Appeals against grades

Appealing against assessment decisions

A student dissatisfied with an assessment outcome can appeal against the decision either verbally or in writing by contacting the teacher who conducted the assessment. An appeal against an assessment outcome must be made within 14 days of the student receiving the results and information about the application of the assessment criteria to his or her work. Teachers have a duty to respond to student appeals. The teacher can either change the grade, if there is reason to do so, or leave the grade unchanged. The teacher must describe the reasons for arriving at a specific decision. The teacher must provide the student with a separate written decision (including the reasons for arriving at the decision) or include the decision and the date thereof in a copy of the student’s assessed work. 

If the student is dissatisfied with the teacher’s decision, he or she can submit an appeal to the University’s Appeals Committee (which is established as set out in section 10 of the University Regulations) within 14 days of receiving the decision. Instructions for submitting an appeal to the Appeals Committee on Intranet.

Appealing against thesis assessment

A thesis included in intermediate studies

If a student is dissatisfied with the evaluation or the grade, please discuss about the matter first with your thesis supervisor.

A student dissatisfied with the assessment of a thesis included in his or her intermediate studies can appeal against the decision either verbally or in writing by contacting the teacher who conducted the assessment. It is recommended to do it in writing.  An appeal (request for rectification) against an assessment outcome must be made within 14 days of the student receiving the results and information about the application of the assessment criteria to his or her work. The request should include the following: the student’s name and contact details, and the rectification the student is requesting, and the grounds for the rectification.

Teachers have a duty to respond to student appeals.  The teacher can either change the grade, if there is reason to do so, or leave the grade unchanged. The teacher must describe the reasons for arriving at a specific decision. The teacher must provide the student with a separate written decision.

If the student is dissatisfied with the teacher’s decision, he or she can submit an appeal to the Faculty Council within 14 days of receiving the decision. The appeal must be send to tau [at] tuni.fi (tau[at]tuni[dot]fi). The request should include the following: the student’s name and contact details, the date the student received information about the decision on evaluating the thesis, the thesis evaluation decision (incl. statement), the rectification the student is requesting, and the grounds for the rectification.

The procedure for providing a written response does not apply to bachelor’s theses.

A thesis included in advanced studies

Students will receive the examiners’ statement and grade proposal by email to their tuni.fi email address. Students will then have seven (7) days to provide a written response to the examiners’ statement. The countdown begins when the email is sent to the student. A possible written response is addressed to the student’s faculty (login required) and will be reviewed by the dean. The dean assesses what measures the response requires. The dean may decide on the evaluation of the thesis based on the examiners’ statement, request the examiners’ comments on the response, and/or appoint an additional examiner.

If a student does not provide a written response, the dean will confirm the final grade of the thesis based on the examiners’ statement. If a student is satisfied with the assessment outcome, he or she can expedite the process and the entry of the thesis on his or her academic record by immediately informing the faculty thereof by email. The procedure for providing a written response does not apply to theses counted towards the degree of Licentiate of Medicine. 

A student dissatisfied with the assessment outcome of a master’s thesis (or equivalent) can submit a written appeal (request for rectification) to the relevant Faculty Council within 14 days of receiving the results. See more instructions below:

Delivering an appeal

An appeal can be delivered in writing or by email.

Postal address: Tampere University, FI-33014 Tampere University, Finland

Street address: Kalevantie 4, campus information desk, 33100 Tampere, Finland

Email: tau [at] tuni.fi (tau[at]tuni[dot]fi)

Review of an appeal by a Faculty Council

As set out in the University Regulations, the Faculty Councils are responsible for reviewing thesis-related appeals.

The Faculty Council can decide to:

• reject the appeal, which means that the assigned grade will remain unchanged;
• change the grade on the basis of the appeal (an appeal cannot result in a lower grade than the original);
• put the appeal on hold pending further investigation and get back to it as soon as possible.

Only the members or deputy members of the Faculty Council who have completed a thesis of a similar level or who hold a professorship are authorised to take part in the assessment of a thesis (Universities Act, section 29, paragraph 2).

The Faculty Council must clearly describe the reasons for arriving at a specific decision. The factors, statements and inquiries that affected the decision must be disclosed. The applicable regulations must also be included in the decision. It is especially important to provide clear reasons for the decision if the appeal does not result in adjusting or overriding the original grade. The reasons are also important because students have the right to file a complaint against the decision on their appeal (Universities Act, section 84, paragraph 2).