University of Glasgow settles with family of student who died after grading mistake

Ethan Brown, a 23-year-old geography honours student at the University of Glasgow, was incorrectly told he had not passed a course, meaning he would not graduate in December 2024. The mistake, which escaped detection by multiple internal and external exam boards, was later identified as a grading error that should have awarded him a 2:1 degree. On the day his degree was to be conferred, Brown took his own life, and his mother Tracy found his body in their Coatbridge home.

An internal investigation and a Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education review found systemic risks to academic standards and mis-graded outcomes for other geography students. The family’s civil claim has been settled out of court for an undisclosed sum, and their lawyer Aamer Anwar is urging a fatal-accident inquiry to hold the university accountable. The family plans to discuss the case with education secretary Màiri McAllan, seeking broader changes to assessment and student-welfare procedures.