Appeals and Complaints
Kwantlen Counsellors are not administrators, so we are not responsible for making (or overturning) policy-related decisions. However, we can provide valuable information about policies and procedures and help students to explore their options and to decide how, or whether, to proceed with an appeal or complaint.
If you want to pursue an appeal or a complaint, it's a good idea to book an appointment with a Counsellor on your campus.
Appeals
If you believe that a Kwantlen faculty member, staff member or administrator has not properly followed a policy or procedure while making an academic decision (including grades) about you, you can appeal that decision. The process to launch an appeal is described in both Counselling Services' Policy Summary and in the full policy, L6: Appeals of Academic Decisions.
The following information on appeals is adapted from information on the website of the University of Western Ontario.
When Should You Appeal?
Before you decide to appeal, consider what the appeal will involve, in terms of time and effort. Will it be worth it to you even if the appeal is unsuccessful? Will a successful outcome happen soon enough to benefit you in some way? Are there risks involved which you believe you cannot afford to take? You may find it helpful to think about how you will feel six months from now if you do or don't appeal: will you be sorry one way or the other?
Our advice is to go ahead with an appeal only when you have a good reason to believe that an academic decision should be different in your case. What counts as a "good reason" will depend on the kind of academic decision you are appealing. Ask yourself these questions:
- Is there information about you or your circumstances that the decision-maker didn't have and which might have resulted in a different decision?
- Did the decision-maker make a mistake about a policy that might make the decision invalid?
- Do you yourself know that the decision is not consistent with other decisions made in cases like yours?
- Were you misled or misinformed through no fault of your own so that you inadvertently did the wrong thing? (Note: this does not include missing a deadline you should have known about!)
If you cannot answer "yes" to one of the questions above or to a similar question, you probably do not have a good reason to appeal. But it is still important to try to understand the decision. You can always: (1) ask the decision-maker to explain it; (2) check policies in the Kwantlen calendar or online policy manual; or (3) discuss the situation with a Kwantlen Counsellor. There may well be another way to achieve your goal.
"The Benefit of the Doubt" Versus "The Balance of Probabilities"
Many students assume that, in appeal situations, they should be given the benefit of the doubt. Others assume that it is hopeless to appeal unless they can prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that a particular decision about them is unfair. Both of these assumptions are mistaken.
In academic appeals, the onus is on the student to "make their case". Academic appeals are decided on the balance of probabilities, which means that an unbiased decision-maker who has heard all sides of the story and examined the evidence should be able to say: "The fair decision in this case is X, more likely than not".
Complaints
Although Kwantlen strives to provide excellent instruction and service, we recognize that, occasionally, students may wish to complain about instruction, services, employees, other students or policies. The process to launch a complaint is described in both Counselling Services' Policy Summary and in the full policy, C6: Complaints About Instruction, Services, Employees, Students Or University College Policies.
