Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: I am writing this letter to ask for permission to late drop the course MATH 212 Linear Algebra 2. Due to exceptional circumstances, I have been unable to assess the course material and drop this class on time.

For quite some time, I've been waiting for treatment for a medical condition. Over the winter break, I've visited my family in my hometown Istanbul, Turkey where I had my first surgery done. Following the surgery, I spent a week and a half lying down. Two days before my flight due to unforeseen circumstances I started bleeding and was rushed to the ER unconscious, where I had a second surgery done. Even though it was January 6th, I was in no condition to fly to Canada without endangering my life. During my stay in Istanbul, I was instructed to not to walk or sit to recover. The first stage of my recovery took two weeks. After arriving in Canada on the 21st of January, the deadline to drop courses had already passed before I attended any of the lectures. It was a particularly stressful time for me because 4 of the courses I was taking were too advanced for me and needed long hours of study just to catch up.
On top of that, I was physically weak following four weeks of recovery in Istanbul. It was very upsetting for me because I had to sit or lay down all day and resulted in losing weight. From January 7th to March 20th I had lost 30 pounds which is a very significant number for my small frame (5'5). My sudden weight loss coupled with my high anxiety levels just kept making matters worse for me. I could not sleep, think or function. These levels of anxiety continued when I came here, as I always had the feeling that I was behind compared to everyone else, and that I missed essential announcements in classes.

I should note that the only listed prerequisite listed is Math 112 in which I received A- and was never expected to prove statements. I talked to the instructor, and he said he might not include proof-based questions. After a couple of days, he announced in class that he would be including eight proof-based questions out of ten questions, and due to my background, which does not include any proof-based concepts, I was introduced to a whole new level. I know it is nothing I cannot deal with if I only had to deal with this course alone, but coupled with other classes and the difficulties I'm still experiencing due to recent medical surgeries, I came to the conclusion that trying to hang on to this course will not only affect this course, but my performance in other courses as well.

As a third-year student who has a successful past and a continuously improving future, I hope that you will thoroughly consider the series of unfortunate events I had to endure and the possible implications to my academic career. In the case that my appeal is rejected it would significantly impact my chances of getting admitted to a master's program, as this will severely impact my academic standing. Moreover, I fear it might further affect me mentally.