Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dear Associate Dean (Studies),

My name is Tori Watson and I am writing to you to appeal for an aegrotat standing in HIST 400-001 (Fall, 2015). Throughout the last two years of my undergraduate studies, I have been dealing with a chronic medical condition that has led to a decline in my academic life. While not completely diagnosed, this condition makes it very difficult to type and write without pain- especially when my symptoms flare, something that has been ongoing this year. The medication I take to deal with the condition also come with symptoms of their own such as fatigue, dizziness and stomach issues. Before this chronic condition was prevalent, my academics were satisfactory to myself. I have a tendency to bottle things up and hold myself to certain standards that have been almost impossible to achieve these last couple of years, which has resulted in some poor mental health on my part. At the end of last academic year, I had some difficulty that resulted in me attempting to set myself up well for this year. I got my specialist to fill the forms required to register with QSAS, but I believe that I have not these used these services fully.

The fall semester was very difficult, I went into the year determined to no longer burden my family members who saw what I had gone through at the end of my third year. As mentioned above, I¿¿m registered with QSAS for accommodations, mainly pertaining to note taking. I initially was in 5 courses but dropped to 4 pretty quickly, as I knew it would be a difficult. I began to struggle in late October, but assumed that I could remain afloat. Unfortunately, this proved faulty, specifically in my paper writing which my flares affected. My professor, Dr. Manley, was very helpful and understanding in offering me the IN standing, but I was very behind in the majority of my classes. As two of my courses are full-year, I chose to prioritize them and hoped that I could potentially see my specialist when I went home during the winter break- something that was unachievable. When I returned for the current semester, I wanted to finish the paper but became focused on attempting to not fall behind in my new course load. My difficulties have continued this semester and I have felt very isolated up until recently, as I had blocked off my relations due to feeling like a burden and that I perhaps do not deserve help. As I am in my fourth year, I¿¿ve been stressed about my future, thus I sought academic advisement.

My overall goal going forward is to be able to graduate on time, hopefully still in the spring. In order to do this, with the help of Lois Fleming I have come up with a plan for this exam period. Firstly, I am writing this letter to change the IN standing of HIST 400-001 to an aegrotat one (if Dr. Manley is supportive). I have also reached out to my current professors to allow for extensions on my current late papers to the end of exam period. Many of them have been accommodating and have even offered to give me an IN standing if I need it, to which I am entirely grateful for but I am hoping will not be needed. If this appeal is unsuccessful, I hope to enroll in summer courses in order to attend convocation in the fall. I am hoping to work with my doctors to tailor my medications and diagnosis soon, as well as reaching out for emotional support- be familial or professional. Through this experience I have learned that I need to be more direct and forthcoming when I am facing struggles in my life, be them physical or mental.

Sincerely,
Tori Watson