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Appeals Procedures

For IBE examinations

Any candidate appealing an IBE examination must do so within the time limits listed, following the completion of the examination. If a candidate wishes to appeal a failure on the IBE examination, they may appeal to the IBE as follows, at no additional fee.

Appeal to the IBE

A. Comments on written examination questions

The IBE constantly strives to improve the quality and clarity of examination questions. During the written examination, candidates may write comments on any question which they wish to challenge or which they think is unclear. Comments may be written directly on the examination paper or on a separate sheet, but should clearly identify the examination, date and question number. Please write legibly.

All such comments are considered carefully, and if there is any doubt about the correctness of the question, all candidates at that sitting are given credit for any reasonably correct alternate answer. Often such a question is re-edited in the question pool before being reused.

Please understand that we have candidates and board members who speak many languages and who were trained in varying medical terminology. Translation problems are inevitable, despite our best efforts. We appreciate your input to achieve excellence in all examination questions.

Time limitPlease submit comments at the time of the examination. Additional comments about the content of examination questions will be accepted at any time, but will not affect the examination grades of candidates.

B. Regrading of the written examination

A candidate may request that their examination be regraded if they suspect that there was a scoring error.

Time limitA request for regrading of a written examination must be received by the President of the IBE within 3 months of the candidate receiving notice of the results.

C. Video review of the practical examination

A candidate may request to review the video of their practical examination. This is done for purposes of education, so the candidate understands their errors and can correct them on a retake. The candidate may only view the video in the presence of IBE examiners, and may not retain a copy.

Time limitA request for video review must be received by the President of the IBE within 3 months of the candidate receiving notice of the results of the practical examination.

D. Regrading of the practical examination

If, after a video review, the candidate thinks that a failed examination was incorrectly graded, they may request that the examination be regraded by IBE examiners who did not participate in the original examination. The candidate should submit a written list of the points in dispute and why they think they should have passed.

Time limitA request for regrading of a practical examination must be received by the President of the IBE within 3 months of the candidate's video review.

The President of the IBE will appoint three board members who did not participate in the original examination to regrade the video. They have access to the candidate's submission as well as copies of the original score sheets. Upon regrading, the examiners may decide, by majority vote:

  1. The examination was failed. This conclusion is reached if the candidate made sufficient incorrect answers to merit failure, according to the stated goals of the IBE practical examination, even if a few errors were made in the administration of the examination.
  2. The examination was passed. This conclusion is reached if the candidate made sufficient correct answers to merit passing, according to the stated goals of the IBE practical examination, even if a few errors were made in the administration of the examination.
  3. The examination contained sufficient errors in its administration to invalidate it. In this case, the candidate shall be offered the opportunity to retake the practical examination at no additional charge.

Regrading of the examination must be completed within 4 months of receipt of the candidate's request.

Appeal to an Independent Board

If, after appeal to the IBE, the candidate still wishes to dispute a failed examination result, either written or practical, they may appeal to an Independent Board, pursuant to the ICAK International Bylaws, by contacting the President of the International Council of the ICAK within 6 months of receiving the results of the IBE appeal. This appeal is conducted according to policies and procedures adopted by the International Council of the ICAK.

Suggested procedure

Proposal submitted by the International Board of Examiners of the ICAK to the International Council as suggested policy.

If, after exhausting the appeal procedures of the IBE, the candidate still wishes to dispute a failed examination result, they are entitled to an appeal to an Independent Board, as defined in the ICAK bylaws, at a cost equivalent to the fee for the examination being appealed.

Time limitAn appeal to the Independent Board must be filed within 6 months of exhausting the appeal procedures of the IBE.
  1. The candidate must notify the President of the International Council of their intention to appeal. The submission must include the specific points in dispute, any supporting data, and the name of the Certified Teaching Diplomate whom the candidate would like to have serve on the Independent Board. The appeal fee must be submitted at this time, made out to the International College of Applied Kinesiology.
  2. Upon receiving a notice of appeal, the President of the International Council notifies the President of the IBE, requesting the appointment of an IBE representative to serve on the Independent Board and an IBE response to the appeal.
  3. The President of the International Council further appoints an additional, neutral Certified Teaching Diplomate to the Independent Board.
  4. The President of the International Council and all members of the Independent Board are required to maintain strict confidentiality of the content of the examination in dispute and the proceedings of the Independent Board, to return all copies of examination questions, videos and materials to the IBE upon completion of the review, and to ensure that no copies of examination questions are disseminated before, during or after the review.
  5. The members of the Independent Board meet in person to review the video or disputed questions and the submissions from the candidate and the IBE. After meeting, the Independent Board comes to a decision and publishes it to the President of the International Council, the IBE and the candidate.

Decisions available to the Independent Board

  1. The examination was failed. If the failure is upheld, the appeal fee, less the costs of duplication involved in administering the appeal, is paid to the IBE by the ICAK Treasurer.
  2. The examination was passed. If the appeal is upheld, the appeal fee, less the costs of duplication, is refunded to the candidate and the IBE is instructed to issue appropriate notice of passing the examination.
  3. The examination contained sufficient errors in its administration to invalidate it. The IBE is liable for the costs of duplication, to be reimbursed to the ICAK treasury; the entire appeal fee is refunded to the candidate; the IBE is informed of the errors found and instructed to re-examine the candidate at no additional cost.
Where to send an appeal. Appeals to the IBE are addressed to the President, Dr Michael Hooker, at michaelhooker@hotmail.com.