Procedures for Student Appeals


1. Governing Policy

These procedures are governed by the Policy on Student Appeals.

2. Principles

The responsible officer or committee handling an application for review or appeal will:

  1. determine the matter on the basis of evidence brought forward by the student and/or the University, act fairly, and in accordance with the relevant policy and procedures;
  2. give all relevant parties a copy of, or an opportunity to inspect, all documentation relevant to the subject matter of the application;
  3. give the student the opportunity to make a case or response in writing and/or to appear before that person or committee;
  4. give the parties at least five working days’ written notice of the date, time and place of any meeting or hearing regarding the application;
  5. permit a student, and any support person whom a student appoints under Section 6 of the policy, to be present at any meeting or hearing regarding the application, except where members of a committee wish to confer privately among themselves or to consider their decision;
  6. conduct any meeting(s) or hearing(s) in closed session and treat the application in strict confidence, except as necessary for the discharge of that person’s or committee’s responsibilities, or as otherwise required by law.

3. Grounds for review or appeal

3.1 An application for review or an appeal must be based on one of the following criteria:

  1. alleged failure by a staff member or any other person to execute responsibilities under the relevant published University regulation, rule or policy;
  2. other failure to adhere to the relevant published University regulation, rule or policy;
  3. any penalty imposed which is inconsistent with the penalties available under the relevant University regulation, rule or policy.

3.2 An application which does not satisfy the grounds for review or appeal above will be dismissed.

3.3 Consistent with Section 9 of this procedure, failure by the student to make available to any stage of a review or appeal all relevant material reasonably available at the time is not adequate grounds for appeal against the decision on that application.

3.4 A judgement regarding the academic merit of any work or any grade assigned, where such judgement must be based on reassessment of content, cannot be made by any person or committee dealing with an application for review or appeal. However, the matter may be referred for independent reassessment of the content by an internal and/or external expert if appropriate.

3.5 Matters relating to the development or substance of any published University regulation, rule or policy are not open to an application for review or appeal under this policy.

4. Initial discussion

A student who is concerned with any academic or administrative decision, or who believes an error has been made, should consult with the officer who made the relevant decision, to be provided with any further information and/or to gain an understanding of the basis for the decision. Such consultation should normally be initiated by the student within 10 working days of being notified of the relevant decision.

5. Progression of formal applications for review or appeal

5.1 Stages of review or appeal

If a student wishes to pursue a matter following initial discussion under Section 4, the student may submit, sequentially:

  1. an application for review under Section 6;
  2. an appeal under Sections 7 and 8.

5.2 Progression through stages of review or appeal

A student must complete the review process and then exhaust any lower level of appeal before proceeding to the next higher level.

5.3 Timing

Any formal application for review or appeal must be lodged by the student within 20 working days of notification of any decision in respect of which the application for review or appeal is lodged.

5.4 Formal application

A formal application for review or appeal must:

  1. be submitted in writing and using the relevant form;
  2. be dated and signed by the student;
  3. provide the student number and contact details of the student;
  4. set out the grounds for the application for review or appeal under Section 3.1;
  5. provide details of the subject matter of the application for review or appeal and, in particular, details of the decision for which review is sought, or against which the appeal is made;
  6. provide details of the published University regulation, rule or policy which the student considers has not been observed;
  7. include copies of any supporting information or evidence on which the student relies. Normally certified copies of original documents should be submitted.

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6. Formal application for review

6.1 Application for review

A student who remains dissatisfied or unclear in relation to a decision following initial discussion under Section 4 and who wishes to obtain formal review about any academic or administrative decision affecting them as a student, should raise the matter in writing with the responsible officer, normally the Course Coordinator or Manager in the relevant organisational unit, for review of a decision within the scope of this policy. Schedule 1 of this procedure identifies topics that may give rise to a review or appeal, and the responsible officers for each level of the process.

6.2 Timing of application for review

The application for review must be in writing on the relevant form and be received by the reviewing officer within 20 working days of notification of the decision to the student.

6.3 Conduct of review

6.3.1 The reviewing officer, or nominee, will conduct the review. If that officer had previously been involved in the decision to which the review relates, the material will be referred to another staff member or other appropriate person nominated by that officer’s supervisor.

6.3.2 Action will be initiated in response to any application for review within 10 working days of receipt of the application by the reviewing officer.

6.3.3 The reviewing officer will respond to the student in writing within 10 working days and advise that the matter is being investigated. In the case of an international student this is also a requirement of the ESOS Act and National Code.

