When Academic Appeals Fail: What Can a Student Do Next?

Getting a zero mark—especially when you’ve submitted genuine work and followed the rules—is not just frustrating, it’s distressing. When internal appeals, departments, and even the student union seem unable (or unwilling) to help, it’s natural to ask a bigger question: “Can I take this further?” First, let’s be clear: you are not wrong to question this. A mark of zero is usually reserved for very specific circumstances—proven plagiarism, non-submission, or formal academic misconduct. If none of these were identified, and no clear written justification was provided, that raises legitimate concerns about procedural fairness. Universities are legally required to follow their own published assessment and marking regulations. If marking goes against those policies, it’s not “just academic judgement”—it can become a process failure. Before Thinking About Legal Action, There Are Still Options Many students are not told this clearly: Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OIA)