Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Zoe Pollack
Student Number: 20468568
Queen’s University
Wednesday January 28th, 2026

Dear Associate Dean (Academic),

I am writing to formally petition to drop GLPH271, CISC101, and CHEM212 from my Fall 2025 academic record after the Week 8 deadline due to significant and unforeseen mental health challenges that substantially impacted my academic functioning throughout the term.

Early in the semester, I began experiencing a deterioration in my mental health, including symptoms that affected my concentration, memory, organization, and ability to complete tasks to the best of my ability. As the term progressed, these challenges intensified and culminated in a significant mental health flare-up. At the time, I did not fully recognize the severity of how poorly I was functioning mentally or academically. My symptoms developed gradually, and it was only after this flare-up that I was able to understand the extent to which my mental health had been affecting my coursework and decision-making.

Because of this, I did not drop the courses earlier in the term. My ability to accurately assess my academic standing, manage deadlines, and make timely decisions was significantly impaired during this period. In retrospect, had I realized sooner how severely my mental health was impacting my performance, I would have taken action to reduce my course load before the deadline.

Once I recognized that my mental health was significantly deteriorating, I sought support from a mental health professional as soon as I was able. I am currently receiving ongoing care and actively working with appropriate supports to address these challenges and develop healthier coping strategies. With treatment now in place, my symptoms are being actively managed, and I am currently functioning at a significantly improved and more stable level. I am now more aware of early warning signs and have established supports and academic adjustments to prevent a recurrence of this situation. Documentation from a healthcare professional is included to substantiate the circumstances outlined in this petition.

During the semester, I made the difficult decision to prioritize my remaining courses in an effort to avoid complete academic failure across my entire course load. With limited capacity, I focused my energy on maintaining stability in those classes. As a result, I fell significantly behind in GLPH271, CISC101, and CHEM212. This outcome was not due to a lack of effort or motivation, but rather the cognitive and emotional limitations I was experiencing at the time, including forgetfulness, impaired decision-making, and difficulty managing academic demands.

By the end of the term, I was overwhelmed and mentally unwell, and I was not in a position to complete the remaining assessments in these courses at a passing level. Given how far behind I had fallen and the continued impact on my mental health, remaining enrolled in these courses was not academically viable.

Since addressing my mental health more directly, I have already begun to see meaningful improvement. I have developed a clear plan moving forward to support both my well-being and academic success. This semester, I am taking a reduced course load of four courses to better balance my responsibilities and manage my health. Being almost a month into the winter term, I am already seeing significant changes in my academic success. I also plan to complete one or two courses during the summer term to remain on track in my program. In addition, I will continue accessing mental health supports to ensure that I can sustain this progress.

I am committed to improving my academic performance and ensuring that these difficulties do not continue to negatively affect my studies. I respectfully request that you consider my petition to drop GLPH271, CISC101, and CHEM212 from my Fall 2025 record in light of these documented extenuating circumstances.

Thank you very much for your time, understanding, and consideration.

Sincerely,
Zoe Pollack
Student Number: 20468568