You can submit a complaint about both oral and written examinations.
Complaints about exams may not concern complaints about supervision and/or teaching. Problems of this kind should be included in the standard teaching evaluation or be taken up with the course coordinator or Director of Studies.
If several students wish to submit the same complaint regarding the basis of an examination or the examination process, we encourage you to select a representative who will submit a joint complaint on behalf of the group of students. The joint complaint should state that this complaint is submitted on behalf of several students. This means that it is not necessary to submit individual complaints with identical reasoning.
If a decision is made in favour of the complainant, e.g. in the form of an offer of reexamination, all affected students will receive this offer, even if they have not submitted individual complaints. However, a complaint concerning an assessment must be submitted individually, regardless of whether the exam in question was a group exam.
Your complaint may result in a lower grade. You cannot submit a complaint about this new grade.
Deadline
The deadline for submitting a complaint is two weeks after the announcement of your exam result.
Oral exams
As regards oral exams, the deadline for appealing is the day that you participate in the exam and receive your grade.
Written exams
As regards the written exams, the deadline for appealing is the day that the assessment at latest is to be announced (the assessment deadline).
Unless otherwise is announced, the assessment deadline is 4 weeks after the exam date. However, as for the master’s thesis, the assessment deadline is no later than 6 weeks after you have submitted your thesis.
Explanation and reasoning
It is your responsibility to explain the reasons for your complaint, providing a sound basis for the people who are to make a decision about it. This means that you must provide a detailed, written explanation stating what you are complaining about and why you are complaining.
If grading instructions have been released for the exam in question, it is a good idea to read these instructions before writing a complaint. This will give you an opportunity to assess your own exam paper and help you state your reasons for the complaint. We also recommend you to consider the description of objectives for the course in question.
Furthermore, it is always a good idea to get your examiner’s account of your exam paper/grade before you submit a complaint, as he/she might be able to explain the reasons for the assessment in greater detail. However, please be aware that your examiner is under no obligation to give you feedback on your assessment within the deadline for complaints. The appeal deadline will not be postponed as a result of a lack of feedback within the deadline.
If you submit a complaint about the assessment of the final exam on your degree programme, e.g. your Bachelor's project or Master's thesis, please be aware that any offer of reassessment/reexamination may result in your exam certificate being withheld until the new assessment is available.
Average processing time
The processing time for complaints about exams is approximately three months. During peak periods, it may take longer to process a complaint.
If a decision is made in your favour with an offer of reassessment, it may further prolong the processing time.
Complaints about failing grades
If you submit a complaint about an exam that you did not pass, you should still attend the reexamination. Due to the processing time for complaints about exams, you should not await the decision on your complaint before attending reexamination. If you should receive a better grade as a result of your complaint than the grade from your reexamination, the highest grade will be registered in your study programme.
Anonymity
As a general rule, you may not remain anonymous when submitting a complaint about an exam. This means that the people who process your complaint can see your name, student registration number and similar information. Everyone involved in this process have a duty of confidentiality, and the information you provide will be treated confidentially.
If your complaint concerns the assessment of your exam, your complaint will be submitted to the assessors, who have two weeks to submit a response statement. The month of July is not included when calculating the deadline for the assessors. You will be allowed to comment on the assessors’ response statement.
The Director of Studies will then make a decision. The decision may lead to one of the following outcomes:
Reassessment
Please be aware that if you accept an offer of reassessment, new assessors will be appointed.
Please note: Complaints submitted after 1 September 2022 are processed in accordance with the new ministerial order on examinations. This means that the reassessment will be based exclusively on your exam paper. The new assessors will not receive a copy of your complaint or information about your original grade. The reassessment may result in a lower grade.
You will receive the decision via Digital Post.
If your complaint is rejected, you may submit the Director of Studies’ decision to a Board of Appeals. The Board of Appeals only considers appeals concerning academic issues. This means that the Board of Appeals cannot make decisions on legal issues.
The Board of Appeals consists of two appointed external examiners, a member of the teaching staff entitled to conduct exams and a student from the subject area concerned.
Deadline
The deadline for submitting an appeal is two weeks after you receive the decision on your complaint.
Explanation and reasoning
The same recommendations for explanation and reasoning apply for appeals as for complaints. This means that you must provide a detailed explanation stating what you are appealing against and why you are appealing.
Anonymity
As a general rule, you may not remain anonymous when submitting an appeal. This means that the people who process your appeal can see your name, student registration number and similar information. Everyone involved in this process have a duty of confidentiality, and the information you provide will be treated confidentially.
The Board of Appeals will make a decision based on the material that formed the basis for the Director of Studies’ decision as well as your appeal. The Board of Appeals’ decision may lead to one of the following outcomes:
The Board of Appeals must make a decision no more than two months after the appeal has been submitted. Please be aware that the month of July is not included when calculating the two-month period.
The grade you receive following a reassessment or reexamination and the Board of Appeals’ decision is final and cannot be referred to any other administrative authority with regards to academic issues.
If you believe that legal errors were made in connection with the Director of Studies’ or Board of Appeals’ decisions or in connection with the assessment, you may submit a complaint to the Danish Agency for Higher Education and Science.
Please follow the guideline for complaints and appeals in the decision from the University.
We recommend you to reach out to us for guidance and advice if you cannot find the answers to your questions in the guidelines.
For guidance and advise about complaints please write to eksamensklager.bss.studadm@au.dk