A University of Canterbury postgraduate student has accused striking staff of “holding the grades hostage”, as the university’s students’ association seeks answers about potential exam result delays.

The student, who asked not to be named, told chrislynchmedia.com she was frustrated by being caught in the pay dispute.

“I paid my fees. I’ve done the work. They’ve graded the work and now they’re just saying, we’re just not handing them over.”

The University of Canterbury Students’ Association (UCSA) has written to university leadership seeking clarity about how students could obtain results if delays occur, particularly where grades are needed for employment or further study.

Members of the Tertiary Education Union (TEU) began a partial strike on Tuesday 10 November. Participating staff are continuing other duties but withholding work involved in confirming, entering, processing and releasing student grades and exam results.

The postgraduate student said the uncertainty made it difficult to assess her progress and understand what marks she needed in her remaining studies to achieve her academic goals.

“I still have no idea where I stand,” she said.

She said she supported teachers taking strike action but objected to withholding results for assessments students had already completed.

“We’ve done all the work and now they’re saying, well, we’re not going to tell you how you went.”

Correspondence seen by chrislynchmedia.com shows a lecturer advised students to expect their grades and feedback, before subsequently telling them the results would be withheld because of industrial action.

The later message confirmed marking was complete.

The lecturer apologised for the uncertainty, acknowledged students’ frustration and said the delay was unrelated to their academic performance or the quality of their work.

The correspondence said the action was scheduled to continue until 1 December, although it could end earlier depending on the outcome of collective employment negotiations.

In an update posted to Facebook, the UCSA executive outlined its efforts to get answers from university leadership.

“The moment we heard about this, our Exec were pretty concerned to have students and exam results caught up in this.”

The executive said its letter to UC’s senior leadership sought clarity on options for students to obtain their results if delayed, and asked when students would receive direct communication from the university.

“Our main concern is students having financial and academic security for the remainder of 2026 and 2027.”

UCSA said it wanted to understand the options for students who needed grades to apply for or secure employment, or pursue further education, including postgraduate study.

The association said UC had told it the university was gathering information from faculties and considering the impact on students before providing an update.

In an earlier public statement, TEU said the university’s pay offer comprised increases of two percent in each of two years, alongside a one-off payment totalling $3,000 spread over that period.

The union argued the offer failed to keep pace with living costs or recognise increasing workloads associated with growing student numbers.

University of Canterbury law professor and TEU bargaining team member Annick Masselot said staff regularly worked beyond their contracted hours to complete grading.

“If management keep undervaluing staff, then both staff and students suffer.”

chrislynchmedia.com sought comment from both the University of Canterbury and TEU. Neither had responded at the time of publication.