Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: To Whom It May Concern,
I am requesting an extension on my incomplete grading. My situation involves long-term, documented extenuating circumstances that began last semester and have continued to affect me throughout this academic year. These circumstances were formally documented with the university, and I was granted a three-month accommodation through the appropriate channels in recognition of their impact on my academic performance.Based on these circumstances, my professor agreed to file an Incomplete grade for the course in question. However, a critical miscommunication occurred that directly affected my ability to meet the submission deadline for the outstanding coursework.
While I was aware that the Incomplete grade had been filed, my professor did not clearly specify a deadline for completing the coursework. As such, I reasonably referred to Queen’s University’s publicly stated timeline for resolving Incomplete grades, which indicates that students have until April 30 to submit outstanding work. Unfortunately, I only later discovered that the professor had set an earlier deadline without informing me of this timeframe. As a result, I missed the deadline not due to negligence, but because I was unaware that it differed from the university’s standard policy, a factor that was entirely beyond my control.
In addition, the same extenuating circumstances that affected me last semester have continued into this year and worsened. Most notably, my mother suffered a stroke, and I have since taken on the role of one of her primary caregivers. This unexpected and emotionally taxing responsibility has placed a considerable burden which has added to and worsened my pre-existing mental and physical health struggles. Balancing full-time studies with caregiving has been incredibly difficult, and it has further limited my ability to meet academic deadlines despite my strong commitment to the program.
Despite these challenges, I have remained diligent in fulfilling course requirements wherever possible. I have communicated with instructors, accessed available resources, and done my best to remain on track academically. However, the compounded effects of my long-term health-related circumstances and my caregiving responsibilities have had an undeniable impact on my academic capacity.
This course is the final requirement I need in order to graduate. I have worked tirelessly over my academic career and demonstrated resilience in the face of considerable personal adversity. I am not asking for exemption from requirements, but rather a fair opportunity to complete the work I was unable to submit due to circumstances beyond my control and due to unclear communication regarding deadlines.
Granting this petition would not only allow me to move forward in my academic and professional journey but would also demonstrate compassion and fairness under Queen’s University’s stated policy on extenuating circumstances. The university guidelines are in place to recognize and accommodate situations such as mine, and I believe my case merits this consideration. Thank you for your time, understanding, and support. I am more than willing to provide any additional documentation or clarification as needed. I sincerely hope that the university will grant me the opportunity to complete this course and graduate.