6.3.4 The reviewing officer, or nominee may:

  1. interview staff involved in the decision-making;
  2. interview the student, whether at the initiative of the officer or in response to the student’s written application for review;

6.3.5 The reviewing officer, or nominee, may seek advice from other relevant staff and/or access advice and/or expertise from such other person(s) as they deem appropriate.

6.3.6 The reviewing officer will provide a report to the senior officer documenting the review to date together with a recommendation for decision. The senior officer is usually the Head of School, or equivalent 1 , or Senior Manager in the relevant organisational unit.

6.4 Determination and notification of decision on review by senior officer

Following such investigation, the senior officer will:

  1. consider the report provided by the reviewing officer;
  2. determine the outcome of the review; and
  3. advise the student of the decision in accordance with Section 12.

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7. Formal appeal against a decision to Executive Dean or Director

7.1 Avenue of appeal

7.1.1 An appeal against a decision of a senior officer regarding an academic matter under Section 6.4 may be made to the relevant Executive Dean.
7.1.2 An appeal against a decision of the senior officer responsible for an administrative organisational unit under Section 6.4 may be made to the relevant Director.

7.2 Timing of appeal

The appeal must be in writing, using the relevant form, addressed to and received by the relevant Executive Dean or Director within 20 working days of receipt by the student of notification of the decision on the review.

7.3 Action by Executive Dean or Director

7.3.1 Action will be initiated in response to an application for appeal within 10 working days of receipt of the application by the Executive Dean or Director.

7.3.2 The Executive Dean or Director will respond to the student in writing within 10 working days and advise that the matter is being investigated. In the case of an international student this is also a requirement of the ESOS Act and National Code.

7.3.3 If the Executive Dean or Director considers that the student’s appeal does not satisfy the appeal criteria set out in Section 3.1, or does not establish a prima facie case consistent with the criteria, the Executive Dean or Director may dismiss the appeal and will notify the student accordingly.

7.3.4 If the Executive Dean or Director considers that the subject matter of the appeal falls within the scope of the policy, satisfies the appeal criteria set out in Section 3.1 and establishes a prima facie case then:

  1. if the Executive Dean or Director considers that the appeal should be upheld, they may determine the appeal;
  2. if the Executive Dean or Director considers that the appeal introduces new evidence or new grounds for appeal consistent with Section 10 of these procedures, they may refer the matter back to the previous level for determination;
  3. they may establish a Faculty/Administration Appeals Committee to consider the case and provide advice upon which the Executive Dean or Director will make their determination.

7.4 Faculty/Administration Appeals Committee

7.4.1 A Faculty Appeals Committee will comprise two members of academic staff and one student appointed by the Executive Dean. Any person who has had any previous involvement in the matter under appeal will not be appointed to the Committee.

7.4.2 An Administration Appeals Committee will comprise two members of staff, one of whom must be an academic staff member, and one student appointed by the relevant Director. Any person who has had any previous involvement in the matter under appeal will not be appointed to the Committee.

7.4.3 The Faculty/Administration Committee will be convened as soon as possible to hear the appeal. The student must be notified of the date of the meeting and has the right to attend any meeting of the committee in line with Section 2 of this procedure. The Committee will have access to all documentation used in the review process and may conduct such investigations as it deems appropriate.

7.5 Report of Faculty/Administration Appeals Committee

The Faculty/Administration Appeals Committee will provide a report to the Executive Dean or Director.

The report will specify:

  1. the process undertaken during the appeal;
  2. the evidence they relied upon in making their determination;
  3. the recommendation(s) on the appeal; and
  4. the reasons for the recommendation(s).

7.6 Determination and notification of decision on appeal

Following such investigation, the Executive Dean or Director will:

  1. determine the appeal; and
  2. advise the student of the decision on the appeal in accordance with Section 12.

7.7 Subject to Section 8 of this procedure, in the majority of cases the decision of the Executive Dean or Director will be final.

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8. Appeal to the University Appeals Committee

8.1 Avenue of appeal

An appeal may be made to the University Appeals Committee on the following matters:

  1. Termination of enrolment under the Academic Regulations;
  2. Decision of a Head of School or equivalent, or Executive Dean, or the Provost under the Academic Honesty Policy;
  3. Decision relating to a breach of the Examination Policy.

8.2 Timing of appeal

The appeal must be submitted in writing to the Academic Registrar within 20 working days of receipt by the student of the decision on the appeal under Sections 7.

8.3 Action by the Academic Registrar

8.3.1 If the Academic Registrar considers that the student’s appeal does not satisfy the appeal criteria as set out in Section 3.1 or does not establish a prima facie case on a subject matter under Section 8.1, the Academic Registrar may dismiss the appeal and will notify the student accordingly.

