Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: My academic performance was deeply affected because of my emotional and mental exhaustion from my financial debt and my mother's declining health due to alcohol addiction. My mother has no other friends or family in Canada (we came from Hong Kong) to support and take care of her. She has a weak kidney, weak heart, and a destroyed liver. She has yellowed skin from liver failure, weights 80 pounds but is 5'6 feet. Because she has an addiction to alcohol, through my years in Queen's (and before) she would fall prey to a variety of medical ailments. Recently, she had a life threatening case of pneumonia and had to go on life-support. Thankfully she survived, however the ramifications were severe because she was considered too weak to survive a transplant surgery therefore she was taken off the liver transplant list. She was at the top of the list, she also needs this liver to survive. I was both angry and sad because she had already received a liver transplant when I was in high school, yet she managed to destroy her second liver due to alcohol. Furthermore, my brother and my father do not financially support us because they are unable to and live in Hong Kong and Taipei respectively. Therefore, I had to take trips to Toronto every other week, which costed a lot of money that I couldn't afford to spend. I had to start working and use my OSAP funding to help her pay the bills and make sure she was in a stable condition. I financially support myself, however, I spent most of the academic term in debt. I used credit cards to pay for my groceries and I was barely able to pay rent. I was so emotionally drained from worrying about paying bills, credit cards, and affording my living expenses. Even worse, I was worried that I was going to lose my mother because she couldn't survive a much needed liver transplant.

Unfortunately, all these extenuating circumstances negatively affected my academic performance in all my courses. However, most notably my computing courses, these computing courses had tests and assignments back to back. In a given week, I can have three quizzes worth more than 15 each. I studied hard for these tests and assignments. However, at times it became really difficult for me to process what I was studying because I was so upset at my situation. I ended up making sacrifices, prioritizing certain courses because I just didn't have time to do well in all. It became nearly impossible for me to devote the time and energy needed to study to several computing courses (CISC 101, CISC 124, CISC 203, CISC 204, and CISC 260) because I was spending my time and energy visiting and taking care of my mother. When I did have time to study, I was so tired and distracted from these financial issues and my mother's health that I couldn't focus. In addition, I was desperate to work as many hours as I can under the work study program to make sure that I can financially support my mother and myself. Therefore I was spending 4-9 hours a week working instead of studying, which also took a toll on my energy. I tried my best, and I was able to scrape by. However, these grades are abysmal and particularly upsetting since I have always valued learning the course material and aspiring for academic excellence. My computing courses were the most negatively affected since they require much more commitment and time. It is impossible to learn programming in a day versus being able to write an essay or memorize a couple chapters for a test.

In regards to CISC 124, I should have dropped it immediately in the 2014 Fall. I shouldn't have taken it again in 2015 winter term because I was not emotionally or mentally ready to take such an time-consuming course. However, I couldn't fathom the idea of failing a course, so I took the exam thinking I could master the material in a night. The second time, I expressed my concerns to a academic counsellor but she urged me to take the exam anyways.

I promise that I will perform and achieve academic excellence for the remaining terms. My aunt and cousin have moved to Toronto and will be taking care of my mother. Furthermore, she was put back on the transplant list this summer because her heart has grown stronger.