Appeals Procedure

Students have the right to appeal dismissal and denial of graduation decisions to the Dean of the CUNY School of Medicine. To exercise this right, a student must provide a written appeal via their CCNY email address, to the Dean - Dean-CSOM@med.cuny.edu. The student must send this appeal within ten business days of their receipt of the official notification of the decision.

Upon receipt of the written appeal, the Dean of the School will appoint an Appeals Committee and will notify the Student Academic Progress Committee, the Deputy Dean for Medical Education, and the Associate Dean for Student Affairs.

The Appeals Committee is a joint committee of the BS/MD and Physician Assistant (PA) programs, comprised of 3 BS/MD faculty and 2 PA faculty. The committee reviews student appeals from either program.

The Appeals Committee will be provided with a copy of the student's written appeal, the minutes of the Student Academic Progress Committee meetings, and the student’s complete academic profile.

The Appeals Committee is charged with determining:

• If the adverse decision was made in accordance with the approved and established policies of the Student Academic Progress Committee; and

• if the adverse decision was made in accordance with academic standards; and

• if the adverse decision was arbitrary or capricious, or reflected prejudice against the student.

It is not within the purview of the Appeals Committee to review the substance of the decision or the academic judgment of the Student Academic Progress Committee.

Within ten business days before the Appeals Committee meeting with the student, the Dean of the School will notify the student, in writing, by email (return receipt email requested), of the time and place of the meeting and of the student's right to be present at the meeting and to make oral or written statements to the committee regarding the decision. The student may also bring a non-legal support person, such as a faculty member or fellow student, to the meeting. This support person is not allowed to speak at the meeting.

The Appeals Committee may request, in writing, that the appropriate Course Director(s)and the Chair of the Student Academic Progress Committee attend the meeting.

After reviewing all documentation and hearing all presentations, the Appeals Committee will formulate a recommendation either confirming or reversing the original adverse decision. Within five business days of the meeting, the Appeals Committee will transmit its’ written recommendation to the Dean of the School.

The Dean of the School will review the report of the Appeals Committee. If he/she finds that the Appeals Committee properly carried out the appellate process, he/she will confirm the Appeals Committee recommendation. If the original adverse decision is reversed, the Dean of the School will refer the student’s record to the Student Academic Progress Committee for remediation.

The decision of the Dean in such cases is final; no further institutional recourse is available to the student.

The Dean of the School will notify the student in writing of the final decision (with copies to the Appeals Committee, the Student Academic Progress Committee, the Deputy Dean for Medical Education, and the Associate Dean for Student Affairs).