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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Feb 2011
    Posts
    3

    Default Age Discrimination at a University

    I am planning to submit an age discrimination case to the Office for Civil Rights. I am in a very unpleasant situation as a graduate student at a university. I have some pretty concrete evidence of discrimination. I also have a family and feel very vulnerable. I do not really have a lot of money to retain an attorney - I'm back at school due to a bankrupt family business. Will the OCR take care of this a protect me? The website says they handle this type of situation, but not to what extent. Or is an attorney an absolute must? I'm also hesitant to contact an attorney because most firms have lawyers who graduated from this university.

    Any advice would be appreciated.
    Thanks

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2010
    Location
    Oklahoma
    Posts
    695

    Default Re: Age Discrimination at a University

    What kind of concrete evidence do you have? and are you in the US?

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    Massachusetts
    Posts
    24,521

    Default Re: Age Discrimination at a University

    And how old are you? In what state are you? Is the university public or private?

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Feb 2011
    Posts
    3

    Default Re: Age Discrimination at a University

    Since I am a bit older than most in our department, I am also much more advanced. This has had two consequences. I have been overworked by my supervisor, with threats of cutting my assistantship if I did not comply (he has made may comments actually and keeps referring to me as his senior). Also, I am a bit resented because I have produced an amount of work that has broken records. I decided to take the abuse, work hard, and it would only benefit me in the long run.

    Until - a major professor in the department failed me on my recent qualifying exam. To make matters worse, he failed me on the portion that is my expertise (statistics). To make matters even more worse, I taught the exact topic in his class to prepare others for the exam, again because it is my expertise. To make matters worse again, the day after the exam the word was out that only one person failed the exam. It took a month from that point to find out that it was me. The people I taught the topic to passed.

    I reviewed my exam, and his grading and comments are completely wrong! I wrote a pretty heated letter addressing every wrong point that he made and gave citation to back me up. It went to a second faculty member, who did not override the grade (Which was a 40 out of 100). This professor made a comment to me before the exam that he thought that 40 was too old to be in graduate school. A major coincidence.

    There are also a couple fellow students who have made left handed age comments. One recent PhD graduate, had sent me data from her new place of work (because we were working on a project together). And all the data she sent me was fabricated. Her responses were a bit taunting too: "Oh when will this nightmare end". I had considered reporting her to IRB, but had decided to stand-up and fight about the real underlying issue. This girl is also in pretty tight with the people who oversee the qualifying exam.

    I have been in this program not quite two years. I have received all A’s. And I have taken the hardest courses in our program. Not to mention, I brought my family here to this town, for this degree. But at this point I believe that they want me out of the program. I’ve socially withdrawn since my exam notification (December). And I believe that they believe that I will just leave at the end of this semester.

    Yes – I live in the US.

    Thanks.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    Massachusetts
    Posts
    24,521

    Default Re: Age Discrimination at a University

    You did not answer any of my questions and each of them was asked for a purpose. If you don't want to answer them, that's fine, but I can't give you an accurate answer without the answers to all three.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Posts
    38,867

    Default Re: Age Discrimination at a University

    To make matters even more worse,
    You're a grad student?

    Yes – I live in the US.
    well, there's the answer to one question out of five.

    This professor made a comment to me before the exam that he thought that 40 was too old to be in graduate school.
    I guess that's a second answer. That leaves 3 out of 5 questions not answered. That means you scored a 40% here as well. Coincidence or age discrimination?

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Feb 2011
    Posts
    3

    Default Re: Age Discrimination at a University

    No - sorry - I was typing while you posted - I didn't see you till now.

    I'm 42. Which is old for the department that I'm in. Also old for a graduate assistant.

    It's a public university in Tennessee.

    Thanks.

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