Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dear Associate Dean (Academic),

I am petitioning to receive Credit (CR) Standing in CHEM 285, taken in the Summer 2024 semester. I truly appreciate this opportunity to explain my extenuating circumstances.

Starting approximately July 22, 2024, I experienced an unexpected acute episode of dysautonomia and severe anxiety. Initially, I began to experience fatigue, dizziness, and migraines. Approximately a week after, other symptoms such as chest pains, difficulty breathing, difficulty swallowing, brain fog, derealization, and anxiety attacks followed. As the situation evolved, these symptoms became more severe and had a great impact on my physical health and cognitive abilities. This episode persisted until approximately August 25, 2024, where I observed a notable reduction in the severity of many of my symptoms. Due to these circumstances, I could not perform to the best of my abilities. I spent 6-7 hours daily using course materials and various studying strategies. I ensured I practiced through assignments, past exams, and the textbook with the goal of performing well. Despite my best efforts to manage these challenges, my symptoms significantly hindered my ability to concentrate, fully comprehend course material, and perform exams as I ordinarily would. To elucidate further, CHEM 285 requires complete comprehension of concepts such as mechanisms and theory to perform well in the course. This acute episode impacted my nervous system and cognitive abilities negatively, therefore altering my ability to focus, apply, and comprehend these concepts at my expected capacity. As I felt overwhelmed, I booked an appointment with a Queen’s University mental health counsellor, Solita Sipkens, for July 29, 2024. Unfortunately, I was outside Canada and could not continue with the session due to Queen’s Student Wellness policy. Following this, I attempted to book an appointment with a mental health counsellor through Dialogue Health; however, the earliest available appointment was for a date when I would return to Canada. Therefore, I booked an appointment with Solita Sipkens for August 13, 2024, the day after I returned to Canada. Furthermore, I booked the next available appointment with my family doctor for August 16, 2024, to discuss my symptoms. It was through this appointment with my family doctor that I was informed this was an episode of dysautonomia and anxiety. I would like to clarify further that although this is an acute episode of a chronic condition, I have never previously felt symptoms of this severity.

Along with CHEM 285, I was enrolled in ANAT 100 and GLPH 271 in the May-July 2024 Summer term. The examination of these courses occurred after the onset of my symptoms. Although my extenuating circumstances did affect my exam performance, the previous review I had completed before the onset of my symptoms, along with knowledge from earlier courses with similar content, I was able to pass the examinations. Furthermore, the assessment grades I obtained prior to these examinations were sufficiently high and contributed to my overall grade for both courses. As for CHEM 285, the examinations occurred following the onset of my symptoms and both my studying and exam performance were heavily affected by my extenuating circumstances. Therefore, my performance and grades for both ANAT 100 and GLPH 271 were not affected by my circumstances in the same manner as my performance and grade for CHEM 285.

In truth, the disruption these circumstances caused in my learning was disheartening as my academic journey holds immense significance for me. I was eager to learn and apply my knowledge to the best of my abilities; however, I was unfortunately unable to do so due to my circumstances. Therefore, I am implementing a plan that manages my symptoms and will prevent a severe episode from occurring again. I intend to make adjustments to my diet and physical activity, as recommended and improved by my family doctor, to alleviate and manage my symptoms. I will continue to have regular appointments with a physician on campus to monitor my symptoms and improvements. I will ensure that I inform my physician if I observe any worsening symptoms. Furthermore, I plan to continue my appointment with Solita Sipkens and discuss strategies to manage and minimize anxious thoughts. Knowing I have support from a physician and a mental health counsellor will empower me and allow me to overcome any further anxiety. Adhering to this plan will help prevent severe symptoms and effectively manage the existing symptoms of my chronic condition, thereby ensuring there is no hindrance in focus, comprehension, and overall learning. I believe these adjustments will allow me to perform to the best of my abilities and succeed in my future studies. I am prioritizing adherence to this plan and seeking support from my loved ones to hold me accountable, thereby enabling me to reach my academic goals.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to explain my circumstances.

Sincerely,
Aina Syed