Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Johanne Bénard
Associate Dean of Studies

Dear Ms. Bénard,

I am writing to you to appeal the Faculty¿¿s decision that I must withdraw from Queen¿¿s for one year. I have completed my first year at Queen¿¿s, and was asked to withdraw for one year due to my poor academic standing. I believe that I will be able to significantly improve my academic performance if allowed to return./

During my first year at Queen¿¿s, I experienced circumstances beyond my control that caused psychological challenges, taking an enormous toll on my grades. These challenges were caused by leaving home for the first time and the difficulties of First Year. In September of 2015, I moved to Kingston after having graduated from an international school in Seoul, South Korea. I immediately experienced extreme culture shock, and found it difficult to adjust to my new settings. Being away from my parents and friends for the first time was very difficult, and living in a dormitory setting constantly surrounded by other students heightened my anxiety. I felt completely overwhelmed and isolated./

The first few weeks of school went well. I attended all my lectures and tutorials and completed my assignments. However as courses became more demanding and homesickness grew, I struggled to balance academics and self-care while also trying to adjust to the new environment. Although I have dealt with anxiety and depression before in high school, I was always able to manage and maintain my academics. But because circumstances of the environment at Queen¿¿s were out of my control, I was unable to control their effects on my mental health. The depression and anxiety quickly worsened to the point where my ability to function healthily everyday was hindered./

Halfway through the Fall Term, I sought help from a psychiatrist at Student Wellness Services and was prescribed medication, from which I experienced side effects that made it difficult sleep, eat, and attend classes. After three weeks of persistent debilitating side effects, I decided that medication, especially long-term, could be more harmful than helpful. During this time, I fell further behind in my classes and was left frustrated and discouraged. Being in a state of depression, I lost all the energy and motivation needed to catch up in my courses, and attempting assignments caused me to panic out of fear of failure. Consequently I became avoidant of my coursework, and fell into denial about my academic standing. I was too afraid and ashamed to ask for help or to open up about my situation to my professors and Teaching Assistants. I did not drop my courses in hopes of improving my grades during the Winder Term. I felt helpless and scraped by quietly doing the best that I could, which was less than the bare minimum. Unfortunately, my situation only worsened during the second term. I attended some of my lectures and tutorials, but failed to complete assignments./

Looking back, my first year was a major learning experience. I now know what my needs are and what I need to change in order to be successful despite psychological challenges. Should my appeal be granted, I plan to be more proactive and take care of my mental health to ensure my academic success. I wish to pursue a medial in Sociology and Gender studies, and taking a lighter load of 9 units per term would help me to stay on top of coursework without feeling overwhelmed. I will also seek assistance from Student Academic Success Services to develop better learning strategies and writing skills that will help me to be more confident with my assignments, improving my study habits and work ethic. I will communicate with my professors and teaching assistants without being afraid to ask for help when needed. I also plan to meet with an academic counsellor regularly, and therapist to help with self-care./

At the moment, I am back home in Seoul re-taking first year Sociology and Gender Studies courses online to meet the requirements needed to pursue a degree in the disciplines. I have been successful in the classes so far and have been thoroughly enjoying them as well. I have been following a productive study pattern and building good momentum that I know I can carry on into second year. After thorough self-reflection, I believe that it would be better for me to return to second year rather than to take a year off. I now have the full support of my parents and have created a great support system that I can lean on should there be difficult times. I truly believe that I will be in much better mental health and ready to return to Queen¿¿s come September. I would be incredibly thankful for your kind consideration in letting me return to Queen¿¿s./

Sincerely,
Michelle Sohn
PS: slashes used to indicate paragraph breaks as the format would not allow line breaks.