Feedback, complaints and appeal

Procedure

An appeal should be lodged with the Examination Appeals Board within 6 weeks of the decision being communicated to you/published.

1. Appeal against an examiner’s decision
2. Appeal against a decision by the Board of Examiners (BoE)

1. Dissatisfied with the exam (assessment)
Informal procedure:

1.1 If students are not satisfied with their examination, they should first discuss this with the course’s examiner. A student can request to inspect their results and to discuss the results with the examiner. If you have questions or doubts, this is the appropriate time to discuss them, to ask for clarification and, perhaps, to find a solution.
Is this purely a difference of opinion or is it much more than that? You can check the current rules and regulations on the student portal in the TER and RGBE.

1.2 Provide feedback through the course evaluations and panels that are being organised by the quality management team. These assessment methods allow the organisation to identify patterns or incidents, besides the useful information that is gained from individual feedback. Even if you and your examiner manage to resolve your grievance in 1.1, it is still important to take part in evaluations. By participating, you can contribute to structural improvements within  the faculty of ME. If you don’t know how you can participate in the evaluation of a particular course, you can ask onderwijsevaluatie-ME@tudelft.nl.

1.3 You can also provide feedback through the study association. They collect feedback and have regular contact with the education organisation. In this way, they represent the students and influence education and examination at ME.

Formal procedure:
Before you continue, consider if this issue is worthy of your time and effort. What is the detrimental effect of the exam/assessment/decision on you? What result do you hope and expect to achieve? Ask an academic counsellor for advice.

1.4 If you wish to lodge a formal appeal, you can do so with the Examination Appeals Board (EAB), within 6 weeks of the decision’s announcement. You need to explain why the decision was taken on the wrong grounds.
In these cases, the EAB asks the Board of Examiners to investigate whether or not an amicable settlement can be reached; the EAB must be informed within three weeks as to whether an amicable settlement has been reached. If this attempt is not successful, a hearing will take place before the EAB.

The amicable settlement meeting
An amicable settlement can prevent a time-consuming procedure. During a meeting, representatives of the Board of Examiners and the student investigate whether a hearing is necessary or not. The BoE will investigate whether the disputed decision was reasonable and fair, if rules and procedures were observed and whether the decision has had unintended side-effects. When a student is not satisfied with (the result of) their examination, the examiner will be asked for documents such as the student’s exam and the answer model.
First, the BoE will try to understand the situation and the nature of the objection. Then, they will tell the student whether the goal of the appeal is viable or not, and they will try to explain the why’s and wherefores behind rules and procedures. When a student objects to their examiner’s decision, the BoE will tell the student whether they think the appeal is justified or not. If the BoE agrees with the student, it can try to change the examiner’s mind. The Board cannot make changes to the examiner’s decision or force the examiner to change a grade. There are four possible outcomes:
1. The appeal seems to be justified and the BoE can offer the student the wished-for solution.
2. There is a compromise, the BoE proposes a ‘settlement’, something that meets the student’s need to some extent. This may be something very different from what was asked, yet addresses the underlying problem.
3. No settlement. The BoE sees no possibility of meeting the student’s needs and/or thinks the appeal is not justified. It is possible that the BoE advises the student to continue the appeal, when she deems a ‘verdict’ by the EAB necessary (e.g., to prevent future repetition of the problem).
4. The student concludes that continuing the appeals case is not worthwhile or advisable.
Following 1, 2 and 4, the student informs the EAB and the BoE that the appeal is withdrawn. When 3 does not result in 4, the student informs EAB and BoE that they will continue their appeal. The BoE will submit a ‘defense’ to the EAB, cc to the student, prior to the hearing.

The hearing and further proceedings
During the hearing, the EAB questions the student and a representative of the Board of Examiners at the same time. The EAB consists of three members, the chair (legal practitioner), a member of scientific staff and a student member. The EAB decision is communicated after the hearing.

The examiner is the authorised expert
The Dutch law states that examiners are responsible for conducting examinations and determining the results. In most cases, student appeals fail. Because an examiner is an expert in his/her area, the EAB exercises restraint in judging examiners’ assessment decisions. When the appeal concerns a difference of opinion, the EAB will not study the situation in detail/ a substantive way. The EAB judges whether the examiner was able to take a decision in a reasonable way. For example: You believe your answer to an exam question was wrongly rejected by the examiner. The EAB will not determine whether your answer was right or not. They will consider the bigger picture, relevant procedures and regulations. Were the exam and answer model designed in accordance with the assessment policy and regulations? Was the examiner consistent in applying a proper assessment methodology? In these cases, another examiner’s opinion is rarely sought.
N.B. If your examiner has made a mistake, for example with regards to communication to the students or in following the procedure, this will not automatically result in the EAB ruling in your favour.

How the EAB decides
The EAB will uphold the principle of the examiner’s expertise. This means that, if an appeal concerning the assessment of an exam is considered justified by the EAB, the examiner may be requested to assess the exam again, or to test the student again. The EAB will not make a ruling that dictates a certain mark or judgement.  For example, The EAB will not pronounce that a pass grade should be given to a student.
The decision will be made sometime after the hearing. It is sent to the parties involved via e-mail.

Formal defects, etc.
The EAB will also check whether a decision was made contrary to the law or if there were formal defects. An exaggerated example of a formal defect: Negligence, where an examiner has forgotten to grade a question, and where, following the inspection and discussion of the results, the error is not corrected.
An example of a decision that is contrary to the law: an examiner bans a student from participating in the final exam as punishment for disrupting classes.
If these examples were to come before the EAB, the examiner’s decision would most likely be declared void.  

2. Appeal against the Board of Examiners’ decision
The procedure is similar to the procedure described under 1. However, there is no equivalent to 1.1 and 1.2. The EAB will judge whether the BoE was reasonably capable of reaching its decision. If the EAB decides in favour of the student, the decision taken by the BoE is declared void. The BoE will need to take a new decision, on proper grounds. However, there is no guarantee that this new decision will please the student. The decision may be to their satisfaction, but it is also possible that the BoE comes to the same decision on different grounds.   

How to lodge a complaint

You can read more about lodging appeals with the Examination Appeals Board on their website. Send your appeal within 6 weeks of the decision (to which you object) being made.

Writing and submitting your appeal
the objections and appeals page on the student portal lists the requirements for an appeal.  

If your appeal is taken into consideration, the contested decision will be examined for compatibility with the rules and regulations. These are described in the Rules and Guidelines of the Board of Examiners (article 12 is often relevant) and the Teaching and Examination Regulations (see articles 20 - 22). In your appeal, you can refer to applicable articles to strengthen your argument.

This text was last updated in May 2023. It’s goal is to inform students. No rights can be derived from this text.