8.3.2 If the Academic Registrar considers that the subject matter of the appeal does satisfy the appeal criteria set out in Section 3.1 and does establish a prima facie case on a subject matter under Section 8.1 then:

  1. if the Academic Registrar considers the appeal introduces new evidence or new grounds for appeal under Section 9, they may refer the matter back to a lower level for determination;
  2. if the Academic Registrar considers that that the appeal warrants reconsideration at a lower level, they may be refer it back to that lower level for determination;
  3. in all other cases, they will refer the matter to a University Appeals Committee;

8.4 Action will be initiated in response to any application for appeal within 10 working days of receipt of the application by the Academic Registrar.

8.5 In all cases the Academic Registrar will acknowledge receipt of the appeal and notify the student of the course of action being pursued in writing within 10 working days. In the case of an international student this is also a requirement of the ESOS Act and National Code.

8.6 The University Appeals Committee will comprise:

  1. the Chair, appointed by the Chair, Academic Board;
  2. two members of staff, at least one of whom must be an academic staff member, appointed by the Chair, Academic Board, or nominee;
  3. one student appointed by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Students, Learning and Teaching) 2 .

The quorum for a meeting of a University Appeals Committee will be three persons including the student member.

8.7 A University Appeals Committee will not include:

  1. the Executive Dean of the Faculty or Head of School, or equivalent, responsible for any program or unit which is the subject of the appeal;
  2. the Director or other senior officer responsible for any organisational unit providing services of the type to which the appeal relates;
  3. any person who has given advice to the student in relation to the subject matter of the appeal.

8.8 A University Appeals Committee will:

  1. be convened and conduct such investigations as it deems appropriate as expeditiously as possible, consistent with the requirement to act fairly;
  2. proceed in a way that is appropriate to the circumstances of the case;
  3. have access to all documentation used in the review and appeal processes and determine either to deal with the matter or to make some other recommendation(s) to the University;
  4. in the event that it decides to deal with the matter, consider the information and documentation used in the review and appeal processes, together with evidence presented by the University and/or the student, excluding any new evidence, in which case Section 9 applies;
  5. provide the student with five days’ notice of the date of any meeting.

8.9 A University Appeals Committee may:

  1. confirm or vary the decision appealed;
  2. confirm or vary any penalty appealed; or
  3. uphold the appeal.

8.10 The Chair of the University Appeals Committee will provide a report on the Committee’s deliberations and decision to the Academic Registrar who will advise the student in writing of the decision on the appeal.

8.11 The decision of a University Appeals Committee is final and there is no avenue of appeal against the decision to any other person or body within the University.

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9. New evidence or new grounds for review or appeal

9.1 As identified in Section 5.4 of the policy, no new evidence or grounds for appeal based on such evidence, may be submitted at any later stage of the review or appeal process, unless:

  1. there has been a major change in circumstance following the lodging of the initial application which, in the view of the officer or committee handling the application, justifies the subsequent, exceptional submission of the evidence; and
  2. the information or evidence has a significant bearing on the application and that information or evidence was not reasonably available at the time the appeal was first lodged.

9.2 Where such a major change in circumstance has arisen and the responsible officer or committee dealing with the application determines that it and the associated information or evidence should be taken into consideration, if thought appropriate, the matter will be referred back to the level of the officer who undertook the initial review, for further consideration.

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10. Student attendance

Failure of the student and/or the student’s support person to appear for discussion of any request for review or any appeal or to appear before any University officer or committee, at the time notified to them, will not prevent the relevant officer or committee from proceeding to investigate and determine the matter.

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11. Applications for review or appeal involving allegations concerning a staff member

In any case where a student’s application for review or appeal includes specific allegations against the conduct of a member of staff which might be in contravention of the Staff Code of Conduct, the officer receiving the application should refer to the relevant Executive Dean, or Academic Registrar, for a decision as to whether the matter should be considered under the Student Appeals Policy, the Student Complaint Management Policy or the relevant Human Resources Policy.

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12. Notification and recording of decisions

12.1 Notification to student

The student will be notified of the decision on any application for review or any level of appeal under this policy normally within 20 working days of the student’s lodgement of the application for review or appeal at that level.

The student will be notified of:

  1. the process undertaken to consider the application;
  2. the decision on the application;
  3. the reason(s) for that decision and any associated recommendation(s);
  4. any penalty imposed and any conditions thereon;
  5. the avenue of appeal available to the student.

In any case in which the matter has been referred to a Faculty or Administration Appeals Committee, or the University Appeals Committee, the student will be provided with a copy of the report of that Committee.

