The University has a responsibility to provide fair and equitable procedures for the lodging and hearing of student complaints arising out of University regulations, policies and actions that affect students directly. The procedures described in the Student Appeal Procedures are intended to provide a mechanism to fairly address alleged injustices.
Only students of McMaster University may appeal to the Board. A ‘student’ is defined for the purposes of these Procedures as any individual recorded by the University Registrar as enrolled in an educational course of study recognised by the Senate and for whom the University maintains educational records. This means that Non-Academic Certificates and Non-Academic Microcredentials are not appealable.
The Office of Academic Integrity assists instructors, students and staff with academic and research integrity matters.
Information for students on the different types of accommodations, appeals and petitions.
The Ombuds Office provides advice and assistance in the resolution of concerns and complaints. The Ombuds Office assists with student-related academic and non-academic issues.
Student Accessibility Services (SAS) supports students with disabilities through academic accommodations and related supports at McMaster.
The Student Case Management Office (SCM) provides support to students throughout their time at university, providing resources to manage issues as well as crisis prevention and intervention for students who may be experiencing difficulty on campus.
Provides consultation on issues related to human rights. Acts as an Intake Office for formal complaints of discrimination, harassment or sexual violence.
Inclusive and Trauma-Informed Response and Support. Prevention Education and Response Training. Community Consultation and Referral.
ORCCA functions as a community resource for all Faculty of Health Sciences (FHS) members to educate, promote, support and address respectful conduct and behaviour across academic and clinical environments.
A Form A: Re-Read/Re-Assessment is when a student questions their grade or the assessment of their performance on a piece of work or a program component and alleges error in the academic assessment of their work on the part of an instructor or a committee. The results of a Form A shall be considered in accordance with the Student Appeal Procedures.
In order to qualify for a Form A the piece of work or program component must be worth 10% or more of the final course grade. The results of a Form A are usually issued within 7 weeks. The results of a Form A are final and are not appealable.
There is a $50 fee to file a Form A Re-Read/Re-Assessment.
Please note that each piece of work submitted requires a separate Form A and the payment of another $50 fee.
The Form A: Re-Read/Re-Assessment is now available as a fillable form in Word.
Master’s theses, doctoral theses, Ph.D. comprehensive examinations, Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCE), and supervisory committee reports are excluded from the re-read procedures.
Please note that Non-Academic Certificates and Non-Academic Microcredentials are not appealable.
Students are expected to initiate a preliminary inquiry by going directly to the appropriate instructor, officer or University authority whose decision/action is being questioned. If the preliminary inquiry has not resolved the matter in a timely fashion, proceed to filing the Form A.
The timelines for submitting the Form A must be adhered to.
Timelines are directly related to the Term in which the work was originally assessed. The Form A must be submitted no later than:
MCE students please note:
A grade change (on the piece of work) of three (3) points or greater UP or DOWN on the McMaster twelve-point grading scale will result in a revision of the grade for the piece of work.
The course grade will be recalculated accordingly.
For example, a grade change on the piece of work:
For the Faculty of Science the results shall be considered in accordance with the Faculty’s procedure.
The Arts & Science Program is responsible for INSPIRE courses.
Student Experience Office
Academic Advising Office
Office of the Associate Dean
Matters that are Directed to a Hearing at the Outset:
For these types of appeals, please visit the Form C: Appeal to the SBSA tab.
Before filing a Form B students are expected to initiate a preliminary inquiry by going directly to the appropriate instructor, officer or University authority whose decision/action is being questioned.
If the preliminary inquiry has not resolved the matter in a timely fashion, students should then proceed to filing the Form B.
The timelines for submitting a Form B must be adhered to.
Deadlines to file a Form B are directly related to the Term in which the work was originally assessed.
