BackOmbudsman Peter Tyndall congratulated students on their results in the Leaving Certificate examinations and reminded them that his Office can independently examine complaints against all public third-level education bodies.
The Ombudsman’s Office can examine complaints about a range of education bodies including the State Examinations Commission, Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI), Universities and Institutes of Technology.
Ombudsman Peter Tyndall said: “This is an exciting and hopefully happy time for students. However, if for some reason they are unhappy about the administration of their leaving certificate results then they should complain to the relevant education body, for example the State Examinations Commission. If they are unhappy with the response then they should bring their complaint to my Office, or, if they are under 18 years of age, to the Ombudsman for Children’s Office. We have worked very successfully with bodies in the third-level education sector such as SUSI and the State Examinations Commission to resolve complaints and to improve the delivery of education services.”
The Ombudsman can examine complaints about the administration of education services including leaving certificate examinations and admissions to third-level education. However his Office cannot examine ‘academic judgement’, in other words the marking or grading of exam papers.
The Ombudsman examined nearly 300 complaints about the education sector in 2015 including complaints relating to the Reasonable Accommodations at State Examinations scheme (RACE) and third-level grants provided by SUSI.
Students (aged 18 years of age or older) or parents can contact the Ombudsman’s Office for complaints from those under 18 contact the Ombudsman for Children.
Source: The Office of the Ombudsman - IRELAND
