Being Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Learning and Teaching provides experiences that range from the biggest strategic picture of what the University does, or should be doing, down to the most minute circumstances surrounding individual students. The latter role is probably unknown to the vast majority of people around the university.  Yet it is a role that takes up a good deal of time and requires attention to detail.   It is a Pro-Vice-Chancellor alone that has the authority to sign special regulations to allow students to do something that is against the general regulatory structure of the university.  But it is also the Pro-Vice-Chancellor who is the final port of call within the University for any complaint or grievance that a student wishes to make against us: if the PVC turns the student down they then have the option of taking their case to the 'Office of the Independent Adjudicator' (or ombudsman for higher education).  The PVC for Research and Innovation normally handles all such ad hominem issues surrounding research students and I deal with them for students on taught programmes.  I seem to have dealt with a significant number of 'Case Review' requests (as they are called) in the last couple of weeks.  They include one where the student concerned had involved a solicitor (this is becoming increasingly common) and the paperwork was about 6 cm in height off the desk.  This all has to be read very carefully.

Certain general patterns emerge from a reading of these requests, and one in particular is very common - and very unfortunate.  The generic argument runs like this: "I never did very well in exams and was criticised for not structuring my work properly but I never got any help for it.  Just before my final exams I had a dyslexia test and that showed that I was dyslexic.  But I didn't tell anyone.  I got a 2-2, and I think if allowance was made for my dyslexia I should have got a 2-1."  A variant on this is: "I felt ill throughout my final year but I never sent in any medical notes.  In addition shortly before my second year exams my grandmother (who brought me up) died and I had to go home to be with my family instead of doing my revision.  I didn't do very well in those exams, but I never told anyone about my grandmother.  I think I deserve a 2-2 but when the degree results were announced I got a 3rd.  I've now asked my department to take into account the circumstances that affected my second year performance, and I've given them medical notes for my third year - but they've refused to take them into account and raise my degree class."

We try to make it as clear as possible that students should inform the university and their department of any circumstances that may affect their performance in assessments.  Yet it is remarkable how many students do not do so - until after the assessments have been completed, marked, and the final degree class awarded.    The external examiners have gone home, sometimes the degere ceremony has been held, and then the student claims they have been subject to an injustice.  Unfortunately it is generally them that have done an injustice to themselves by not taking advantage of the help that we can provide, or informing their department of significant mitigating circumstances.  When we know of these issues we can try to level the playing field as much as possible - we can provide support for dyslexic students, extra time in exams for those who suffer panic attacks, we can arrange counselling and many other measures. We can note distressing personal circumstances in confidential records and use them in exam boards to mitigate poor performance in the semester that has been so affected.  But we can only do these things if we know in advance.  And something that is humbling is seeing the lengths to which many colleagues go to assist individual students through personal difficulties - often without any recognition from around them since they are dealing with matters confidentially.

I have great sympathy for many of the students whose cases end on my desk, but ultimately there is little that I can do for a lot of them. Turning the clock back is something that is rarely possible.  But the student who actually wants to set aside the results they have obtained and wants to take their assessments again with support is relatively rare: more of the cases that reach me are asking for us to raise their marks - sometimes well above the levels they ever actually achieved - on the basis that they would have done better but for ...

But each case has to be read and considered in detail.  And some are very difficult and take some agonising over.  Student Services provide expert advice, but never try to lead my decision.  As a university we generally get these 'right'.  In very few cases that go on to the ombudsman are we criticised for being unjust.