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Keck School of Medicine MD Student Evaluation and Grade Appeal Policy

Policy Statement

The Keck School of Medicine is committed to the fair and accurate evaluation of student performance and supports a final grade and evaluation appeal procedure that accounts for assessment errors or irregularities.

Policy Requirement

Medical students may review the results of all individual assessment elements of a course or clerkship (e.g., student performance evaluations completed by individual faculty/residents, OSCEs, subject examinations) after the completion of any course or clerkship.

Students interested in appealing a grade and/or performance evaluation in a course or clerkship must meet with the Course or Clerkship Director and the Associate Dean for Student Affairs or designee prior to initiating the formal grade and performance evaluation appeal process. This process must be initiated within 12 weeks of the end of the course, module, or clerkship.

A final grade and performance evaluation appeal may only be made on the basis of:

  1. Procedural Irregularity–documented error in, or divergence from, the prescribed or customary process of evaluating and grading students; or
  2. Extenuating Circumstances–severe and documented situations which were beyond the student’s control, and which prevented the student from performing or being assessed in a manner which could be expected to accurately reflect their knowledge and skills.

Appeals will be acted upon favorably when real, clear, and convincing evidence supports the occurrence of a significant procedural irregularity, or an extenuating circumstance applies.

Process

Steps for appealing a grade are expected to be completed in the order listed below:

  1. Students seeking a review and/or change of a course or clerkship grade and/or performance evaluation must first discuss their concerns directly with the Course or Clerkship Director within 12 weeks of the end of the block (students seeking a review and/or change in a module grade must start at step 3 below).
  2. The Course or Clerkship Director has the ability to authorize a correction of the final grade or the content of the final performance evaluation ONLY if the Course or Clerkship Director discovers any of the following: a) a calculation error occurred; b) the grade was determined with fewer than the clerkship-defined minimum number of evaluations; c) some other procedural error was made by the Course or Clerkship in determining the grade.
  3. Students who wish to proceed with the appeal process based on an extenuating circumstance, or when no procedural error is identified by the Course or Clerkship Director, or who are seeking a review and/or change in a module grade must meet with the Associate Dean for Student Affairs or designee to discuss the appeal process. This must also occur within 12 weeks of the end of the course, clerkship, or module.
  4. If the student wishes to proceed with the grade and performance evaluation appeal process after discussion with the Associate Dean for Student Affairs or designee, the student must complete and submit the Grade and Performance Evaluation Appeal form to the Registrar’s Office within 12 weeks of the end of block, course, or clerkship in
  5. The Registrar’s Office will forward the form to the Senior Associate Dean for Medical
  6. The Senior Associate Dean for Medical Education will convene an ad-hoc Grade and Performance Evaluation Appeal Committee to investigate the appeal and make a determination within 6 weeks of notification of the appeal.
  7. The ad-hoc Grade and Performance Evaluation Appeal Committee will consist of at least three faculty members (inclusive of the Senior Associate Dean for Medical Education). One member must be a course director (if an appeal regarding a pre-clerkship phase course) or clerkship director (if an appeal regarding a clerkship or post-clerkship phase course) from other than the course or clerkship in question.
  8. If the ad-hoc committee concludes that there is not sufficient evidence to uphold the appeal, it will be denied, and the student will be notified by the Senior Associate Dean for Medical Education. If the ad hoc committee concludes that there is sufficient evidence to justify a change in the grade or performance evaluation, the student, Associate Dean for Student Affairs and Registrar or designee will be so notified by the Senior Associate Dean for Medical Education, and the grade or performance evaluation changed

Reviewed and Approved: November 15, 2023

Medical Education Curriculum Committee (MECC)

University of Southern California
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