UCD Management has made the decision to remove the two-week provisional grade window from the grading process, following changes to the semester timeline due to Covid-19.
This window, where students had two weeks to appeal the provisional grade before the final grade was released, is being replaced by a continuous grade appeals process.
Contrary to previous trimesters, where appeals were made at the end of the exam period, UCD has made the decision to switch to a continuous appeals process, wherein students can appeal a grade on specific assignments throughout the semester as they are released, rather than waiting for the provisional grade to be released following the end of the trimester. As well as this, overall grades can be appealed following the release of final grades in February, but this is likely to have to be done immediately following the grades release, rather than students having two weeks to decide whether to appeal a grade and for that appeal to be investigated before the release of the final grade.
Students have expressed disappointment in this change, and how it was communicated, with some believing that this was done to make things harder for students who are disadvantaged or struggling to be recognised. The typical appeals process was changed without much communication with students to a process that gives them less time at the end of the semester.
As has been the case throughout the semester, both colleges and the SU are stressing the importance for students who are struggling or disadvantaged to engage with existing supports at the earliest available possibility, and to apply for extenuating circumstances before entering the exam period.
UCDSU also encourages students who are facing difficulties in accessing supports or communicating with their college to reach out to the SU, who can provide both tangible and emotional supports throughout the process.