By Sally Hind

Copyright dailyrecord

A shattered mum has described the moment she discovered her son dead as the family prepared to leave for his graduation after a university wrongly told him he had failed his degree. Ethan Brown, 23, took his own life in December last year – three months after Glasgow University told him in error that he did not have the necessary credits to graduate. A month after his death, his devastated family, from Coatbridge in North Lanarkshire, discovered the Geography student had been given the wrong grade and actually achieved a 2:1 honours degree. Mum Tracy Scott has accused the university of “repeated incompetence” in the months before her son’s death, saying they also failed to act after he reported mental health problems. University chiefs apologised for the “tragic error” yesterday. Describing the moment she found her son, Tracy told the Record: “I was up, dressed, ready for his graduation. The night before there was no indication, he knew the arrangements. I actually thought, ‘has he slept in?’ “We were all ready with cakes and presents. “There was nothing until I opened the door. “If he’d turned around and said he was not graduating tomorrow, it would have been ok. But it’s obviously been too much for him. If we’d asked the question… that’s what’s a struggle for the family to think that he thought his hands were tied and there was no way back. “It just turned into the worst day ever and it was supposed to be the happiest. “He had just said ‘see you in the morning’.” Ethan had dreamed of studying at the university since secondary school, writing in his sixth-year yearbook that in 10 years he expected to be “still begging Glasgow University to accept me”. The former Coatbridge High School pupil , who had “a smile that would light up the room”, had been due to graduate in June 2024 but the university said an assignment had not been handed in. Ethan was unable to graduate and the family say the university failed to communicate with him throughout the summer but he hoped he would be able to graduate in December. In September, he was told that he had not been awarded a grade for one course and would not be eligible to graduate from his honours degree. He took his own life on December 13 last year. At a press conference yesterday, mum Tracy was joined by her husband Colin Scott, Ethan’s stepfather, and his uncle Alan Neil. She said she has been left heartbroken that her “clever, hard-working and dedicated” son died “believing he had failed”. She went on to tell the Record: “The frustrating thing was if he thought he wasn’t getting an honours degree, then you should have got the generic degree. But nobody said to him you can get that. We suspect he’s been told he can’t graduate at all.” It was only when Ethan’s aunt asked more questions from the university about his grades that the error came to light. Tracey said: “We thought ‘right he’s failed and must have been struggling with the course work. Perhaps the university had been reaching out to him?’ So to find out, no, Ethan was successful and was asking questions and he was failed – they’ve let him down. We just can’t understand it. “We didn’t expect this to be the outcome and it’s just such a shock. “People need to know of Ethan’s successes but they also need to know of the University of Glasgow’s failures. “It’s impacted all the family. We’ve kept it close to the family but we want people now to know of Ethan’s success. “People sometimes avoid you as well when there’s a suicide. They don’t know what to say. They think it’s because he’s failed to get a degree. But I want people to know my son passed. He hasn’t failed. “Ethan was a kind, caring young man who was very much loved and it breaks my heart to now be aware of the mental anguish this university must have caused my son. “We seek justice for Ethan in the hope that other students and their families do not have to experience the pain that myself and my family will have to live with forever.” A report from the university’s investigation into the tragedy stated that there was “misunderstanding or confusion” among the majority of staff interviewed about what should happen if an honours student fails to complete more than 75% of their total assessments. It also revealed there had been “details of deteriorating health and distress” which could have alerted staff to Ethan’s mental health problems after he sought two extensions for course work. The family want to know why the error was not spotted by any University of Glasgow staff, nor identified by two internal exam boards, and one external exam board. They are now seeking answers alongside lawyer Aamer Anwar, who branded the university’s conduct “shameful” yesterday. Mr Anwar, a former Glasgow University rector, yesterday raised “serious concerns” about the support offered to struggling students at the institution. The human rights lawyer, who served as the university’s rector between 2017 and 2020, said he believed there has been a “systemic failure” which could have affected many other students. Mr Anwar said the family also want to know “whether this systemic failure would ever have been identified had Ethan not died and his family had not fought for answers”. The lawyer quoted an internal report from the university on the investigation into Ethan’s case, which stated: “This is a systemic problem rather than an error made by an individual …..This systemic problem is a serious issue for the University and I believe that it may not be confined to Geography and Earth Sciences.” The university said it was confident the error in Ethan’s case was “isolated”. Mr Anwar said the family were “considering all options” on how to proceed and wanted assurances that the tragedy could never happen again. The lawyer also claimed the Principal of Glasgow University, Professor Sir Anton Muscatelli, who retired yesterday, along with the incoming principal, had refused to meet the family unless they attended without him. Mr Anwar said: “When I was rector at Glasgow University one of the primary issues and constant themes running through was the mental health crisis. It should be an automatic red flag. A student fails. The first thing you do is lift up the phone and say ‘are you ok? Do you need help?’ Then you follow it up again. “It’s a shameful day for Anton Muscatelli that, after 16 years of service, it should be marked by today. By Ethan. He was failed. And they’re still persisting in the idea that he was a one off? “How many other students have they done this to? “The next step is to request a meeting with the Government.” He added: “Why since the meeting in 14th February has the University not had the decency to advise Ethan’s family what steps have been followed, what further investigations have uncovered to ensure no other student or family has to suffer in the same way again?” The University of Glasgow said it identified the error after an investigation and commissioned an internal report into the circumstances. A spokesman said: “The Deputy Vice Chancellor and the compiler of the report met with representatives of the family in early February 2025 to talk through the findings and offer a sincere apology as well as our deepest sympathies. “The report found that a tragic error had been made in calculating Ethan’s degree outcome. It indicated that this error should have been picked up during the exam board process. A further shortcoming involved communications with Ethan, including the fact that he was not referred to Student Support Services when he disclosed wellbeing concerns. “The University has checked all its records and is confident that the error in relation to Ethan’s marks was an isolated one and that no other students have been affected. Even so, we have undertaken a thorough review of our academic and wellbeing policies and practices. “We have also revised our training programmes for members of staff involved in exam boards. We continue to look for ways to further strengthen our quality assurance processes and our support for students. “We are profoundly sorry that this terrible event occurred and understand the deep distress it has caused Ethan’s family. “The Principal has indicated to the family’s lawyers that he would be willing to have another meeting with the family to express his sympathies and discuss the actions taken by the University.”