Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: To the Associate Dean (Studies):

I am appealing to a credit standing of BIOL 102 and CHEM 112 (Fall, 2016/Winter, 2017) and a drop late of MUSC 104 (Winter, 2017) BIOL 103 (Winter, 2017) and PSYCH 100 (Fall, 2016/ Winter, 2017).

When accepting my offer of admissions to Queen's I was at an excellent academic standing. As September soon approached I was settling into Queen's and as a first-year student I was eager to enrol into my classes. Not to mention moving in with my best friend since childhood who was also about to become my roommate freshman year. Upon moving into residence within the first 4 days of frosh there was an extremely personal fallout between my roommate and I. My entire floor was familiar with what had happened and I immediately returned home as I was unable to cope or comprehend what had happened. Everything was so foreign that I had almost considered to differ for the school year. Due to my financial standing I had no choice but to return to school as I was and still am on OSAP and was still living with my roommate. As the days progressed I was constantly returning home as I was dealing with severe mental health issues and had trouble coping with myself. The atmosphere, and overall situation I found myself in was unbearable, unhealthy and there was truly no one for me to turn to, or at least that was the impression I was under. The only person I was able to reach out to and trust was my don Nyah. Every day I was feeling more and more depressed. The room that I lived in was a double economy it was small and so we were living in close proximity. There was no personal space and I did not have the financial means to ask for a room change nor did I think that based on my circumstances I would get a new place. I understood that these were the consequences of becoming an adult and living on my own. The thought of even turning to an actual professional did not come to mind as I was ashamed and embarrassed to explain to my parents what happened. I was unable to confide in my parents about it as they themselves had and still do have several things to worry about as I am not the only dependent child. With low incomes, there was not much I could ask or expect of them as they were constantly working. The family finances impacted my first year which impacted my living situation causing me to be under constant stress and anxiety which lead to my extremely poor work ethic. At this point in time I was more lost than I could have ever been in my new found adult life. I found myself going home quite often because it was extremely difficult for me to concentrate, or feel mentally capable. In most cases I would find myself constantly sleeping, feeling weak and helpless.

While dealing with this I was enrolled in BIOL 102/103, CHEM 112, PSYC 100, MUSC 104, CLST 102, and ANAT 100. It was not till at least half way through second term when I sought out some sort of help. I tried to part take in the bounce back program with Queen's University but that did not go on for quite long as I was unable to receive the help I needed. Of the classes I took in my first year I was able to strive in one of my nine classes. The idea of dropping or switching out of any of the other classes never seemed like an option as there was pressure from family, and truly I believed I would be able to handle the course load regardless of the circumstances. I did not allow myself to believe that I was suffering from any mental health issues. It was easier for me to do work on the content because this class was an online class it was easy for me to work on it at my own schedule, whether it was working while everyone was sleeping or working when I was home. Either way it was what I was able to best adapt to in my situation at the time and make the best of it.

I truly do believe I have what it takes and understand that what needs to be done this upcoming school year in order to better my grades. There is nothing I want more than to have a healthy and positive school year and I can say that I believe I am in a much better place than I was in my first year of school both mentally and financially. I now live off campus in a home with housemates who shower me with love and positivity. My financial standing is more stable as I worked the entire summer non-stop. I am appealing to drop PSYC 100 late and am going to be re-taking it this upcoming school year alongside BIOL 103 as it is in my schedule for both first and second semester. This academic school year I will be receiving coaching from learning strategies and have already booked my first meeting to start off the school year. It will help me stay focused and motivated to do better. I also have decided to take a wide variety of courses that do not just concentrate in sciences but also business and arts so that way I would be able to get an idea of all the possible concentrations that interest me. With these courses in my schedule there will be a change in scenery and later a change in my program. I hope that taking the time to read this appeal was worthwhile and will allow you to give me another opportunity to prove what I am truly capable of.

Sincerely,
Dil Ullah (20023652)