Academic Grievance Process

The unit defines a formal candidate/student complaint as any grievable issue between a candidate/student and a unit faculty or staff member that good faith efforts have failed to resolve, and has been submitted in writing by the candidate/student to that faculty or staff member’s supervisor—department chairs, directors, deans—for further consideration and resolution. Grievable issues include, but are not limited to, student requests for academic mediation in all matters and, specifically, those involving contested grades and grading procedures.

To initiate a formal grievance procedure, the student must complete the Student Grievance Form (Parts I and II) (PDF) and submit it, with pertinent supporting documents, to the appropriate department/office head.

The department/office head will mediate the resolution of the grievance issue between the concerned parties, in accordance with established procedures, and complete the Student Grievance Form with detailed description of action taken and final resolution/decision (Parts III and IV). Once the process is complete, the student, faculty/staff member involved, and the department/office head should sign the completed Student Grievance Form, and copies should be distributed to the student, the faculty/staff/administrator involved, the department/office head, and the associate dean.