Communiqué to All Students: Exclusion Process and Appeals
Dear Students,
Please take note of the following important information regarding academic exclusions and appeals for the 2026 academic year:
1. Appeals Are Governed by University Rules
All appeals are considered strictly in terms of the official university rules. No exceptions can be made outside these rules. All appeals are conducted online via MyAccess. Students who are unable to lodge an appeal online must liaise with their Faculty SRC for assistance.
2. Why Are Students Being Excluded?
- EXE (Exceeded N+2 Rule): Students who have exceeded the maximum time allowed for their programme (N+2).
- For a 3-year programme: Maximum is 5 years (N+2).
- For a 4-year programme: Maximum is 6 years (N+2).
- Additional Year: In exceptional cases, one extra year may be granted (6th year for 3-year programmes; 7th year for 4-year programmes) only if the student can complete in 2026 and only if there is evidence uploaded of extenuating circumstances. If completion is not possible, exclusion applies.
- NPA (Not Passing Required Modules): Students who have not passed all first-year modules within two years of registration, or who have repeated a module more than once, or who do not meet the other progression rules.
- Example: Students who have failed first-year modules 3–4 times and still have not completed them after 3 or 4 years will be excluded.
3. How Are Appeals Considered?
- Appeals must include valid motivation and supporting evidence (e.g., illness, bereavement, trauma).
- For NPA cases, we may, for example, allow a student with only one first-year module outstanding to continue if they can register for all final-year modules.
- Appeals based on promises like “I will pass everything in 2026” cannot be accepted where a student has a record of poor academic performance in the preceding years.
4. Important Dates
- The appeal system closes on 14 January 2026 as per the university calendar, but following an SRC request, it may be extended to Friday, 16 January 2026. Please confirm with the SRC.
5. Appeal Outcomes
- Outcomes will be communicated automatically via the system.
- Please avoid sending multiple emails; it delays processing as we are handling a very high volume of appeals alongside other registration tasks.
6. Key Message
We understand the challenges you face as students, and rules are applied fairly and consistently across all faculties. Unfortunately, appeals that do not meet the criteria set out in the university rules cannot be approved.
Distributed by CHETL
Information supplied by the Faculties
