Decision Letter
Submission Number: 14161
Decision Date: June 16, 2026
Associate Dean: Dorit Naaman (Associate Dean Academic)
Student Name: Yaseen Masoud
Student Email: 25qjk@queensu.ca
Course: GND 125
Term: Winter
Year: 2026
Category: Request credit (CR) standing in a course or courses
Instructor: Dr. Sailaja Krishnamurti
Dear Yaseen,
I have carefully considered your request for Credit Standing in GNDS 125 (W26) and while I’m unable to grant your petition, I want to assure you that I’ve taken your circumstances into account in reaching this decision.
The Academic Petition and Appeals Regulation 1.1 states that petitions are only granted where there are significantly extenuating circumstances, which would merit the waiving of a particular Faculty regulation or decision. Extenuating circumstances normally involve a significant physical or psychological event that is beyond a student’s control and debilitating to their academic performance. These kinds of extraordinary situations should be supported by official documentation from a health care practitioner or other relevant professional.
I acknowledge the family-related circumstances described in your petition and understand how these affected your academic routine during the Winter term. While these circumstances began early in the term, as confirmed by your documentation, your petition letter indicates that the academic impacts were ongoing throughout.
While I recognize the challenges you experienced, your performance in this course indicates that the learning outcomes were not met. You earned marginally passing grades on two papers and a group assignment, and information provided by the instructor indicates limited participation in lectures and tutorials. As such, I am unable to grant your request.
I want to remind you that it is your responsibility to pause and evaluate the impact of extenuating circumstances on your coursework prior to the drop deadline of the term. If you fall behind in a course or find the material too difficult, you should drop the course by deadline. The drop deadlines, outlined in the “Important Dates” section on the Faculty of Arts and Science web page, have been established to ensure fair and equitable treatment of all students.
If you are concerned with the impact that your final grade in this course has on your cumulative GPA, I would suggest that you consider repeating it in a future term. When repeating the exact same course code, both attempts will appear on your transcript however, only the higher grade will be included within the calculation of your cumulative GPA.
Additionally, if you wish to appeal this decision, you are welcome to submit an appeal to the Board of Studies. Information on the appeal process and deadlines is available at queensu.ca/artsci/undergraduate/student-services/academic-petitions-and-appeals (click on “Second Level”). Appeals to the Board of Studies must be submitted within 10 business days of the date of this decision. The Office of the University Ombudsperson offers guidance on student rights and procedural fairness at queensu.ca/ombuds/appeal-process/procedural-fairness, and they are also available to support you at queensu.ca/ombuds.
Sincerely,
Dorit Naaman, PhD
Associate Dean (Academic)
Decision Date: June 16, 2026
Associate Dean: Dorit Naaman (Associate Dean Academic)
Student Name: Yaseen Masoud
Student Email: 25qjk@queensu.ca
Course: GND 125
Term: Winter
Year: 2026
Category: Request credit (CR) standing in a course or courses
Instructor: Dr. Sailaja Krishnamurti
Dear Yaseen,
I have carefully considered your request for Credit Standing in GNDS 125 (W26) and while I’m unable to grant your petition, I want to assure you that I’ve taken your circumstances into account in reaching this decision.
The Academic Petition and Appeals Regulation 1.1 states that petitions are only granted where there are significantly extenuating circumstances, which would merit the waiving of a particular Faculty regulation or decision. Extenuating circumstances normally involve a significant physical or psychological event that is beyond a student’s control and debilitating to their academic performance. These kinds of extraordinary situations should be supported by official documentation from a health care practitioner or other relevant professional.
I acknowledge the family-related circumstances described in your petition and understand how these affected your academic routine during the Winter term. While these circumstances began early in the term, as confirmed by your documentation, your petition letter indicates that the academic impacts were ongoing throughout.
While I recognize the challenges you experienced, your performance in this course indicates that the learning outcomes were not met. You earned marginally passing grades on two papers and a group assignment, and information provided by the instructor indicates limited participation in lectures and tutorials. As such, I am unable to grant your request.
I want to remind you that it is your responsibility to pause and evaluate the impact of extenuating circumstances on your coursework prior to the drop deadline of the term. If you fall behind in a course or find the material too difficult, you should drop the course by deadline. The drop deadlines, outlined in the “Important Dates” section on the Faculty of Arts and Science web page, have been established to ensure fair and equitable treatment of all students.
If you are concerned with the impact that your final grade in this course has on your cumulative GPA, I would suggest that you consider repeating it in a future term. When repeating the exact same course code, both attempts will appear on your transcript however, only the higher grade will be included within the calculation of your cumulative GPA.
Additionally, if you wish to appeal this decision, you are welcome to submit an appeal to the Board of Studies. Information on the appeal process and deadlines is available at queensu.ca/artsci/undergraduate/student-services/academic-petitions-and-appeals (click on “Second Level”). Appeals to the Board of Studies must be submitted within 10 business days of the date of this decision. The Office of the University Ombudsperson offers guidance on student rights and procedural fairness at queensu.ca/ombuds/appeal-process/procedural-fairness, and they are also available to support you at queensu.ca/ombuds.
Sincerely,
Dorit Naaman, PhD
Associate Dean (Academic)
Generated June 16, 2026 at 9:45:08 AM.