UCAT Consortium Appeals Policy

1. Introduction

The UCAT Consortium is the operating name of the UKCAT Consortium.  Our admission tests are delivered by our business partner Pearson VUE (PVUE).

This policy applies to Candidates undertaking, attempting to undertake or seeking advice regarding our admission tests. Though not exclusive, candidates may wish to use this policy if they have:

  • had an incident during testing and are unhappy with the outcome of the UCAT Office Review;

  • applied for a UCAT Bursary and been rejected;

  • applied for Access Arrangements and been rejected (or partially rejected);

  • made a case to UCAT that they will not be or were not fit to test and are unhappy with the outcome;

  • made a request for information under the Freedom of Information Act or a Subject Access Request under the Data Protection Act and are unhappy with the outcome.

The UCAT Consortium does not deal with complaints about admissions decisions, which should be addressed to the individual University concerned.

Appeals will be dealt with quickly and treated seriously.  However, complaints should not be made frivolously, vexatiously or with malice, and if they are we will not investigate them.

Where relevant it may be helpful to refer to the following sections of the UCAT website as they relate to different parts of this document:

2. Test Incidents, Bursaries and Access Arrangements

2.1 Test Incidents

Our website Test Day page sets out what candidates can expect when taking their test.  This includes information regarding:

  • UCAT Exam Rules

  • The test centre experience and environment

  • Test day problems

Our Test Incident page outlines how incidents are initially investigated by PVUE.

The Test Incident page sets out what candidates need to do if they are not happy with the outcome of the PVUE investigation and want their incident reviewed by the UCAT Office.

You may appeal to the UCAT Board if you are not happy with the outcome of a review of any incident by the UCAT Office (see below).

2.2 UCAT Bursaries

Details of the UCAT Bursary Scheme including eligibility and evidence required can be found on our Bursary page.

Candidates whose bursary applications have been rejected are advised to contact the UCAT Office by email if they wish to discuss this decision or if they have further evidence to support their application.  The UCAT Office will review any such requests and respond in full to the candidate.

If a candidate is not happy with the outcome of the UCAT Office review, they may appeal this decision (see below).

2.3 Access Arrangements

Details of the UCAT Access Arrangements Scheme including eligibility and evidence required can be found on our Access Arrangements page.

Candidates whose applications for Access Arrangements have been rejected (or partially rejected) are provided with a written explanation of the decision made by the UCAT Office.  They are further advised to email the UCAT Office if they wish to have this decision reviewed.  They are invited to provide further evidence to support their claim that to test without specific Access Arrangements in place would put them at a substantial disadvantage compared with those who are not disabled, and to explain how the adjustment would avoid that disadvantage.  The UCAT Office will consider any such requests for review and respond in full to the candidate.

If a candidate is not happy with the outcome of the UCAT Office review, they may appeal this decision (see below).

2.4 Fitness to Test

On occasion, candidates may make a case to UCAT that they will not be fit to test for a period of time or were not fit to test when they sat their test. Advice for candidates in this situation can be found on our Test Day page.

If a candidate is not happy with the final decision from the UCAT Office in relation to their fitness to test, they may appeal this decision (see below).

3. Appeal Against the outcome of the UCAT Office Review

You may appeal to the UCAT Board if you are not happy with the outcome of a UCAT Office review of any decision including those relating to incidents, bursaries, access arrangements and fitness to test.

The Board will only consider appeals emailed to: [email protected]

When submitting an appeal, you need to be clear as to the grounds of your appeal, submit supporting evidence, outline any informal attempts to resolve this issue (e.g. previous contact with the UCAT Office and PVUE) and indicate what outcome you want.

Appeals should be submitted in a timely manner, which should normally be within 5 days of receiving a response to your request for a review by UCAT.

UCAT will acknowledge receipt of the appeal.  In considering the appeal we will:

  • ensure the review is concluded as quickly as possible, without unnecessary delay;

  • meet or make contact with other parties relevant to the appeal (e.g. Pearson VUE), if we feel this may assist our understanding;

  • take all the evidence into account in the process of making a decision;

  • handle the appeal sensitively, especially where individuals are named; and

  • set out our decision in writing and if the decision has a practical consequence, make sure this happens as intended, and in good time.

On occasion external advice may be requested to support decision making.

Documentation for an appeal will be collated by a member of UCAT office staff.  The appeal itself will be considered by a member of the UCAT Board who has not had any involvement with the case prior to the appeal.

4. Appeal against the outcome of a Freedom of Information (FOI)/Data Protection Act (DPA) request

Individuals may make requests for information to the UCAT Consortium under FOI or request access to their personal data under the DPA.  Requests will be dealt with in line with guidance issued by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).

If you feel that the service you have received does not meet these aims or your expectations, in the first instance please email: [email protected]

If having contacted us you are not satisfied with the response you receive, please contact us again and we will ask a member of the UCAT Board to review the response.

Please note that requests for a review of our response must be received within forty days of the date of that response.

If you remain dissatisfied after following these steps, you can complain to the ICO. You should do this within two months of receiving the UCAT Consortium's final response to your complaint.

For further advice on making a complaint to the ICO, please see their website at https://ico.org.uk/