What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Michigan
Last semester I enrolled in a course at my university. Headed into the final, I had an A. Shortly after grades were posted, I saw that I had received a failing grade in the course. I reached out to the professor by email to ask why I received a failing grade, as I felt confident in my performance on the exam. He emailed back and frankly stated I failed because I didn't take the final exam. I told him I did take the final exam, and to search his records. He emailed back and said he found no record of me taking the exam. I told him to check again, because I had taken the exam. He emailed back and said he could do no more checking and that he did not have the exam. He said that he had extra exams (exams which he had graded but could not assign to a student in the classroom), but none of them had my name on it. He referred me to the department chair.
I emailed the department chair and the first thing he emailed me was that the "conservative probability that the university lost my exam is 1 and 10 billion." The university has been open for less than 200 years, and based on the current student body, 10 billion exams will not have been administered by my university for another approximately 125,000 years. Effectively, he told me that they never lost exams, ever. He asked me to fill out a grade grievance and email it to him.
In the grade grievance, I specifically told him what the professor was wearing on the day of the final exam, the color of the exam sheet, where I was sitting in the room and what I was wearing, what time I arrived, and that there were several witnesses that could attest to me taking the exam. Shortly after submitting the grade grievance, he emailed a response that stated that he was denying my grade grievance and the decision was final. He said that the probability of them losing my exam was 1 and 10 billion. He also said that any information I stated could have been gathered from talking to students who took the exam, but at the same time faulted me for not bringing up details like any unusual noise in the room (which I could have also presumably gathered from talking to people who took the exam). On one hand he dismissed any information I provided, and on the other he faulted me for not providing information he thought was essential. He refused to meet with me or speak with me by phone, and never asked to speak with my witnesses. He also never followed-up with me after reading my grievance to ask questions, clarify and perhaps gather the information he thought was pertinent.
I have no tangible proof that I took the exam, no video, no pictures, nothing. I only have my memory of that day and a handful of witnesses, with whom he does not care to speak. I have a stellar A- cumulative GPA, and $50,000 in scholarships annually, and have never experienced a situation like this before.
It is my opinion that he dislikes me, and simply wanted me to fill out the grade grievance form so he could deny it and close the case. He works intimately with the professor involved and no one wants to take responsibility for this. Someone who wants to find the truth, ask questions and meets with people to hear their story. He did none of this. After being shocked by his report, I emailed him and ask to speak with him personally again. I received no response. I contacted the professor involved, and received no response. To date, I have sent them all several emails and received no response. I attempted to schedule meetings with them through an online scheduling system, and my scheduled meetings with them were denied. They refuse to speak with me.
I have a prestigious Wall Street internship this summer that could lead to a full-time offer. Now this internship is in jeopardy because my GPA has plummeted from an A- to a B average, which is below the required GPA. I am faced with a low GPA, loss of wages and potential lucrative full-time offer, and a tarnished reputation. I have a substantial scholarship, which I fear is also in jeopardy.
I really need help and I have no idea who I should turn to. The university's decision is that since they can't find the exam in their possession, despite having extra exams that they haven't assigned to a student, that that must mean I didn't take the exam. They have no other arguments except that they don't lose exams. I am trying to be as cooperative as possible and have gone out of my way to try to prove myself, but they refuse to listen. I need help and advice. Thank you for your time and consideration.
Last semester I enrolled in a course at my university. Headed into the final, I had an A. Shortly after grades were posted, I saw that I had received a failing grade in the course. I reached out to the professor by email to ask why I received a failing grade, as I felt confident in my performance on the exam. He emailed back and frankly stated I failed because I didn't take the final exam. I told him I did take the final exam, and to search his records. He emailed back and said he found no record of me taking the exam. I told him to check again, because I had taken the exam. He emailed back and said he could do no more checking and that he did not have the exam. He said that he had extra exams (exams which he had graded but could not assign to a student in the classroom), but none of them had my name on it. He referred me to the department chair.
I emailed the department chair and the first thing he emailed me was that the "conservative probability that the university lost my exam is 1 and 10 billion." The university has been open for less than 200 years, and based on the current student body, 10 billion exams will not have been administered by my university for another approximately 125,000 years. Effectively, he told me that they never lost exams, ever. He asked me to fill out a grade grievance and email it to him.
In the grade grievance, I specifically told him what the professor was wearing on the day of the final exam, the color of the exam sheet, where I was sitting in the room and what I was wearing, what time I arrived, and that there were several witnesses that could attest to me taking the exam. Shortly after submitting the grade grievance, he emailed a response that stated that he was denying my grade grievance and the decision was final. He said that the probability of them losing my exam was 1 and 10 billion. He also said that any information I stated could have been gathered from talking to students who took the exam, but at the same time faulted me for not bringing up details like any unusual noise in the room (which I could have also presumably gathered from talking to people who took the exam). On one hand he dismissed any information I provided, and on the other he faulted me for not providing information he thought was essential. He refused to meet with me or speak with me by phone, and never asked to speak with my witnesses. He also never followed-up with me after reading my grievance to ask questions, clarify and perhaps gather the information he thought was pertinent.
I have no tangible proof that I took the exam, no video, no pictures, nothing. I only have my memory of that day and a handful of witnesses, with whom he does not care to speak. I have a stellar A- cumulative GPA, and $50,000 in scholarships annually, and have never experienced a situation like this before.
It is my opinion that he dislikes me, and simply wanted me to fill out the grade grievance form so he could deny it and close the case. He works intimately with the professor involved and no one wants to take responsibility for this. Someone who wants to find the truth, ask questions and meets with people to hear their story. He did none of this. After being shocked by his report, I emailed him and ask to speak with him personally again. I received no response. I contacted the professor involved, and received no response. To date, I have sent them all several emails and received no response. I attempted to schedule meetings with them through an online scheduling system, and my scheduled meetings with them were denied. They refuse to speak with me.
I have a prestigious Wall Street internship this summer that could lead to a full-time offer. Now this internship is in jeopardy because my GPA has plummeted from an A- to a B average, which is below the required GPA. I am faced with a low GPA, loss of wages and potential lucrative full-time offer, and a tarnished reputation. I have a substantial scholarship, which I fear is also in jeopardy.
I really need help and I have no idea who I should turn to. The university's decision is that since they can't find the exam in their possession, despite having extra exams that they haven't assigned to a student, that that must mean I didn't take the exam. They have no other arguments except that they don't lose exams. I am trying to be as cooperative as possible and have gone out of my way to try to prove myself, but they refuse to listen. I need help and advice. Thank you for your time and consideration.