The Form B must be submitted to the appropriate Office no later than:
A student questions their grade or the assessment of their performance on a piece of work or in a course, or their academic standing or status in a program, and alleges error or injustice on grounds other than the academic assessment of their work, such as:
the method of evaluation was not fair and reasonable in the circumstances; or
the instructor was biased against the student; or
the instructor deviated substantially from the course outline in contravention of applicable University policies; or
the application of University regulations governing program or degree requirements was not fair, just, or reasonable.
A student questions as unfair, unjust or unreasonable, a decision or action of a University authority or official, which has negative material consequences for their University life, and which is unrelated to courses, or to program or degree requirements.
The matter will be investigated as per the Student Appeal Procedures and the Associate/Assistant Dean shall make a decision and respond in writing with reasons. This response is usually provided within three weeks of receiving the Form B formal inquiry.
Undergraduate Students are to submit to the Faculty/Program that is responsible for the decision being questioned.
For students in degree programs not offered by a Faculty (e.g. the Arts and Science Program), the Program Director is equivalent to the Associate Dean of a Faculty.
Graduate students are to submit their Form B to the School of Graduate Studies
An appeal to the Senate Board for Student Appeals (SBSA) is the final step a student may take within the University to secure a remedy. The decision from a lower level stays in effect unless and until it is overturned on appeal. This means that submitting an appeal will not prevent the decision being appealed from being carried out.
Students have three (3) weeks from receipt of the decision to file the Form C with the University Secretariat.
Decisions that may be appealed to the SBSA:
Hearings are usually scheduled between four (4) to eights (8) months after receipt of the appeal, but can take longer. Most hearings are scheduled in the Fall/Winter Terms. They are rarely scheduled in Spring/Summer.
Why does it take this long to schedule a hearing? The Respondent must provide a response to the appeal, which usually takes at least four (4) weeks. Scheduling can only begin after both parties’ submissions have been received because the number of witnesses testifying determines how much time is required for the hearing; and if the parties have Legal Counsel/Advisor, their availability will also affect the scheduling process.
The Form C is located on the Preparing Your Appeal Submission page where you will find important information on:
Administrative law is comprised of legal rules and common law principles, which govern the conduct of administrative tribunals. Administrative tribunals are meant to provide a less formal, decision-making process that is more efficient and flexible than the traditional court system. Nonetheless, tribunals cannot act beyond their legal authority or jurisdiction, and must adhere to the principles of procedural fairness.
The parties also have the right to meaningful participation in the hearing process. This usually means they have an opportunity to be heard, present their side of the story or dispute the other side’s story.
Parties should be allowed to present evidence and argument. Depending on the type of decision, this could be done through writing, phone, video or an in-person hearing.
The Appellant and Respondent (the “parties”) should be advised of the information that will be used by the tribunal in making its decision. Disclosure is integral to a party’s right to know the case to be met.
Disclosure includes the names of possible witnesses, and any documents or other materials submitted by the parties.
At a hearing, the parties are generally entitled to call witnesses to give evidence that supports their case.
Witnesses should be able to provide the Tribunal with direct evidence (preferably first-hand knowledge of the facts) about your case.
Both parties can ask questions of the other side, including the other party’s witnesses. This right is especially important in cases where the tribunal must determine the facts of the case because there are different views of the facts, the alleged violation is under dispute, and/or the issues are adversarial.
Parties may be represented by legal counsel, or accompanied an advisor such as a friend, a peer, or an advocate.
An impartial decision maker means that the Tribunal members who decide the case will be unbiased and will make a decision based only on the arguments and evidence presented at the hearing. It also means that the Tribunal members cannot have (or appear to have) any personal connection with the parties or any personal interest in the outcome of the case.
The Tribunal that hears the parties’ submissions during the hearing must be the person who decides the case.
The decision maker must give sufficient reasons for the decision. This helps the parties understand how the adjudicator came to that decision. What amounts to sufficient reasons depends on the type of decision. Generally, the more important the decision, the more thorough the reasons given are and are often in writing.