Oxford uni graduate sues for £1m because he didn’t get a first
An Oxford uni graduate is suing the university because he claims his 2:1 degree prevented him from having a high-flying career as a commercial lawyer.
Faiz Siddiqui, a trained solicitor, is suing Oxford Uni for £1 million, as he claims that “appallingly bad” tuition was to blame for him missing out on a first class degree 16 years ago.
Mr Siddiqui, now 38, told the high court that thanks to his 2:1 degree, he was unable to have a successful career as a commercial lawyer, and has been struggling to hold down a job for any length of time since graduating due to depression and insomnia – which his lawyer links to his failure to achieve the degree result he wanted.
Why is the uni to blame?
Mr Saddiqui blames one particular module of his final year for his academic demise.
He says it was thanks to “negligent” teaching on a “boring” Indian imperial history class that he took as part of his Modern History undergrad at Brasenose College that brought his final grade down and prevented him from getting a first class degree.
He points out that four of the seven tutors who took the course were on sabbatical the year he took the class, which lead to a severe shortage of teachers, and that this had a profound affect on teaching quality.
Mr Saddiqui’s lawyer, Roger Mallalieu, also revealed that of the 15 students who took the Indian imperial history class, 13 received their lowest grades ever.
He argues that this demonstrates the level of teaching was “objectively unacceptable” and that Mr Saddiqui is entitled to the £1m for loss of earnings as a result.
Oxford’s response
Oxford have said that Mr Saddiqui’s case is baseless due to the fact that 16 years have passed since he graduated from the university.
The university also defended themselves by saying they made special deadline allowances on a number of papers for Mr Saddiqui due to his hay fever.
The Times have reported that the university is looking into having his claim struck down.
Results of the case are expected later this month!
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