Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dear Associate Dean (Studies),¿
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I am a first year student at Queen¿¿s University and am appealing to drop CISC 101 (Fall, 2018), CISC 102 (Fall, 2018), CISC 121 (Winter, 2019), MATH 111 (Winter, 2019) and MATH 121 (Winter, 2019) past the drop deadline.¿¿

I¿¿d like to first thank you for allowing me to explain myself.¿The beginning of the school year I started experiencing symptoms of depression. I was not myself. My earlier symptoms (from September 2018 and onwards) not only affected my mood but was also heavily¿sleep-related. It varied from insomnia to oversleeping. It then turned into reverse-sleep where I would sleep all day and could not sleep at night. This was a very dark time for me and it really started to affect my marks. To add, since I was in a single room (in residence), I would go days where I would not leave my room without question. I ended up failing majority of my courses due to these symptoms. The two courses that I am not dropping, (GNDS 125) (FILM 110), were classes where you could still do okay in if you did not go to lectures. Whereas, the classes that I failed were classes that students needed to be actively involved in, such as going to lectures and tutorials, to do well in. But I was truly¿not in the right mind. I could not actively participate in class, which lead me to my failures. Around December 2018, my symptoms started to get worse and I was really struggling, but I did not seek help at the time and ended up suffering in silence. My depression then triggered an eating disorder where I lost a lot of weight which really affected my energy levels and concentration. I sincerely did not know about drop deadlines or that there were services available to help me, because I never left my room. This went on for the rest of the year until the end of March where I finally gained the courage to email my professors asking for help. I ended up visiting my CISC 121 professor, Wendy Powley, who then directed me towards an academic advisor, who finally got me to see a counsellor at the end of April. At this point it was too late to save my grades in the courses I was taking. I am ashamed and wish that I had gotten help sooner. Once I met with Allison (my counsellor) I started to feel more like myself. She guided me in taking steps to better myself, such as seeing my doctor when I got home at the end of April, and telling my parents what was happening with my mental health. This was very difficult for me but I was able to overcome these obstacles with Allison¿¿s help. I ended up telling my parents and they were really understanding. They took me to see my doctor who prescribed me medication, as well as a referral for a therapist. It took me a while, but finally acknowledging my mental illness allowed me to seek help. My parents, doctor and I have also set up a plan to retrain my sleeping patterns as well as my dietary habits, which should positively impact my academics in the future.¿
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Although I had a rough year, I still plan to pursue computing. I¿¿m currently retaking CISC 102 and CISC 121 this summer because I know that with the help I am receiving, I will do much better in them. I also have a tutor for CISC 102 for this summer. For the upcoming Fall Term, I will not have a part-time job which will allow me to stay focused on my health and the five new courses that I am ready to tackle. I will see Allison (my counsellor at Queen¿¿s) regularly as well as go back home once every two months to check-up with my doctor and therapist. I will also continue to regularly take my medication while I am away at school. I will stay in close monitoring with Kerri (my academic advisor) and will also pay close attention to drop deadlines, as I am now familiarized with the procedure, just in case. I know by doing this I will be able to get back on track. To add, I also plan on better utilizing campus resources. For example, I plan on working with a Learning Strategist from Student Academic Success Services to help guide me academically and attend their workshops to better understand how I learn best. I am very determined to do much better my second year. My support system has never been stronger, and I have never been more motivated to succeed.¿

Sincerely,
Aarti Singh (20100114)