As a medical student at the University of Florida College of Medicine (UF COM), you’re working harder than you’ve ever worked before. The stakes are high, and the amount of material you are expected to retain is incredible. Now your grades have been released. You’ve gotten a grade that is inconsistent with your usual grades; a grade that can have a real and negative impact on your medical school career at UF COM, your ability to get a good residency placement, and subsequently, your long-term medical career.

Addressing this low-grade issue may feel out of your comfort zone; you haven’t experienced this before, and you’re unsure how to move forward. One option is to file a grade appeal with UF COM officials. At the LLF National Law Firm, we help you find your footing after receiving a low grade and walk you through the UF COM grade appeals process. Our Education Law Team has helped countless students achieve better outcomes on appeal. When futures are on the line, medical student grade appeals are on the rise, and rightfully so. Let’s talk about how the LLF National Law Firm can help you; call us today at 888-535-3686 or reach out online.

The Grade Appeals Process at the University of Florida College of Medicine

The grade appeals process at UF COM can be confusing; how you proceed with an appeal depends on your specific situation. There are five types of grade appeals at UF COM:

  • Grade Grievance

  • Academic Concern/Probation

  • Lack of Academic Advancement/Repeat Course/Delayed Graduation

  • Academic Dismissal

  • Conduct Suspension or Expulsion

When appealing a grade, you will most likely be going through the grade grievance process. UF COM students are entitled to file a grade grievance only in two situations. Just disagreeing with or being unsatisfied with the grade isn’t enough to enter the process. You are eligible to file an appeal only if you believe that your final grade or evaluation was based on discrimination or the method used to assign the grade.

You have one month after your grade is posted to file an appeal. But as soon as your grade is posted, you should contact the LLF National Law Firm. Our Education Law Team attorneys can walk you through the process and share their experience to determine whether your case is strong enough to pursue. A month may seem like a long time, but weighing the pros and cons, as well as preparing your appeal documents, isn’t done overnight.

Medical schools, including UF COM, prefer that students meet with their course or clerkship director before initiating the grade grievance process. Some students can resolve their issues and have their grades changed during this informal meeting. Just because the meeting is informal doesn’t mean you should go in unprepared. Consulting with an LLF National Law Firm attorney is always a benefit. Our Education Law Team will help you prepare by providing questions to ask and evidence to support your argument for the grade increase. You want to be prepared for any situation you may face in that room.

At this juncture, you may also want to contact the UF Office of the Ombudsman. This office assists students with a variety of issues, including grade appeals. They are, at least in theory, a neutral third party. 

If you must move forward with the formal grievance process, as stated above, you will have a month to submit the appeal. The appeal needs to be in writing; UF COM sometimes refers to this document as a “complaint” or “written concern”. You should submit your appeal to the Assistant Dean of Preclinical or Clinical Medical Education. After you submit the appeal, you will attend a meeting with the Assistant Dean of Medical Education.

If the matter cannot be resolved during this meeting, you are entitled to request the Associate Dean to form a Grievance Committee to hear your case. To make this request, you will need to provide the Associate Dean with a written explanation of your grievance within two weeks of your in-person meeting. The Associate Dean will then compile a Grievance Committee, which will consist of the relevant medical education associate dean, three faculty members familiar with the medical education program who are not involved in the grievance, and who are not members of the Academic Status Committee (ASC). A fourth-year medical student from the ASC will also be on the Grievance Committee but will not be a voting member.

The Grievance Committee will review your case and make a recommendation as to whether or not your grade should be altered. They will then send the recommendation to the Associate Dean of Medical Education and the Chair of the ASC. These authorities will review the recommendation and either accept or reject it. After a decision is made, you will be notified of the determination. This decision is final and cannot be appealed further.

Because you really only have one shot, you must involve an LLF National Law Firm attorney from the start. Remember that UF COM officials may care about students, but that doesn’t mean they are always on your side or have your best interests at the forefront of their decision-making. They can be biased, and the only person you can guarantee is in your corner, helping you make the strongest defense, is your LLF National Law Firm attorney.

Weighing the Risks of Filing a Grade Appeal

Unfortunately, filing a grade appeal at UF COM can come with consequences. While you may have the right to file an appeal, your course or clerkship director and other UF COM authorities won’t appreciate you taking this step. Perhaps you had intended to have this course or clerkship director provide you with a letter of recommendation, and you are concerned that this will affect our ability to obtain a letter from them or others.

You may also fear that your course or clerkship director, or other UF COM authority, may submit a negative comment on your Medical Student Performance Evaluation (MSPE). This is a legitimate concern when MSPE comments play a significant role in your residency applications.

Filing an appeal can be uncomfortable not just with UF COM course and clerkship directors, but also with other students. You may fear how filing an appeal will impact your reputation amongst the other students you need to work with throughout your time at UF COM.

Deciding if a Grade Appeal is the Right Choice for You

As mentioned above, you have one month from the date your grade is posted to file a grade appeal. While this isn’t a lot of time, it does give you some time to weigh the pros and cons of an appeal, collect documentation, and get an idea of the strength of your potential grade appeal case.

Weighing the pros and cons of filing a grade appeal can be daunting, but there are a few steps you can take to provide you with clarity. If you have a trusted mentor, ideally at UF COM, but also someone in the medical community outside of the school, meeting with them can be helpful. Your UF COM mentor can provide you with an overview of the back-end process. They may be familiar with your course or clerkship director and know if they have historically been receptive to student concerns about grades.

You can also seek guidance from other UF COM students who have filed grade appeals. They can provide insight on how the process worked for them, whether they faced hostility through the process or backlash since. Any advice from mentors and other students should be welcome.

Another thing you can do is to reflect on how this grade impacts your UF COM career and residency prospects. A few questions you can consider include:

  • Is the poor grade in question important to the specialty you want to pursue?

  • What evidence do you have to back up your grade change request?

  • Does requesting a grade appeal call your instructor’s integrity into question, and if so, how much? Or is the poor grade a result of external factors?

Lastly, meet with an LLF National Law Firm attorney. We know the process at UF COM; we’ve seen the outcomes, and we can tell you what we’ve achieved with our other UF COM clients. Making this decision is hard, but you don’t have to do this on your own. You have a whole host of people to help you along the way.

For Help with Your Appeal, Retain the LLF National Law Firm

When your future is on the line, you need the LLF National Law Firm going into battle with you. Our Education Law Team is well-versed in the processes of grade appeals and can increase your chance of getting the best outcome. Whether you’re debating filing an appeal or ready to take the plunge, our team can help. Get started with the LLF National Law Firm by calling 888-535-3686 or contacting us online.

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