Ombuds Office

How the Ombuds Office can help you

The Ombuds Office is:

• Confidential
• Impartial
• Open to students, faculty and staff
• Independent of all the administrative structures of the university

What the Ombuds Office does

• Helps with concerns about unfair treatment, academic or administrative decisions, disciplinary matters, supervision issues or appeal processes
• Conducts an independent and objective inquiry
• Provides information about existing policies, rules and procedures
• Recommends improvements to university policies, rules and procedures that are unclear or unfair

What the Ombuds Office cannot do

• Take sides
• Give legal advice
• Impose a decision
• Intervene in situations where a university procedure already exists
• Deal with matters covered by a collective agreement
• Intervene in conflicts involving companies, organizations or individuals outside the university
• Intervene in situations where we judge our involvement to be inappropriate

What happens when you contact us

• We provide a safe space to talk things through and help you understand your options. We listen to your concerns and help you understand relevant policies and procedures.
• We may help you resolve concerns informally through clarification, coaching or referrals.
• We may investigate your concerns after all regular university processes have been completed.
• We operate independently from Concordia's administration to ensure fairness and neutrality. Contacting us does not mean you have filed a formal complaint or notified the university. 

Confidentiality

We keep all conversations confidential. We will not share information or contact anyone on your behalf without your written permission, unless required by law or in situations involving serious risk of harm.

Due to Quebec's privacy laws, we do not communicate with third parties, including parents or other family members.

How to consult the Ombuds Office

Your options

• Complete our intake form.
• Join a virtual drop-in session over Zoom on Thursdays from 10 to 11 a.m.
• Contact us at ombuds@concordia.ca or call us at 514-848-2424, ext. 8658 for any questions.

About the virtual drop-in session

It's exactly like dropping by the Ombuds Office, but virtually, for help filling out your request for assistance. Log in to Zoom at 10 a.m. to join the waiting room. You will be seen as soon as it’s your turn.

Additional information

Services are available in English and French and are free of charge.

We are always pleased to answer questions. Remember, the sooner you get information about a problem that you may be having, the easier it will be to resolve.