The College Undergraduate Studies Committee have set up a working group to review the examinations appeal process, with the aim of reducing the number of appeals heard by the Court of Academic Appeal.
The draft recommendations of the committee will be brought to University Council in January, the Senior Lecturer, Prof Gillian Martin, told The University Times by email.
Under the current system, there are two stages for students to appeal supplemental examination results. They first appeal to the Court of First Appeal, usually found within a student’s faculty or school. The second stage is the Court of Academic Appeal, which normally only deals with special cases and appeals from the decisions of the Court of First Appeal.
If an appeal to the Court of First Appeal is made late, it must then be heard by the Court of Academic Appeal. The number of appeals that went to the Court of Academic Appeal rose by over 21 per cent from 2014.
One of the reasons that the Court of Academic Appeal has seen an increase in direct applications is because any late appeals must bypass the Court of First Appeal, and be heard by the academic appeals court.
The working group will investigate the reasons for pressures on the appeals process, and will be chaired by the Senior Lecturer, Prof Gillian Martin, and will include the Senior Tutor, Dr Claire Laudet, and the College Registrar, Prof Shane Allwright.
Speaking to The University Times, Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union (TCDSU) Education Officer, Molly Kenny, expressed cautious support for the changes: “It’s a good idea for students if it is well publicised, and the rules are made very clear to students before the examination period. It is a good idea so that students know exactly what they entitled to and not entitled to.”
Kenny identified the main problems with the current appeals process, notably the time pressure and the lack of clarity in the rules. She commented that: “This year I think three cases were overturned when they went to the Senior Lecturer’s office that were made at the Court of First Appeal, because the Court Of First Appeal didn’t know what power it did have, and that’s a massive issue for students.”
In some cases, according to Kenny, there are only 24 hours between the time a student receives their results and the deadline for the submission of an appeal. This can cause significant difficulties for students as they have to contact their tutor and discuss their options with their them in a very short timeframe. If the appeal is submitted late, it must be submitted to the Court of Academic Appeal.
Another problem encountered by students is that, when the appeals are heard by the Court of Academic Appeal, the results can come out late in the year, hindering the ability of students to rejoin their class. It can also limit students’ module choices as they may have missed too much by the time their appeal has been processed.
Commenting on the flaws in the appeals process, she stated: “Currently it is so vague and the different practices in different schools means that there are some students that are benefitting from their school being very lax in it, but a lot of students aren’t.”
Kenny further commented that the office that deals with student cases is short-staffed and overworked. She expressed hope that next year the system would be more efficient and that students would have a clear understanding of the process.
