Appeals of Suspension or Dismissal

The Graduate School will consider appeals of suspension and dismissal decisions issued by the Graduate School.

This policy applies to students who are currently enrolled in a graduate program or have been enrolled in a graduate program within the preceding year.

Submitting an Appeal

Graduate students must submit a complete Graduate appeal form to the Graduate School before the dean can consider an appeal request. This form must be submitted to the Graduate School within five (5) business days following the date on which the Graduate School sent an email to the student notifying the student of the suspension or dismissal.

If the next semester begins less than five business days after the notification is sent, the student will have three (3) business days to submit an appeal to the Graduate School. This includes cases where the academic calendar does not allow five business days for an appeal or in circumstances where a grade change delays the notification of a suspension or dismissal.

Complete Graduate appeal forms are reviewed by the dean.  The dean will render a decision and notify the student of the final decision in a timely manner.

Submission Deadlines

Graduate students facing a suspension or dismissal decision should consult the table below for upcoming appeal request submission deadlines. Note that the Graduate School is closed for regular business between Christmas and New Year's Day.

Suspension or dismissal notice after... Grades are due and suspension
and dismissal notifications are sent on...
File appeal no later than 4pm on...
Fall 2023 December 19, 2023 January 4, 2024
Spring 2024 April 30, 2024

May 3, 2024 (to enroll in summer)

May 7, 2024 (to enroll in fall)

Summer 2024 August 13, 2024 August 20, 2024


Result of an Appeal

If the appeal is not successful, the student will remain suspended or dismissed from the graduate program. If the appeal is successful, the student will be reinstated in the graduate program.

More Information

More information about appeals can be found in Senate Policy 2-12.

Information about how to maintain good standing and the steps involved in suspension and dismissal are found in the policy on Good Academic Standing and Dismissal.

Revision history:

  • July 2018: Altered Policy 415.1 for reduction to five business days for submission of appeal and for submission of appeal where the academic calendar does not allow five business days for an appeal with passage of Senate Proposal 16-18.
  • April 2021: Moved appeal form from Word file to Maxient.