Medical school is a tough and rewarding endeavor. But until you can put M.D. after your name, it seems like there’s endless hills to climb, with residency being the Inception of hills upon hills with highly competitive spots. Residency programs choose medical students based on multiple factors, with your grades and letters of recommendation carrying the most weight. Now that USMLE scores are pass/fail, grades and recommendation letters now have even higher stakes as a high score no longer compensates if one of these areas was lacking.
Medical students face the additional challenge of grades and recommendation letters potentially being in direct conflict. If you feel that you did not receive a fair grade on an assignment or an entire course, you might consider filing a grade appeal. But since the instructor will know that you filed an appeal, it may have an adverse effect on that recommendation. Even if you win, the fact that you filed an appeal at all could cause the instructor to have a negative view of your ethics and standards, and reflect it in their letter. They may even refuse to write one.
There often isn’t an easy answer to a quandary like this. But you don’t have to navigate the grade appeal process alone. The LLF National Law Firm’s Education Law Team is experienced in the grade appeal process for medical students, and the nuances of academic bureaucracy. We know your rights, how the grade appeal process works at the University of Tennessee Health and Science Center (UTHSC), and how to effectively use our resources to achieve the best possible resolution for your situation.
Are you a medical student at UTHSC considering a grade appeal? The LLF National Law Firm’s Education Law Team can help. Call us at 888-535-3686 or send us a message online.
Why Do Medical Students Request Grade Appeals?
Filing a grade appeal does not make you a bad medical student by default. You have a right to fair assessment in your academic and field performance, and instructors are humans who make mistakes when calculating scores. Whether they admit it or not, instructors may also inflict their biases on students.
According to the American Journal of Medicine, internal medicine clerkship directors claim that concerns about matching for residency are the most common reason for grade appeals. Only 14% of grade appeals led to a grade change, with just 17% of clerkship directors having any kind of training in how to adjudicate grade appeals.
While that probability seems low, more medical students are filing grade appeals compared to prior times. Such a notable shift could indicate that there are inherent problems in how medical school instructors evaluate students, and more students want transparency in the grading process. In an age of open data readily available at our fingertips, opaque processes that take place behind closed doors are no longer accepted by current and future generations of students.
If you must be held accountable for your actions as a student, instructors also must be held equally accountable to ensure a fair and safe learning environment where so much is at stake.
The Grade Appeal Process at UTHSC
UTHSC’s grade appeal policy is fairly straightforward. You may file a grade appeal if you feel that you were unfairly graded and that the grade you received was not in accordance with the statement of policy you received at the beginning of the course.
You need to make your appeal in writing to the course director first, followed by the Program Chair. They will try to resolve the issue at the program level. If they cannot, an appeal is made to the Dean in writing. The Dean or an appointed ad hoc committee will review the appeal and make a recommendation to the Dean.
While you do not need to be enrolled in that course to appeal a grade, you must make your appeal prior to the end of the next ensuing term.
The LLF National Law Firm’s Education Law Team can advocate for you at every step of the process, including writing your appeal letter, so you can avoid a lengthy appeals process.
The Risks of Filing a Grade Appeal
If you made it this far in medical school, you likely have a strong gut instinct that you can trust. It’s giving you that feeling that you didn’t get a fair grade on that exam or course you studied incredibly hard for. With how common it’s becoming for medical students to file grade appeals, factors like instructor bias and a broken process make appeals sound all the more logical.
But justice isn’t always fair or logical. Even if you aren’t seeking a recommendation letter from the instructor that you want to appeal, hardened medical school instructors tend to dislike having their authority challenged and facing interrogation. The medical community is tight-knit as it is, especially among each school, so being the student who filed a grade appeal could have myriad consequences beyond an irate recommendation letter or gaining a reputation as a difficult student. These risks could outweigh minor improvements to less-than-stellar grades.
Consider the following factors carefully before making a definite decision to file a grade appeal:
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Is your exam or course grade of particular importance to the specialty you would like to enter?
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Is the instructor especially powerful and respected at UTHSC?
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What evidence do you have to back up any claims you made against the instructor? Verbal testimony is harder to prove than something they put in writing. Although if multiple students can corroborate your claim that the instructor demonstrated racial, gender, etc. bias, you have a stronger case that prejudice influenced your grade.
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Did external forces play a larger role in the grade than the instructor? Your instructor is less likely to be offended by events outside of your control, thanks to many medical schools’ policy shifts that arose during COVID. Personal circumstances like the death of a loved one will affect your concentration, as will external forces you cannot control, like natural disasters and civil unrest.
You should carefully consider these angles, and possible outcomes, before filing an appeal. Ultimately, will the appeal be worth it? The LLF National Law Firm can guide you through this process, as our Education Law Team is experienced in navigating institutional issues. We can provide an unbiased opinion on what your best course of action is, given the possibilities.
How Medical Students Can Mitigate the Risks of a Grade Appeal
If you decide, after careful analysis of the situation, that you should file a grade appeal after all, there are certain cautions you can take to reduce the risks of an adverse outcome:
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Discuss the matter with an instructor you trust. If there is another instructor you can discuss this issue with, they can give you more perspective than your classmates or friends and family. It’s certainly helpful to discuss the problem with your loved ones, as it can help you articulate why you think your instructor is being unfair. But another instructor has the intimate knowledge of the school’s institutional logic and can provide valuable insight on whether it is worth it to file a grade appeal. A trusted instructor may be able to tell you how common grade appeals are at UTHSC, and what it’s like dealing with that particular instructor, so you can judge how to word your appeal.
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Seek out other students. Your classmates may have had an equally infuriating experience with that instructor, or a completely different one. Why or why not? Talking to other students can help you gather different opinions on the situation. If an instructor has a history of being prejudiced, other students can back up your claims. You may find other students who appealed a grade at UTHSC, even with that particular instructor. Find out why they were or were not successful.
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Avoid coming off as angry or confrontational. If you’re angry about your grade, get it out in private. When talking to your instructors, Program Chair, or any other school staff, you need to come across as calm and level-headed. Word travels quickly in medical schools, and you don’t want a reputation for being bombastic or difficult to work with. A calm demeanor ensures the other parties are more willing to listen to and reason with you.
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Work towards negotiating a resolution instead of forcing the balance in your favor. Even if you did receive patently unfair treatment, institutions tend to have the deck stacked in their favor compared to students. Have your evidence readily available and be willing to discuss the matter from a negotiation perspective rather than accusation.
Filing a grade appeal is not an easy decision, or a quick procedure, in medical school. Decisions you make now can have far-reaching impacts on your professional future. However, it is evident that many medical schools need to reconsider their grading policies, and there are situations where filing a grade appeal is the right choice.
You don’t want to handle a serious matter like a medical school grade appeal alone. The LLF National Law Firm’s Education Law Team can help UTHSC medical students navigate every step of the grade appeal process, and stand up for your rights before any institutional bodies like program committees and the Office of General Counsel.
We are on your side, ready to advocate for you. To learn more about how the LLF National Law Firm can help, call us at 888-535-3686 or send us a message online.