You’ve worked so hard to get accepted into what is recognized as one of the top medical schools in the country – Baylor College of Medicine. But as you know better than anyone who isn’t also in med school, that’s just the start. Having reached this level, you now need to look to your residency. And with the USMLE being a pass/fail exam, that means two things become even more important: letters of recommendation and your grades.
Letters of recommendation you can control; you can pick and choose people who know you and will provide a strong, helpful recommendation. Grades, on the other hand, are somewhat out of your control. You may find that you receive a grade that (a) isn’t what you were expecting and (b) just doesn’t seem right under the circumstances. What to do next – should you appeal the grade, and risk alienating the faculty member who gave it to you? Or should you do nothing and hope for the best?
The LLF National Law Firm’s Education Law Team can help you make that decision. The Baylor College of Medicine has specific appeal protocols that must be met before an appeal will be considered, let alone approved. It’s important that you take the appeal standards into account before you file one. We can help with that. Contact us to learn more by calling 888.535.3686, or by filling out our online contact form.
It’s Not Wrong to Question Your Grade
If you feel as though you’ve received a grade that was lower than what you deserved for a particular exam, assessment, or performance evaluation, listen to yourself. The scores you earn along the way in medical school are important when it comes to your future, and the biggest next step to determining your future is your residency.
That doesn’t mean, of course, that every time you receive a grade that was lower than what you expect, you should appeal it – in fact, Baylor limits grade appeals to one appeal per course. That said, many grade appeals do have merit. The Baylor College of Medicine’s own statistics indicate that grade appeals combined with other types of grievances registered by medical students over a seven-year period were “substantiated or partially substantiated” nearly 60% of the time.
That is consistent with other reports suggesting that more medical students are filing grade appeals, possibly as a result of the USMLE shifting to a pass/fail result format. This puts much more emphasis on clerkship grades when it comes to evaluating candidates for residency positions. Medical school students who receive scores that are not based on clear criteria or that appear to be unfair are going to be more likely to want to file appeals. The question in each case, of course, is whether doing so is a good idea.
All of this means that if you believe you should have received a higher grade in a particular situation, you owe it to yourself to consider whether it is an issue you should pursue.
The Grade Appeal Process at the Baylor College of Medicine
The first thing that Baylor tells students who are considering filing a grade appeal is not to file a grade appeal – yet. The school strongly encourages students to “first verify the grade.” Grade verification is not a formal process. It basically involves meeting with the course or clerkship director to review the grade that the student received and to go over any questions the student may have about the grade. In some cases, this may resolve the student’s questions about why they received the grade they did. In others, it could result in the grade being modified. And, of course, it may leave the student where they were before the meeting – believing that the grade should have been higher.
One important note: grade verification is not a required step before a grade appeal can be filed. But it’s also something you need to do quickly if you still want to have the option to file a grade appeal. That’s because Baylor requires all grade appeals to be filed within 10 calendar days of when the grade was posted.
Baylor has strict requirements that need to be met before a grade appeal will be considered by the College of Medicine. Appeals must be based on at least one of the following three grounds:
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Mistreatment. The grade appeal must allege (and findings must support) that the grade was “based on factors other than academic or clinical performance,” or that it was based on some form of “Mistreatment, such as discrimination.”
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Deviation from Established Criteria or Guidelines. The appeal needs to allege – and findings must show – that the grade was not calculated based on the guidelines set by the faculty and provided to the student.
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Calculation Error. The grade appeal must allege, and findings must demonstrate, that “false or erroneous information” was used to determine the grade the student received.
Baylor specifically states that the student bears the burden of proof when it comes to showing that the grade they received was inappropriate.
The strict grade appeal criteria combined with the relatively short 10-day time period during which a student can file a grade appeal means that if you are considering filing an appeal, you need to move quickly. If you intend to meet with the person who gave you the grade you’re contesting, that must happen quickly. And if you then want to move forward with an appeal, you need to make sure your appeal is based on at least one of the three appeal criteria described above, and that you have included as much evidence as possible to support your argument that the grade should be changed.
The LLF National Law Firm’s Education Law Team can help with this. Our experienced attorneys regularly advise students who are filing grade appeals, and we will use our background and experience to help you make sure your appeal meets Baylor’s requirements and is clearly supported with as much evidence as is possible to collect during that 10-day time period.
The Risks of a Grade Appeal
You also need to consider that filing a grade appeal is not without risk. You may alienate the faculty member who gave you the grade you’re appealing, and that could come back to haunt you – particularly if you will encounter that person in another course or program in the future. That doesn’t mean you should not file a grade appeal if there are grounds to do so. And there are some things you can do to help reduce the risk that your grade appeal will be taken in a professional manner instead of personally.
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Use professional language. There are many different ways that you can describe the problems that you have with a particular grade. Using incendiary language won’t make your appeal any stronger; in fact, it can detract from the evidence-based focus a good appeal should have. Showing that you can approach a potentially contentious issue in a reasonable way will demonstrate your professionalism and reduce the chances that the faculty member will take offense at the grade appeal.
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Discuss the situation with a faculty member you trust. If you have a close relationship with another faculty member, you could consider asking them about the grade and whether they believe it makes sense for you to appeal it, particularly given the instructor involved.
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Talk with other students. If you know another student who has filed a grade appeal, ask them about the process and what their experience was.
Here, too, you can benefit by having the LLF National Law Firm’s Education Law Team by your side. We have experience with these matters too, and will be able to offer our perspective on the best way to reduce the chances of the instructor who gave you the grade taking offense as a result of your appeal.
Protecting Your Rights
You have rights as a student at the Baylor College of Medicine, and if those rights are violated at any point during your enrollment, you can take action against the school for doing so. This includes situations where an instructor appears to be retaliating against you for taking advantage of your right to file a grade appeal. The school’s code of conduct specifically prohibits retaliation against a student “who honestly and in good faith reports suspected or actual improper activity or wrongdoing.” This, of course, would include a grade appeal based on any of the three standards that must be met for an appeal to go forward.
The LLF National Law Firm’s Education Law Team is here to protect your rights if you file a grade appeal in good faith and anyone at the Baylor College of Medicine retaliates as a result. We can take matters to the school’s general counsel or, where necessary, to court.
The LLF National Law Firm Can Help With Grade Appeals
You have a right as a medical student to receive grades that fairly reflect your work in a course, on a test, or during a clerkship. When that doesn’t happen, the LLF National Law Firm’s Education Law Team can help you navigate the Baylor College of Medicine’s grade appeal process. Putting together a strong grade appeal that meets Baylor’s standards can be a challenge. That is the sort of challenge our experienced attorneys accept every day. We know what it takes for grade appeals to succeed, and we will work with you to make sure you don’t miss anything that can be used to help your appeal.
If you’re considering filing a grade appeal with the Baylor College of Medicine, don’t delay – you only have 10 days after you receive the grade to do so. Call the LLF National Law Firm’s Education Law Team today at 888.535.3686, or fill out and submit our online contact form, and we will promptly schedule a call to learn more about your case and to explain how we can help.