How we can help

Our experienced advisors assist with a range of issues to allow you to thrive academically at Imperial College London.

Operating independently from Imperial ensures unbiased assistance. It's not uncommon to experience issues during your studies, and we're here to help.

Some of the most common academic issues we support on are:

• Academic appeals
• Disciplinary procedures
• Academic misconduct
• Fitness to practice / study
• Mitigating circumstances
• PhD and supervisor issues

You can find more information below on each of these topics.

You can request support here.

An academic appeal is a request to the university to reconsider a decision made on limited grounds. It may be in relation to marking or moderation of an assessment, a final classification, or a reassessment.

You cannot use the appeals process to raise a complaint or apply for mitigating circumstances.

There are 3 grounds for appeal:

1. The university has not followed its own procedures in relation to assessment or academic profiling
2. There has been an error in the mitigating circumstances procedure
3. There is evidence of unfairness in mitigating circumstances procedure or assessment conduct

Challenging academic judgement, financial circumstances or living arrangements are not grounds for appeal.

How can I appeal?

The appeal must be submitted within 15 working days of the publication of results, using the approved appeal form emailed to student.appeals@imperial.ac.uk.

What to expect after you have submitted an appeal?

After the appeal has been received, the deadline, evidence and grounds will be checked.

You will then be advised the timescale for consideration.

If any of these conditions have not been met, you will be given the opportunity to update the submission with a reasonable explanation and/or supportive evidence. Without this, the appeal cannot be considered.

Can I appeal the decision?

You may request a review of your appeal decision within 15 working days of the outcome. The grounds for review are:

• The decision has not taken into account all the relevant information, or new information has come to light
• There has been procedural irregularity in the appeals process

The full academic appeals procedure can be found here.

My request for review has been denied

If you have exhausted the universitys appeals process and still remain unhappy with the outcome to your appeal, we can support you to take your case to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OIA).

Imperial has a 3 stage process for complaints.

1. Local resolution - the concern must be raised with the relevant person or service within 15 working days. You should ask for an informal meeting to discuss the issue, its impact on you and how you'd like it to be resolved. A response should be provided within 10 working days of the local resolution meeting.
2. Formal stage - the formal complaint must be raised within 10 working days of the local resolution outcome by completing the formal complaint submission form.
3. Request for review - the request must be raised within 10 working days of the formal stage outcome and submitted to the Head of Central Secretariat

What to do if your request for review has been denied

If you have exhausted the College's complaints procedure and still remain unhappy with the outcome of your complaint, we can support you to take your case to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OIA).

The full complaints policy and procedure can be found here.

Complaints against the union

We hope your dealings and interactions with Imperial College Union will always be positive, but sometimes you may have comments, questions, queries or complaints you want to pass on to us.

In the first instance, these should be addressed over email to the Union President, Camille Boutrolle, via the Union Complaints Officer - icu.complaints@imperial.ac.uk.

If your complaint is about the Union President, please address it to the Chair of the Trustee Board, via the Secretary to the Trustee Board - icu.board@imperial.ac.uk.

Please see the document below for more information.

What is misconduct?

Misconduct can be deemed minor or major, depending on the circumstances of the case. Examples may include:

• Disruption of academic, administrative, sporting, social or activities of Imperial
• Misuse of university premises, facilities or properties
• Failure to treat others fairly and with respect
• Harassment of any student, staff or visitor to the university

What will happen if I am accused of misconduct?

If you have been accused of misconduct, Imperial may take disciplinary action. An investigation will decide if you have committed a breach of discipline, on the balance of probabilities.

What does an investigation involve?

An investigation is a fact finding process to establish evidence and the circumstances of the case.

The investigator's aim is to impartially collect evidence, not to build a case against you.

The investigation may involve interviewing who made the complaint, who the complaint is against, as well as interviewing any witnesses.

The full student disciplinary procedure can be found here.

View extra regulations here.

Academic misconduct is any form of cheating that occurs in relation to formal academic exercise.

Cases of academic misconduct are taken seriously and all students are responsible for ensuring they follow the rules; not knowing the rules or forgetting the rules is not a justification for academic misconduct. 

Examples of academic misconduct include:

• Plagiarism - incorrect referencing and citation 
• Self-plagiarism - reusing your own work already submitted
• Collusion - working together when not permitted 
• Examination offences - cheating or failing to follow exam rules
• Dishonest practice - purchasing work or falsifying results

Can I appeal an academic misconduct allegation?

You must submit an appeal within the stated deadline to student.appeals@imperial.ac.uk.

