Advocacy

If you’ve been accused of Academic, General or Research misconduct, Welfare Officers can:

• Provide information about relevant policies and processes
• Provide guidance on preparing for your meeting
• Attend the Misconduct Meeting or Hearing with you
• Inform you about appeal options

Visit the Student Misconduct Rule webpage for more information.

If you believe your final grade in a subject does not accurately reflect your performance against the subject criteria, speak to the relevant academic about your concerns.

If you’re unable to resolve the issue, submit a Review of Grade application via Student Forms within 10 working days of your results being released in MySR.

Welfare Officers can assist you to identify which grounds are relevant to your application and suggest relevant supporting documentation.

Visit the Review of Grade webpage for more information.

Submit a Disruption to Studies application if you’ve experienced a serious and unavoidable extenuating circumstance (such as a health issue, hardship, or trauma) that has impacted your ability to study for three consecutive days.

You must apply within five days of the disruption occurring and your application will take up to 10 business days to be assessed.

If approved, you’ll be provided with special provisions such as an extension or a supplementary task.

Welfare Officers can provide guidance on the process, suggest relevant supporting documentation and refer you to additional support services.

Visit the Disruption to Studies webpage for more information.

If you’ve experienced extenuating circumstances that have impacted your studies after the Census Date and need to withdraw from your studies, you can apply for Withdrawal Without Academic/ Financial Penalty (WWAP) via WesternNow

Welfare Officers can suggest relevant supporting documentation, review your application before you submit it, and link you to additional support services.

Note: We can provide advice on your application but cannot guarantee the outcome.

Visit the Withdrawal Without Academic Penalty webpage for more information.

If you’re ‘at risk’ of Exclusion or Conditional Enrolment, our team can provide you with information on relevant support services.

If you’ve been Excluded or placed on Conditional Enrolment but your studies were impacted by extenuating circumstances (such as a health issue, hardship or trauma) we can provide guidance on how to submit a Show Cause application.

Visit the Progression Show Cause and Appeals webpage for more information.

The University provides students with the right of appeal against a range of academic decisions via the Academic Appeals Procedures. Refer to The Academic Appeals web page for further information.

Bullying is repeated, unreasonable behaviour that is intimidating, degrading or humiliating. It can impact safety and wellbeing, including psychological, emotional and physical health and may take place on campus, within student accommodation, or via phone, email or online.

If you’ve witnessed or experienced bullying:

1. Record the behaviours in writing

• Make note of the date, time, location and witnesses.
• Describe the bullying behaviours.
• Describe the impact of the bullying e.g. impact to studies, submission of tasks, class attendance. If you've accessed wellbeing support such as a doctor or wellbeing service, you can include this information too.
• Seek support from the Counselling or the Student Welfare Service 
  • Counselling  Service - counselling@westernsydney.edu.au
  • Student Welfare - welfareservice@westernsydney.edu.au 
  • or call us on 1300 668 370 (option 5)

2. Speak to the bully directly if you can and it's safe to do so

Make it clear that the behaviour is unwelcome and unacceptable and ask them to stop. This may resolve the matter. If not, proceed to the next step.

3. Report bullying to the University

• Provide details of each bullying incident.
• If the bullying allegation is against a student, report it to the relevant Dean. The matter will be dealt with under the Student Misconduct Rule.
• If the bullying allegation is against a staff member, report it to their supervisor or relevant Dean. The matter will be dealt with under the Bullying Prevention Policy.
• Ensure that you stay informed about the progress of your report. Seek regular updates from the Dean via email.

You can find the relevant Dean’s contact details in the Staff Directory. If you’re unsure who to report to, contact the Student Welfare Service for support via welfareservice@westernsydney.edu.au or 1300 668 370 (option 5)

4. Lodge a formal complaint

If you’ve reported bullying to the University but you’re unsatisfied with the outcome, lodge a formal complaint with the Complaints Resolution Unit. They’ll ask you what you’ve done to try to resolve the situation before they investigate the complaint. See the Complaint Management Policy for more information.

If you’d like some support to report bullying, book an appointment with a Welfare Officer. Free and confidential counselling support is also available. Book with Student Welfare via welfareservice@westernsydney.edu.au or Counselling via  counselling@westernsydney.edu.au or call us on 1300 668 370 (option 5)

Reachout is an online youth mental health service providing information on types of bullying and external support services.