A Louisiana medical student struggling with finances and depression claims their school dismissed them despite only having a single exam left. The particularly shocking bit was that their dismissal email read that the decision was “not subject to appeal.” They were allegedly denied any chance to speak with school staff and were also locked out of their student email after requesting a call with Academic Affairs. According to those on r/legaladvice, this situation called for intervention from the authorities.
Using a burner account under the name Braveheart117, the Louisiana medical student admitted that they recently didn’t handle deadlines and communication well, which led to their dismissal. However, they argue that, during this time, they were also struggling financially, on top of ongoing medical conditions for which they have documentation.
The whole situation is very unfortunate, but Braveheart117 points out what they find very confusing: “The dismissal email says the decision is ‘not subject to appeal,’ but the school appears to have a formal appeals process.” That said, their reason to post on r/legaladvice is to figure out what their options are to get through the last exam they need to complete their program, along with any legal footwork they might need to handle for this ‘appeal ban’ they’ve been placed under.
One Redditor in the comments recalled how someone else posted a similar situation to the subreddit last year. Fortunately, things were in the poster’s favor, as they allegedly “forced the school to overturn the dismissal with the assistance of a higher ed attorney.” “Schools pull this stuff all the time to protect their stats/reputation,” pointed out another user.
Users Assure the Student that Their School Is Wrong, ‘Anything Can Be Appealed’
One commenter claiming to be a former medical school employee assured OP that “Anything can be appealed,” meaning there was no reasoning behind their Louisiana school’s warning in the dismissal email. Another person chimed in, saying, “The ‘not subject to appeal’ thing while having a formal appeals process sounds like they’re banking on you just accepting it and walking away.”
Luckily for Braveheart117, and true to their burner account’s username, they don’t seem like the type to let their school get away with this, considering they came to r/legaladvice for help. It’s now up to them to lawyer up and get things moving with the filed appeal before it’s too late.
