Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: To whom it may concern,

Please accept this appeal beyond the appeal deadline. Due to a prior extension agreement I did not learn of the grade designation until after the appeal deadline would have expired. Additionally, I have been suffering from a severe negative reaction to a traumatic family event, such that I was not well enough to write this appeal letter until now.

I am writing today to appeal the failing grade I received for the PSYC 501 course on my transcript.

The last two years have been very difficult. At the end of the spring of 2017, before beginning fourth year (Fall 2017), I experienced the traumatic death of an immediate family member. This event compounded my existing mental illness and made it difficult for me to cope and complete coursework. I struggled with maintaining a healthy sleeping pattern, fatigue, low mood, difficulty concentrating, and the feeling of a thick fog, clouding my ability to think. I struggled with the loss of my previous support system, my mother being unable to support me emotionally in this time and additionally had to cope with returning from abroad and resettling into life at Queen's.

With respect to ordinary, structured courses, this was an added difficulty. However, with respect to a high level, relatively unstructured research course, such as the 501 course, it was incredibly onerous. This was a course where students need additional support, especially in my situation. However, throughout this course I received little support from my 501 supervisor, even after I confided in them about my circumstances. Additionally, the research subject matter of my thesis project was very close to the cause of the traumatic event, which made completing the work additionally burdensome.

With the insufficient support I received and the continuing struggle with my mental health, and consultation with QSAS, it was decided with psychology department that I would be granted a rolling deadline extension on the 501 course with a provisional deadline at the end of August 2018. At this time, I also had to complete the courses that were reduced from my Winter 2018 course load. Those courses alone, I continued to struggle with the symptoms listed before. As the summer 2018 closed, these symptoms began to worsen and the support from my 501 supervisor dried up. I last had contact at the beginning of July 2018, when he asked to add an additional component to my thesis, which caused additional stress and anxiety. I instead sought help from psychology professors exterior to Queen's and waited for a psychologist referral through my family physician.

Since beginning therapy sessions in late 2018, focused on grief and managing my mental health symptoms, I have been slowly building back my life and functionality. I had hoped to use it as support to go back and complete my thesis. However, since learning of the 501 grade and that I had already completed the seminar option in January 2018, along with the advice of the Arts and Science academic advising--the best course of action was to continue to heal and appeal the grade when I felt ready and able. It was a difficult decision, but I have since completed the final course requirements of my degree, begun working again, and am currently engaged in an internship where I regularly employ report writing, research, and statistical analysis skills. I am finally at a place where I feel able to function well and feel confident to move forward in my academic and professional life. This grade is an anomaly in my academic career and it represents the fallout from a traumatic event rather than my academic ability.

Moving forward, I have high hopes for my future academic and professional achievements and do not think I should be penalized for a traumatic event few people ever experience in life and one so outside of my control.

If you require any further details, please feel free to contact me.

Sincerely,

Natasha Leung