Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: I am writing to request a CR standing for the following courses: MATH 110 (Fall/Winter 2017-2018), CHEM 112 (Fall/Winter 2017-2018) and PHYS 239 (Winter 2019).

My mental health had severely deteriorated up until the end of second year when I finally started to seek regular help. During this time, I had debilitating anxiety and depressive symptoms. I was not even able to breathe properly in spaces with a lot of people (such as lecture halls). I would also shake uncontrollably when talking to people. This collection of conditions affected my ability to function as a normal human, let alone perform the duties of a student. This illness prevented me from attending many lectures, completing problem sets on time, attending tutorials, asking questions when material was unclear, asking questions to my peers when material was unclear, and collaborating or communicating with peers. I am requesting to appeal these marks, as they were the courses which were most impacted by my condition. My lecture and tutorial attendance for these courses was very low. My symptoms were most aggravated in these courses. Significant help was provided in MATH 110 tutorials for problem sets, but I could not attend these sessions due to the aforementioned mental health condition. I could not ask the professor for help, or students and sometimes I could not complete problem sets. CHEM 112 and PHYS 239 had a very large class size, the seating arrangements would often be very compact, this was a huge trigger for my anxiety. I would not be able to breathe properly and would fixate all my energy on trying to breathe, as opposed to course content. This led to a volatile cycle of more anxiety and depression in which my academic success was severely compromised. I have been trying to prepare this appeal for 1.5 years now, since the diagnosis of my disorder (which is why I still have my prescription receipt). I found it very difficult to articulate my condition at the time, I didn't even realize my functioning was so severely impaired until I started seeking out help. Now that my everyday symptoms are much less extreme, I found it easier to write this appeal letter. I have been pursuing help and have been actively working to get better but the grades on my transcript from this time are preventing me from many opportunities, negating all of the effort I have put in to advance myself.

Since 2019, my condition has improved significantly. My anxiety has been reduced to a much more manageable extent. Counselling sessions that I have attended in second and third year have helped in identifying my triggers and appropriate methods of responding to anxieties. Appointments with counsellors and psychiatrists have allowed me to understand my condition and better respond to it. I plan to continue attending counselling sessions and using the resources my counsellor has provided me, as a method of combating anxious and depressive behaviours.