Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dear Associate Dean (Studies),

My name is Amanda Fantin and I have just completed my last year in a Biology Major in the Faculty of Arts and Science. I am writing to you today to request an appeal for credit standing for two courses taken during 2013-2014 (PHYS 117 and MATH 121) and two courses taken during 2012-2013 (MATH 121 and BIO 103). I wanted to thank you very much, before I begin, for agreeing to hear my appeal past the 21-day limit.

A few weeks before coming to Queen¿¿s I had started a medication for acne called Isotretinoin (Accutane). While on the medication I started to notice severe mental and physical side effects. Depression is a rare side effect of the drug and unfortunately I was one of the unlucky ones who suffered from severe emotional and cognitive difficulties as a result of the medication. When I realized that my symptoms might have been a result of the medication, I stopped it in consultation with my doctor back home. The drug, however, can take months to fully be removed from the body and I continued to have these severe side effects throughout the 2013-2014 year.

While I was enrolled in these courses I experienced numerous physical and mental symptoms that affected my academic abilities and performance. The exhaustion, fatigue and stomach issues coupled with severe emotional distress left me unable to leave my room most days. On the days I did feel well enough to leave for classes my mental impairments left me unable to absorb any of the material. My mind was cloudy and I was unable to concentrate. I had to try extremely hard to simply absorb individual sentences from the professors or TAs, let alone comprehend them, before the next sentence unfolded. It was a terrifying time, as I had never had cognitive difficulties before and I simply thought I was not trying hard enough. It wasn¿¿t a comprehension issue, however, as when I was able to finally register what was being said I was able to understand. Additionally, the majority of the content was review for me as I had taken AP Physics, AP Biology, AP Chemistry and AP Calculus, so nothing was very difficult conceptually. My memory was also affected during this time and in combination with the mental fogginess and difficulties concentrating it made reading the textbook, teaching myself or studying for tests an exhausting, and ultimately futile, exercise. This inability to attend classes, or to understand or concentrate when I was present, left me falling behind my peers without the ability to catch up. Examinations were extremely difficult not only for the difficulties in studying but also for the difficulties in comprehending and absorbing the questions themselves.

During this period I tried to meet monthly with Dr. Lewis, my psychiatrist, in order to monitor my mental health symptoms. As I had mentioned in my previous appeal letter, I had been told that seeing my doctor back home was the best course of action and so I made the monthly train trips in order to get help. These trips caused me to become even more emotionally and physically worn out due to their frequency and duration. I was extremely embarrassed by my inability to complete even simple tasks and after having difficulties finding help on campus I became even more hesitant in approach professors or friends for assistance. This meant I was isolated without any help which exacerbated the issues.
I realize the transition to university is stressful for most students, but this was beyond feeling stressed or overwhelmed. I had taken challenging course loads in high school and filled my extracurriculars with every spare minute. In my last year of high school I was working in a lab for a research competition in which I placed 3rd for the Greater Toronto Area. I was no stranger to working hard and while the first couple weeks of my undergrad might have been challenging I quickly adjusted to the workload. It was my second semester during the 2012-2013 school year when I really started to realize that my issues were serious and not just a matter of working harder. These symptoms only intensified and persisted during the 2013-2014 school year despite on-going treatment for depression. It took years of treatment improving my mental and physical health before I started to feel more like myself. There was no more brain fog or difficulties with memory. I sought out accommodations for my continued difficulties with concentration. I was able to more consistently attend class and absorb the content. While progress was not linear the number of setbacks I experienced decreased every semester.

I am very proud to say that I have come very far and am graduating with a final year average of 3.76. In addition, I have dedicated myself to giving back to the Queen¿¿s community as the Editor in Chief for QSURJ amoung other positions. I am currently working in a lab that I will continue on in for my Master¿¿s in the Fall at U of T for Physiology. I also one day hope to attend medical school and help those who have gone through what I have gone through. More importantly, however, I worked hard every day to make a path for myself that wasn¿¿t defined by my past mental health issues and the terrible decision my parents and I made to start that acne medication. The two marks from 2013-2014 affect my cGPA as calculated by Queen¿¿s and the two marks from 2012-2013 affect the way my cGPA is calculated by other schools I have looked at applying to in the future. These courses were taken during a part of my life when I was within the height of extreme health concerns and do not accurately reflect my academic potential or performance to date. I am strong now and have big plans but those four marks could hold me back from those ambitions. My only hope is that my academic transcript will be allowed to speak towards my true academic abilities moving forward.

Thank you very much for time and consideration and for your understanding throughout this whole process, this opportunity has meant the world to me.

Respectfully,
Amanda Fantin
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