Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: To: The Dean and Associate Deans of the Faculty of Arts and Science

I would like to appeal for a credit standing in PSYC100 (Winter, 2021). I have completed this course and have earned a passing grade of C.

Beginning my first year of university during the COVID-19 pandemic was a very challenging experience. In addition to hearing about constant global issues throughout the year, the isolating experience of the COVID-19 pandemic has made it very difficult to maintain motivation for learning and prioritizing my mental health. Because I did not know any other people attending Queen's University prior to the beginning of the school year, I found it difficult to overcome the isolating experiences of online learning and to reach out to teachers and classmates for assistance. Experiences of exhaustion from academic burnout progressed throughout the school year, which resulted in my completion of six courses in the fall term but only four courses during the winter term. As a student who previously strived for academic excellence, experiencing a decrease in motivation for learning and seeing its reflection on my GPA was very disheartening.

To overcome these academic difficulties, I realized that I needed to improve my mental health. I tried my best to maintain a daily routine and healthy sleep schedule, and created a schedule for completing readings and assignments. To create a better learning environment at home, I made new friends at Queen's University and video-called them for occasional study/work sessions. Although I continued to experience academic burnout, I found more motivation to continue with my courses.

I initially decided to enroll in PSYC100 as an elective course because of my interest in psychology. I did relatively well in my other courses because they were similar to content learned in Grade 12. However, content in PSYC100 was new and heavy, and I did not realize it would affect my GPA negatively. I was previously unaware that I could enroll in this course as a PIC, and regret that I did not do further research earlier in the year. I did not drop this course because I had already dropped another course during the winter term, and I would not have enough units to be qualified for a plan.

Although I have experienced many difficulties in my first year, I am determined to improve my experience at Queen's University in the following years. After my undergraduate studies, my goal is to enter a career in the medical field which is known to be highly competitive. Because PSYC100 has greatly affected my GPA, I am hoping that you will take my request for a credit standing into consideration.

This is my first time appealing and I do not plan to appeal again in the future because I have become more aware of my options to either drop a course or complete a course as a PIC to decrease a course's effect on my GPA. Furthermore, this experience has taught me about the importance of prioritizing mental health and maintaining a proper learning environment. I will be moving to campus in the upcoming school year, where I will be surrounded by friends and other students. I am positive that entering the in-person school environment will help me to feel more motivated to learn. Furthermore, to ensure that I do not experience academic burnout again, I plan to take on a lighter course load (4 courses per term) and will complete some courses during the summer term. This will allow me to decrease my workload throughout the year and designate more of my time on each course. I have already begun my summer courses to lessen the workload in my second year.