Appeal Instructions

The Student Course Grade Appeal Policyexplains which procedural steps you must take to solve the grade dispute, how to document your case, and how to submit your case electronically for consideration by the Student Grade Appeals Committee (SGAC).

Please read the Student Course Grade Appeal Policy before you start the grade appeal process summarized in the flowchart below.

Structure of the Grade Appeal Process:

The grade appeal process has two phases: the Informal Resolution Process (a series of conversations) and the Formal Grade Appeal (documents to file). In cases where the Informal Resolution Process does not result in a resolution of the dispute, a Formal Grade Appeal may be filed. Before you file a Formal Grade Appeal, you must demonstrate that you tried to solve the disagreement “informally”, i.e, by contacting your instructor, and, if this conversation did not solve the dispute, by contacting the administrators to whom your instructor reports (Chair of the Department/Program, and Dean of the College). These administrators will try to help you solve the situation; if there is still no resolution, they can explain next steps, and answer questions you may have about the grade appeal process and policy.

1. Find out if you have grounds for a grade appeal by reading through the Student Course Grade Appeal Policy especially sections: IV. Jurisdiction, VI.C.1. Basic Guidelines for Grade Appeals. Advice: try to get this done at the start of the semester, so you give yourself enough time to complete the next steps of the process. Reach out to the Associate Director of Academic Pathways in the Office of Undergraduate Studies aconnections@csusm.edu to receive guidance, the Informal Resolution Process forms and/or consult and verify you have grounds to appeal a grade.

Deadlines for the Informal Resolution Process and the Formal Grade Appeal

Information for Academic Year 2026-2027

Informal Resolution Process:

The following steps are REQUIRED; please take them in the order given below, and give yourself ample time to complete them before the deadline:

Step 1: Consult with the faculty member(s) involved to try to reach an agreement – keep all emails in same thread. Please note outreach to faculty members regarding the informal process to appeal your grade is to begin AFTER grades are official for the semester.  Advice: print the “Informal Resolution Process Log” (this will be provided to you by the Associate Director of Academic Pathways after initial outreach) to keep track of your emails and conversations. Please give the faculty 5-7 business days before follow-up attempt is made as time allows.

if no agreement has been reached

Step 2: Consult with department chair or program director – keep all emails in the same thread. Keep all emails in same thread. Please give the department chair 5-7 business days before a follow-up attempt is made as time allows.

if no agreement has been reached

Step 3: Consult with dean of the college or administrative director – keep all emails in the same thread. Keep all emails in same thread. Please give the dean/ administrative director 5-7 business days before a follow-up attempt is made as time allows.

if no agreement has been reached

Step 4: Re-read the Student Grade Appeal Policy, fill out the Informal Resolution Process Log and ensure you have completed all three steps above in the order listed, as well as have compiled all email communications with the faculty, department chair/program director and dean. These will be used as supporting documents.

If at this point you have not yet reached out to the Associate Director of Academic Pathways in the Office of Undergraduate Studies aconnections@csusm.edu , you must reach out to receive next steps and to receive access to the SGAC online Moodle container to upload your documents.  Advice: As preparation you can Log in using your CSUSM student information to ensure your account is active and to avoid issues adding you to the container.

Formal Grade Appeal Process:

Once you have access to the SGAC online Moodle container to upload your grade appeal.

Advice: don’t wait until the last minute (March 12/ October 16) to request access.

Before filing a formal grade appeal, students must complete all three steps of the informal resolution process above. Failure to complete the Informal Resolution Process will result in the rejection of your case.

Prepare your file:

Prepare the documents for step 1-4 below well in advance of the deadline (templates of all forms mentioned below are attached to the policy and available in the online Moodle container). Advice: don’t wait until the last minute to request access, compile documents, stay in contact with the Associate Director of Academic Pathways.

Step 1:

Log on to the online Moodle container and click on the course titled “Student Grade Appeal Committee (SGAC) 2026/2027. You will then select “Submission of Appeal Cases” and click on Step 1:  Agreement to Student Grade Appeal Policy (below you can see steps 1-4 which you will follow).

Step 2: If you have not yet done so, download and fill out the Informal Resolution Process Log and compile your supporting documentation (examples: email communications with the instructor, chair, and dean of the College.)  Please note you will not be allowed to move forward with step 3 and 4 until step 2 is reviewed and approved by SGAC.

Steps 3 and 4: Download and fill out the Formal Grade Appeal Form and compile your Supporting Documentation (examples: Syllabus; Graded assignments; Graded quizzes, tests, and exams) – make sure you follow the recommended format for submitting the Supporting Documentation (see last page of policy) Advice: steps 3 and 4 are time-consuming, make sure you give yourself enough time to fill out the form and compile the documentation. Make sure you follow the correct format defined in the policy (last page).  Please see submission deadlines above.

Scan all the documents (forms and supporting documentation) and upload your file into the SGAC online Moodle container as early as possible, but no later than the deadlines. The online Moodle container has more detailed instructions about the uploading process. It is recommended to upload the documents for Step 1 and 2 well before the deadline stipulated above. The chair of SGAC needs to review them for completeness (if all the required steps have been taken). If you wait until the last day to upload the materials, but you skipped some of the required steps, your grade appeal may be rejected (see policy VI.C.5. Preliminary Screening).

Next Steps:

Please read the policy sections VI.C.5-9 for information about what happens after you have uploaded your grade appeal.

The Chair of the Student Grade Appeal Committee (SGAC) will inform you within (7) calendar days if your formal grade appeal will be reviewed by the committee or not (see policy VI.C.5. Preliminary Screening). If your case moves forward, the SGAC will gather additional information from the instructor and then establish a timeline for resolution of the grade appeal. The time necessary to resolve the case varies (depending on if the SGAC needs to consult with a panel of faculty experts or call for a fact-finding hearing).

Results:

At the conclusion of the grade appeal process, the SGAC will share the decision with both the student and the faculty. The SGAC will determine one of the three courses of actions: the grade stands, require a grade change, or recommend a grade reevaluation (see policy VI.C.8. Decision)