Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dear Academic Associate Dean,

My name is Ryan Radovich and I am writing to you to appeal a requirement to withdraw for one year. Throughout my tenure at Queen¿¿s I have not lived up to my own academic standards nor the universities and I will try to explain why. My first year I suffered back to back concussions before the start of term, the second of which being at training camp for the varsity rugby team. My second year was when I broke to the point where I finally reached out and got medication. Although since then after trying multiple meds I'm yet to find one that really works for me. This past year I was really optimistic about and started off quite well in both semesters, but between my medication issues and especially the isolation of covid I found myself unable to keep that success going in either semester. It has felt like everytime I think I am about to get over the proverbial ¿¿hump¿, I have been taken out at the knees. My past at this institution is not something I am proud of but I truly believe that the future will make me forget about it. I am very passionate about the courses I have taken, even the ones I haven't completed and i¿¿m confident that after I see a psychiatrist at CAMH and start new meds, that I can be successful not only in my courses but in my everyday life. In the past I have been seeing a family doctor for my depression and anxiety but I believe seeing a specialist in the area will make a big difference, especially when combined with my cognitive therapy. The pandemic ultimately did not make me fail, my medication did not make me fail, but these combined with my own mistakes and failure to adapt to these unprecedented times led to a complete failure of a year in my estimation. The reason that I feel these can be overcome comes down not only to new hopefully better medication or the optimistic end of the pandemic, but the passion I feel for learning, bettering myself, and especially a new perspective. I have come to work at a pharmacy and medical supply company this summer. This job has shown me how important advancing my education is, but far more importantly it has taught me gratitude, gratitude for my opportunity. I arrange medication and supplies for people going through the worst of it, palliative patients, patients on feeding tubes, and even parents of children who haven't gone a week without specialist appointments since birth. This has given me a sad but rare glimpse into problems that make even the scariest of my mental episodes look like far greener grass to some. I am sure that afer a summer of progress and hopefully an in person return in the fall I can have a very successful return to studies and complete my degree.

Thank you for your time,

Ryan Radovich