Concerns/Complaints about MIT Courses
From time to time, students may have concerns about the overall functioning of a course, including content, delivery or administrative issues. Such concerns should first be brought to the attention of the course Instructor and/or Teaching Assistant, to discuss how the situation can be clarified or addressed. Instructors and Teaching Assistants are usually very receptive to student concerns about the overall content and delivery of their courses once these concerns are made known to them.
Note: Complaints about grades on assignments or final grades in a course are dealt with through the Appeals process, either by appealing to the Instructor regarding individual assignments, or to the FIMS Appeals Committee regarding final grades.
Other avenues for raising concerns about the overall functioning of a course include:
An Academic Counsellor in FIMS
Students may discuss course concerns with an Academic Counsellor and, if appropriate, the Academic Counsellor may discuss the matter with, or refer it to, the Associate Dean.
The MIT Student Council
A student or students may approach a member of the MIT Student Council with their concerns about a course. If the MIT SC feels that it is warranted, they may bring the concern to the attention of the Associate Dean, in writing, with a clear statement of the issue and the implications for students.
The Associate Dean of FIMS
Students may use any of the avenues above to express concerns about a course, or they may voice their concerns about a course in writing to the Associate Dean of the Faculty of Information and Media Studies. If students express their concerns directly to the Associate Dean, the Associate Dean will investigate the concern to determine i) whether the students have raised the issue with the course Instructor; ii) whether the concern affects a large number of students in the course or is merely an instance of individual dissatisfaction; and iii) whether the concern has to do with course delivery or academic policy. If the concern pertains to course delivery, the Associate Dean will refer and/or discuss the issue with the Instructor. If the concern pertains to academic policy, the Associate Dean will refer the matter to the Undergraduate Affairs Committee in FIMS for further discussion.