Academic Appeals

Final Grades

Appeals of final course grades must be initiated by the student/resident within five (5) working days of receipt of the disputed grade.  The five working day time period may be extended by the School of Dentistry for good cause documented by the student.  

The official date of receipt for a disputed grade shall be determined as the date when the student receives an automated enrollment change notification email from PeopleSoft reflecting their updated course grade.  

To appeal a final course grade, the student must first meet with the course director to discuss the situation and attempt to establish resolution. If the matter is not resolved between the student and the course director and the student wishes to pursue the appeal, he/she must then make an appeal in writing to the chair of the department in which the course was taught requesting a meeting with the department chair.  Upon receipt of a written appeal of a final course grade from a student, the department chair shall arrange a meeting with the student within ten (10) working days of receipt of the request. The only parties to the meeting are the department chair and the student.  At this meeting, the student shall be given the opportunity to be heard in regard to the written appeal that he/she filed.  Within five (5) working days of the meeting, the department chair shall render a decision that accepts or rejects the appeal.  The decision of the department chair shall include written reasons for the acceptance or rejection of the appeal.  

If the student is dissatisfied with the decision of the department chair, he/she may submit notification and justification of his/her dissatisfaction to the Academic Dean in writing.  The student’s written appeal of the department chair’s decision must be submitted to the Academic Dean within five (5) working days after notification of the department chair’s decision.  

The Academic Dean will forward the notification and justification received to the Dean who, in turn, will appoint a three-faculty member Ad Hoc Academic Appeals Committee. The Ad Hoc Academic Appeals Committee shall review the written justification for the appeal submitted by the student and offer the student the opportunity to meet with the members of this committee to personally present the justification and answer questions of the committee members for clarification. The only parties in the meeting are the members of the Ad Hoc Academic Appeals Committee and the student. The Ad Hoc Academic Appeals Committee can meet with the department chair or course director to ask questions or obtain other information.  

The Ad Hoc Academic Appeals Committee shall render a recommendation in writing to the Dean within fifteen (15) working days from its appointment. The decision of the Ad Hoc Academic Appeals Committee shall include written reasons for their decision.  

The Dean shall consider the recommendation of the Ad Hoc Academic Appeals Committee and render a decision on the appeal within thirty (30) days from the date of receipt of the recommendation. The dean may elect to meet with the student, the course director and/or the department chair prior to rendering a decision.  The decision of the Dean shall be in writing to the student and copies of the decision shall be given to all parties. The decision of the appeal reached by the Dean represents the final level of due process in the School of Dentistry.  

Action of Academic Performance Advancement Committees

Appeals of action(s) taken by any of the APACs must be initiated within five (5) working days after receipt of notification of the committee action(s). The five working day time period may be extended by the School of Dentistry for good cause documented by the student. The initiation of the appeal must be in writing to the Academic Dean and contain the following information: (1) a statement of the actions complained of, (2) the relief requested, and (3) a specific statement of the reasons supporting the relief sought.  

Upon receipt and review of a written appeal by a student of an action taken by the APAC, the Dean, or the Dean’s designee, may reject the appeal or may accept the appeal. The decision of the Dean, or the Dean’s designee, in rejecting or accepting the appeal shall include written reasons for the acceptance or rejection of the appeal. The decision of the Dean or the Dean’s designee shall be in writing and copies of the decision shall be given to all parties. If the Dean, or the Dean’s designee rejects the appeal, the matter is closed.  If the Dean or the Dean’s designee accepts the appeal, then the matter shall be referred back to the relevant APAC for re-consideration of any procedural or substantive issue noted by the Dean, or the Dean’s designee.  The relevant APAC shall re-convene for reconsideration. At the reconvened meeting of the APAC, the committee members will review the written statement of appeal submitted to the Dean and the written decision of the Dean or the Dean’s designee.  The student will be offered the opportunity to address the reconvened committee to personally present the statement of appeal and answer questions of the committee members for clarification.  

The APAC shall make its recommendation to the Dean or the Dean’s designee within five (5) working days of this reconvened meeting. The Dean or the Dean’s designee shall consider the recommendation and render a decision on the appeal within thirty (30) days from the date of receipt of the recommendation.  The decision of the Dean or Dean’s designee shall be in writing and copies of the decision shall be given to all parties. The decision of the appeal reached by the Dean represents the final level of due process in the School of Dentistry.  

Withdrawals

A student who for legitimate reasons is unable to return to school at the opening of any semester or who, for acceptable reasons, must discontinue school during the academic year will ordinarily be permitted to withdraw in good standing. A student who withdraws from the school will receive a “W” grade for each course that is less than 80% completed, according to assigned clock hours. For courses that are 80% or more complete at the time of withdrawal, a “W” will be recorded when student performance is satisfactory, or an “F” will be recorded when student performance is unsatisfactory. A student who has withdrawn in good standing may apply for readmission through the Academic Dean for consideration by the APAC on the basis of the student’s status at the time of withdrawal. In general, a student will not be considered for readmission if the absence has been for more than two (2) consecutive years.

Approved Absences

The School of Dentistry does not have excused absences for individual days missed.  Such absences are addressed in the Attendance Policy, stated in the Student Handbook, and referred to in each course syllabus. 

The Dean or Academic Dean may grant a formal request for an Approved Absence for medical, personal, or professional (to represent the school at a professional meeting) reasons for absence requests encompassing a period of five (5) consecutive school days or more.  The student should contact the Office of Academic Affairs for the criteria for consideration of such an Approved Absence. 

When requesting an Approved Absence, the request:

• Must be in writing (email is acceptable) and addressed to the Academic Dean.
• Must include the reason for the requested absence, the ‘start date’ and ‘expected’ date of return.  If the request is for:
  • Medical Reasons, a note from the treating physician recommending/ordering the time to be missed is required.
  • Personal Reasons, an explanation is required and the decision to grant is under the Academic Dean’s purview. 
  • Professional Reasons, the request must include the name of the professional meeting being attended, the student’s role in the meeting (officer or official representative of the school or organization) and support for the request must be submitted by the:
    • Faculty Advisor for the organization;
    • Office of Student Affairs; or 
    • Office of the Dean, whichever is appropriate; and
• Must be for at least five (5) consecutive school days if the request is for either an Approved Absence for medical reasons or for personal reasons.