Category 1 Appeals

Prior to contacting the instructor for an appeal, you are strongly encouraged to layout your arguments or grounds in writing, and, if applicable, have all of the supporting documentation available.  

Grounds for appeals on a specific course may include things such as bias, inaccuracy or unfairness.  In your arguments, clearly indicate the detailed reasons in a concise manner; for example:

• in a multiple-choice exam, provide the justifications of why your incorrect choice of a question should be also accepted as the correct answer;
• if you find an exam question ambiguous, clearly state your interpretation and how it led to your answer deemed incorrect;
• if you find the grading practice to be unfair or bias, explain how it affects your grade and the grades of other students in the same class.

Ignorance of Senate regulations and policies and particular program requirements and policies as set out in the University Calendar does not constitute grounds for an appeal.

The personal need of the appellant alone (to keep a scholarship, or to qualify an entrance requirement) does not constitute grounds for an appeal.

If you are unsure whether the grounds of your appeal are valid, you are advised to contact the Office of the Ombudsperson for advice. 

The appellant’s discussion with an instructor could take place either in-person or in writing. In either format, appellant should present his/her reasons for the request for relief, and allow the instructor to respond.

If the appellant and the instructor could not come to an agreement, the appellant should briefly record the points raised by both sides in writing, and send the summary to the instructor for verification.

If the instructor agrees to grant the request, he/she will make the necessary changes on the appellant’s record.  No further action is required.

If the appellant is dissatisfied with the decision of the instructor, a written request for relief may be submitted to the Undergraduate Chair. The summary resulted from the consultation with the instructor should be used as the basis for the appeal. The appeal to the Undergraduate Chair should directly address why the instructor’s decision should be overturned. It should not contain any reasons that have not been presented to the instructor. The Undergraduate Chair will formally respond to the student in writing informing his/her decision.

If the Undergraduate Chair agrees to grant you the appeal, he/she will make the necessary changes on your record. No further reporting is required.

The contact information of Undergraduate/Department Chairs in Science and Basic Medical Sciences can be found here.

An appeal against a decision of the Undergraduate Chair must be made to the Associate/Assistant Dean in writing not later than three weeks after the Undergraduate Chair's decision is issued. All correspondence between the student, instructor and Undergraduate Chair, and any relevant information and documentation must be provided to the Associate/Assistant Dean.

The appeal to the Associate/Assistant Dean should directly address why the appellant believes the Undergraduate Chair’s decision should be overturned. It should not contain any new reasons that have not been presented to the instructor and Undergraduate Chair. The Associate/Assistant Dean will formally respond to the appellant in writing informing his/her decision.

Please send the appeal to the Associate/Assistant Dean according to the course that the appeal is directed to:

• For 1000-level courses in Science (ACTURSCI, APPLMATH, ASTRONOM, BIOLOGY, CALCULUS, CHEM, COMPSCI, EARTHSCI, ENVIRSCI, INTEGSCI, MATH, PHYSICS, STATS)
  Contact: Denis Maxwell, Assistant Dean, First Year Studies
  Email: dmaxwell@uwo.ca 

• For 2000-, 3000- and 4000-level courses in Science (ACTURSCI, APPLMATH, ASTRONOM, BIOLOGY, CALCULUS, CHEM, COMPSCI, EARTHSCI, ENVIRSCI, FINMOD, INTEGSCI, MATH, PHYSICS, STATS)
  Contact: Prof. Ken Yeung
  Email: aadasci@uwo.ca

• For all courses in Basic Medical Sciences (ANATCELL, BIOCHEM, BIOSTATS, CHEMBIO, EPID, EPIDEMIO, MEDBIO, MEDSCIEN, NEURO, MICROIMM, MEDHINFO, PATHOL, PHARM, PHYSIOL, PHYSPHRM)
  Contact: Brad Urquhart, Associate Dean, Basic Medical Sciences Undergraduate Education
  Email: brad.urquhart@schulich.uwo.ca 

A student may appeal the decision of a Dean to the Senate Review Board Academic only if the decision falls within the jurisdiction of SRBA as set out below under APPEALS TO SRBA. A Dean's decision which is appealed to SRBA remains in full force and effect unless overturned or modified by SRBA. Please consult the university's official policy for more details.