What can I do if I have been accused?

You should speak to one of our Advice caseworkers if you have been accused of academic misconduct.

We can help you through the process, explain the regulations, and advocate on your behalf should you need.

The full Academic Misconduct Policy and Procedure can be found here.

If you have been considered unable to participate, fully engage or study to the level required, the Fitness to Study procedure will ensure that decisions about your ability are made in your best interest.

You should speak to your personal tutor, department or faculty supervisor immediately.

You should also contact us for support from an Advice caseworker.

The full Fitness to Study Procedure can be found here.

Fitness to practice for MBBS students

If you are working towards an MBBS Qualification, the university has a duty to ensure that you are able to qualify and practice as a doctor.

Your fitness to practice could be called into question if

• you have gone through a disciplinary/misconduct procedure
• your behaviour raises questions about your ability to work in the medical profession or
• if you have been unwell for a long period of time

When an issue is first raised, it is referred to the Student Monitoring Group within the Faculty of Medicine. They will decide if the matter can be resolved internally or if it needs to be referred to a panel who will then hear the case.

The full Fitness to Practice Procedure can be found here. 

If you have suffered serious and unforeseen circumstances during your studies which have affected your ability to complete an assessment, you should let the College know by submitting a request for mitigating circumstances.

What are the grounds for mitigating circumstances?

Grounds must be unforeseeable and unavoidable circumstances which have had a significant impact on your academic performance.

They must have occurred at the time of the assessment, or the time immediately preceding it. Examples include:

• Serious short term illness or injury
• Death or significant illness of a close family member or friend
• Significant personal or family crises
• A technical problem which as affected the ability to access teaching or assessment
• Accommodation crisis

How should I submit my request?

The request must be made within 10 working days of the assessment deadline.

You must provide evidence to support your claim and clearly state which assessments have been affected by the circumstances.

If you are unable to provide evidence within the time period, you should state this in the request and provide the evidence as soon as you have it. 

Can I submit a late request?

Late claims can be accepted under limited circumstances. You should submit the request as soon as possible, providing credible and compelling reasons for the late submission and evidence to support the lateness.

Lack of awareness of the procedure is not an acceptable reason.

What happens after I have submitted my request?

Your department will consider the request and evidence during regular Mitigating Circumstances Boards.

They will either accept or reject your request.

If your request has been rejected, you will have one more chance to re-submit based on new evidence within 5 working days of the decision.

If your request has been accepted, you may be offered a deferral (a chance to retake the assessment at a later date) or be allowed a late submission.

Can I appeal a mitigating circumstances decision?

You may submit an appeal under the academic appeals procedure on the grounds of procedural unfairness or irregularity.

The full mitigating circumstances procedure can be found here.

On some occasions, students may be unhappy with their supervisor.

Should problems arise, the university has a confidential mediation service which can be used.

Imperial Graduate School runs a Postgraduate Student Coaching Programme which aims to provide students the opportunity to talk about challenges they may be experiencing during the course of your studies. 

This programme is independently run to student's academic department.

It primarily focuses on building effective working relationships and there may be other self-development issues that you wish to explore.

We can provide impartial advice on this.

An Advice caseworker can go through the regulations with you, as well as communicate with your department should you need.

Every Imperial hall of residence has an experienced team of staff and senior students who are there to ensure that your hall is a great place to live and provide advice if you are experiencing any kind of difficulty.

As well as supporting day to day life in your hall, there is a member of the team on duty overnight and on weekends who can help if you experience an emergency.

If you are a resident of Imperial student halls and you are facing an problem, you should first contact the Student Accommodation Office by emailing accommodation@imperial.ac.uk or calling 020 7594 9444.

If the issue is not resolved, get in touch with one of our Advice caseworkers - they will be able to support you and advocate for you, if needed.

Further information on halls is available here.

If you do not live in Imperial halls

The Advice service does not deal with enquiries related to private accommodation - this includes both private halls and housing.

We understand that issues may arise with landlords, noise complaints or repairs.

If you need information on your rights as a tenant, rental procedures, or legal advice, you should contact Nucleus Legal Advice Centre.

Please read the below policies in full to understand what the ICU Advice Service can do for you, and your rights as a student. If you have any questions, you can discuss them with an Advice Caseworker during your appointment.

Advice Service Standards

Confidentiality Policy

Conflict of Interest Policy

These policies are being reviewed in line with our new Advice Request Process to provide support to our students quicker.

We appreciate your patience while we periodically update them.