Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dear Sir/Madam,
My name is Beckham, and I'm a student in the Computing faculty at Queens. I hope this
letter finds you well. I am writing this letter to appeal the 2021 winter semester. Within this short letter, I describe the events leading up to the deterioration of my mental health due to an
existential crisis and clarify the details surrounding my supporting documentation with respect to
my ontology at those times.


Firstly, I would like to emphasize that I usually don't fail my courses, as is evident from
my completed courses from my program in my first year. The other six-credit courses, Math 110
and Physics 104, were from different majors, so I dropped them. I worked my way through fall
2020 classes and was able to pass my four courses with B's and an A. However, during the
winter break, my fatigue caught up to me, and I fell apart. I am innately introverted, and
consequent to CoVid-19 negatively complementing my isolative tendencies, I formed a bubble
and deteriorated within it. As a result of my long withheld deteriorating mental health began to
surface. I have been dealing with my depression for years, but around this time, it ultimately
emerged and got severe between February and March. Persistent with my denial of mental health
issues, it was only after my family's intervention that I could seek help and recognize my
depression.


Lastly, I will introduce the supporting documentation presented in my appeal to
contextualize both intent and state with respect to each document.

? Demographics form:
After my downward spiral, it was around this time that my family intervened, and
I came to terms with the fact that something was wrong with my mental state.
I initially sought help through public means, but it was limited in its effectiveness.
Luckily, I was informed by my family doctor that most universities' have mental health
support facilities in place. I called the school, and a doctor recommended I seek
counselling before going far and getting a psychological evaluation or going on meds.

? Counsellors letter:
Over months of my consultations with miss Gendron, I began to recover and
sought to return to school, which was owed both to my improved positivity and a fear of
falling behind(one of the root causes of my neuroticism is existential nihilism). I asked to
return to school; however, due to some unforeseen circumstances concerning living
conditions, I relapsed and took a gap year.

? Doctor's note:
This document is a Doctor's note detailing the timeline post-relapse. At this point,
I had separated from my significant other due to a lack of communication, sought
psychiatric help, got diagnosed with chronic depression and started my medication.

? Academic Advisor meeting email:
I was not aware that I could appeal the term. As I was under the misconception
that my only option was to take the course again and overwrite the old mark on my
overall GPA. It was only after speaking with Miss Bunting about my concerns with
regard to transferring, that I found out about the option of appealing courses off my
transcript, even after the deadline has passed. I was not aware of such an option as I was
emersed in my depressive state, only noticing the days and nights going by.


In conclusion, I am appealing the winter semester of 2021 because I hope to continue my
education close to home, where I have the support of family and within proximity of my support
resources. It heavily affected my GPA and will continue to hinder my prospects when seeking to
continue my academic path at an institution closer to home.

Thank you for your time
Sincerely,
Beckham Gahirwa
20161271
Faculty of Computing Arts & Science