In the case of an international student whose enrolment has been terminated, the student will also be notified of the possible implications of the decision on the student’s visa 3 .

12.2 Record of decision and advice to student

A copy of the decision on any application for review or any appeal will be provided, as relevant, to the Provost, Executive Dean, Head of School, or equivalent, Course Coordinator, Academic Registrar, other Director and/or such other officer(s) as may need to take action as a result of the decision. The copy of the decision will be held in a confidential file in the office of the relevant organisational unit.

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SCHEDULE 1

The following tables detail the type of review and/or appeals covered by the Policy on Student Appeals for academic and administrative matters, and the responsible officer for each level of the review and appeal. The review stage must be completed before proceeding to the appeal stage, and each appeal stage must be completed before proceeding to the next higher level of appeal.

TABLE 1: Academic Matters

Type of Review
and/or Appeal		 Application for Review
Responsible Officers		 Appeal
Responsible
Officer		 Further
Appeal
Reviewing Officer Senior Officer
Admission to a program under the Admissions Policy Manager,
Admissions		 Assistant Academic Registrar
(Administrative Services)		 Academic Registrar na
International student admission to a program Associate Director,
International Admissions and Student Relations		 Executive Director,
ACU International		 Provost na
Granting of credit under the Academic Regulations Course Coordinator Head of School,
or equivalent		 Executive Dean na
Recognition of prior learning under the Policy on Recognition of Prior Learning Course Coordinator Head of School,
or equivalent		 Executive Dean na
An assessment decision (including a final grade in a unit) under the Academic Regulations or Assessment Policy Lecturer in Charge Head of School,
or equivalent		 Executive Dean na
An assessment decision regarding an Honours classification under the Academic Regulations Course Coordinator Head of School,
or equivalent		 Executive Dean na
Termination of enrolment for unsatisfactory academic progress under the Academic Regulations Course Coordinator Head of School,
or equivalent		 Executive Dean University Appeals Committee*
Program completion under the relevant program rules Course Coordinator Head of School,
or equivalent		 Executive Dean na
A decision of Head of School or equivalent under the Academic Honesty Policy na na Executive Dean University Appeals Committee*
Breach of the Examination Policy and Procedures under the Academic Honesty Policy na na Executive Dean University Appeals Committee*


* An appeal to the University Appeals Committee should be forwarded to the Academic Registrar who will initiate action to bring it before the University Appeals Committee.

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TABLE 2: Administrative Matters

Type of Review
and/or Appeal		 Application for Review
Responsible Officers		 Appeal
Responsible
Officer		 Further
Appeal
Reviewing Officer Senior Officer
Administration of the Commonwealth Government’s Higher Education Loan Program (eg HECS-HELP, FEE-HELP) Manager,
Enrolments, Fees & Scholarships		 Assistant Academic Registrar
(Administrative Services)		 Academic Registrar na
Administration of the Commonwealth Government’s Higher Education Loan Program OS-HELP Manager,
Study Abroad and Exchange		 Associate Director,
International Admissions and Student Relations		 Executive Director, ACU International na
Award of Commonwealth Scholarships Team Leader,
Fees and Scholarships		 Manager,
Enrolments, Fees & Scholarships		 Academic Registrar na
Enrolment (administrative decisions) Team Leader, Enrolments Manager,
Enrolments, Fees & Scholarships		 Academic Registrar na
Fees/financial liability Team Leader,
Fees and Scholarships		 Manager,
Enrolments, Fees & Scholarships		 Academic Registrar na
Fee for late enrolment or late payment of fees Team Leader,
Fees and Scholarships		 Manager,
Enrolments, Fees & Scholarships		 Academic Registrar na
Notification of cancellation of Confirmation of Enrolment (COE) to the relevant Australian Government department Senior Compliance Coordinator,
ACU International		 Associate Director, International Admissions and Student Relations Executive Director,
ACU International		 na
Refusal to grant a letter of release to an international student prior to the expiration of six calendar months in the student’s principal course of study Senior Compliance Coordinator,
ACU International		 Associate Director, International Admissions and Student Relations Executive Director,
ACU International		 na

 

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1 For these Procedures, Head of School, or equivalent includes the positions of National Head of School, State Head and Deputy Head of School.
2 Normally a postgraduate student will be appointed in relation to an appeal by a postgraduate student, and an undergraduate student will be appointed in relation to an appeal by an undergraduate student.
3 It is the responsibility of the student to comply with all visa conditions and to notify the relevant Australian Government department of any change in their enrolment status.

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Page last updated: 2017-06-27

Short url: https://handbook.acu.edu.au/756927

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