Review  

(10) The student submits an application in writing to the Assessment and Awards Office of  The Department of the Registrar, stating the grounds under which they are appealing the provisional assessment decision.  

(11) A completed application includes:  

1. Verifiable evidence in support of the student’s assertions.  
2. Payment of the appropriate fee (which is refunded if the review results in a revised grade and/or feedback is significantly adjusted to the extent that the previous feedback is no longer valid. Acknowledgement of very minor errors in feedback may not result in a change in grade or refund due to the threshold for grounds of appeal not being met).  

Assessing the Validity of the Application  

(12) An initial desk-based review is conducted by AAO to ensure that the review cites one or more of the valid grounds for review, the validity of the evidence of the grounds is determined as part of the review or appeal process.   

(13) If the submission is deemed to either be incomplete or have no valid grounds cited or both, the student is notified in writing by AAO  with the rationale for the invalid status of the application outlined. 

(14) If the submission is deemed complete and to have grounds, it is forwarded to the Programme Director or nominee for consideration.  

Outcomes 

(15) The Programme Director, or nominee, considers the student’s application and the original provisional assessment decision and determines if a different provisional assessment decision is required.  

(16) This may include a second grading of any piece of student effort if the Programme Director, or nominee, deems this to be the appropriate course of action.  

(17) A review may result in:  

1. Upheld: A new grade, in which case, a new provisional assessment decision is released, accompanied by feedback provided by the reviewer or in the case of a second grading, by the academic faculty who completed this second grading. 
2. Not Upheld: No change in the grade, in which case, the student is informed of this fact in writing. 
3. A minor change in feedback and/or minor change to marks on specific sections of the assessment which does not impact on the overall provisional grade and where the threshold for grounds of appeal has not been met.  

(18) Where a review results in a revised grade, this fact is reported to the Board of Examiners.  

Communications  

(19) The Programme Director or nominee communicates the decision in respect of the student’s work to AAO in the Department of the Registrar.  

(20) AAO advises the student of the outcome and the right to appeal in respect of the conduct of the review only.  

Right of Appeal  

(21) Where a provisional assessment decision is reviewed:  

1. The assessment decision cannot be appealed again under the Appeals Policy. This means that where a component of a module result is reviewed, any appeal against the module result cannot include grounds relating to this decision.  
2. The student has a right of appeal in respect of the conduct of the review, where grounds as specified in the Appeals Policy are met.