Special Circumstances and Appeals
What to do if you've been affected by adverse circumstances or wish to make an appeal based on assessment results.
If you feel that adverse circumstances have affected your performance, you are entitled to bring this information to the attention of the Centre for Open Learning.
Adverse circumstances
Students should contact us if they faced adverse circumstances and are seeking an extension for an assessment or for special circumstances to be considered by the Centre for Open Learning's Special Circumstance Committee.
Who to contact?
Students can request and Extension or submit a Special Circumstance application via the University’s Central Extensions and Special Circumstances Service. Information about eligibility, how to apply and evidence required can be found on the Extensions and Special Circumstances website. Please consult your Personal Tutor and/or Student Support Team for assistance in completing a Special Circumstances form.
What happens next?
Your case will be considered by COL’s Special Circumstances Committee, which meets in February, May and July.
Academic Appeals
An academic appeal is a request for a decision made by the Board of Examiners to be reconsidered. There are limited grounds for appeal:
- Substantial information directly relevant to the quality of performance in the assessment which for good reason was not available to the Board of Examiners when their decision was taken.
- Alleged irregular procedure or improper conduct of an assessment. For this purpose “conduct of an assessment” includes conduct of a meeting of the Board of Examiners.
If you have concerns about some aspect of your academic performance or assessment that were not made available to the Board, you should first of all raise these concerns as soon as possible with the Centre for Open Learning via COL@ed.ac.uk
How to submit an appeal
By email
If you decide, after you have raised your concerns, to submit an appeal then you should send your submission in writing (by email if possible) to Registry Academic Services via Academic.Appeals@ed.ac.uk
By post
If you would prefer to submit your appeal by post, please send the information to: Academic Services - Appeals.
You should submit your appeal no later than 10 working days after receiving your final marks via EUCLID.
How long will it take?
The University aims to ensure that students are notified of the outcome of an appeal with 30 working days.