Decision Letter
Appeal Number: 2904
Decision Date: January 3, 2017
Associate Dean: Johanne Benard, Ph.D.
Student Name: Robert Bogle
Student Email: 11reb11@queensu.ca
Course: PHYS 206
Term: Fall
Year: 2013
Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline
Course: PHYS 216
Term: Winter
Year: 2014
Category: Request credit (CR) standing in a course or courses
Instructor: Dr. Stephane Courteau
Dear Mr. Bogle:
I have carefully considered your appeal to drop PHYS 206 (F 2013) past the academic deadline and receive Credit standing in PHYS 216 (W 2014). After reviewing your file I have decided to deny your request.
As you know, courses must be dropped on SOLUS within the published deadlines. The Academic Regulations (Appeal of Academic Decisions, IIIb) stress that exceptions to this will only be waived under exceptional circumstances. The deadlines for dropping courses have been designed and established in order to provide sufficient time for students to determine their interest in the course material, to consider their ability to handle each course, and to evaluate their overall workload.
Academic Regulation 10.2.2. states that, Credit standing in a course is reserved for situations in which a student, who has completed and passed all of the work of the course including the final examination, but because of illness or other extenuating circumstances beyond their control, earned a substantially lower grade than might have been expected, normally a grade of C or lower€.
Extenuating circumstances normally involve a significant physical or psychological event that is beyond your control and debilitating to your overall academic performance. Additionally, these kinds of extraordinary situations are normally supported by documentation from a professional. The integrity of Arts and Science transcripts in general would be greatly diminished if the Faculty were to effect changes to students€™ records without clear and compelling documentation indicating that the student€™s performance was significantly compromised by extenuating circumstances beyond his or her control.
I recognize the fact that you had a difficult first two years at Queen€™s and I certainly acknowledge that your cousin€™s passing in July 2012 would no doubt have a lasting impact on you. However, there is no evidence in your appeal to link how these circumstances directly and negatively affected your academic performance in these two courses in particular. I also acknowledge that participating in a varsity sport can be quite demanding and it can at times be very challenging to balance your obligations to your team with your academic studies. However, this is not a situation outside of your personal control, but rather a choice you made at the time. Prioritizing your athletic pursuits over your academics is a conscious action and given that you continued to struggle in these courses throughout the term despite the academic assistance you received, you should have weighed all of your responsibilities at the time, assessed your progress and made the decision to drop these courses by the deadline at the end of Week 8. Without the presence of any documented extenuating circumstances that prevented you from making these decisions by the drop deadlines, I cannot reasonably grant your appeal.
If you wish to appeal the Associate Dean€™s decision to the Board of Studies, you must submit an appeal to the Board of Studies within 21 days of the date this decision was sent. Guidelines for appealing to the Board of Studies and the appeal form can be found at: http://www.queensu.ca/artsci/students-at-queens/academic-appeals (click on €œBoard of Studies€) Do not use the on-line application for this process. You may contact Mr. Harry Smith, Office of the Ombudsman for advice on matters of procedure and on obtaining a representative. His office is located in room 421 Robert Sutherland Hall and he can be reached by phone (533-6495) or e-mail (ombuds@queensu.ca).
Sincerely,
Johanne Bénard, Ph.D.
Associate Dean (Studies)
10050737Bogle3
Decision Date: January 3, 2017
Associate Dean: Johanne Benard, Ph.D.
Student Name: Robert Bogle
Student Email: 11reb11@queensu.ca
Course: PHYS 206
Term: Fall
Year: 2013
Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline
Course: PHYS 216
Term: Winter
Year: 2014
Category: Request credit (CR) standing in a course or courses
Instructor: Dr. Stephane Courteau
Dear Mr. Bogle:
I have carefully considered your appeal to drop PHYS 206 (F 2013) past the academic deadline and receive Credit standing in PHYS 216 (W 2014). After reviewing your file I have decided to deny your request.
As you know, courses must be dropped on SOLUS within the published deadlines. The Academic Regulations (Appeal of Academic Decisions, IIIb) stress that exceptions to this will only be waived under exceptional circumstances. The deadlines for dropping courses have been designed and established in order to provide sufficient time for students to determine their interest in the course material, to consider their ability to handle each course, and to evaluate their overall workload.
Academic Regulation 10.2.2. states that, Credit standing in a course is reserved for situations in which a student, who has completed and passed all of the work of the course including the final examination, but because of illness or other extenuating circumstances beyond their control, earned a substantially lower grade than might have been expected, normally a grade of C or lower€.
Extenuating circumstances normally involve a significant physical or psychological event that is beyond your control and debilitating to your overall academic performance. Additionally, these kinds of extraordinary situations are normally supported by documentation from a professional. The integrity of Arts and Science transcripts in general would be greatly diminished if the Faculty were to effect changes to students€™ records without clear and compelling documentation indicating that the student€™s performance was significantly compromised by extenuating circumstances beyond his or her control.
I recognize the fact that you had a difficult first two years at Queen€™s and I certainly acknowledge that your cousin€™s passing in July 2012 would no doubt have a lasting impact on you. However, there is no evidence in your appeal to link how these circumstances directly and negatively affected your academic performance in these two courses in particular. I also acknowledge that participating in a varsity sport can be quite demanding and it can at times be very challenging to balance your obligations to your team with your academic studies. However, this is not a situation outside of your personal control, but rather a choice you made at the time. Prioritizing your athletic pursuits over your academics is a conscious action and given that you continued to struggle in these courses throughout the term despite the academic assistance you received, you should have weighed all of your responsibilities at the time, assessed your progress and made the decision to drop these courses by the deadline at the end of Week 8. Without the presence of any documented extenuating circumstances that prevented you from making these decisions by the drop deadlines, I cannot reasonably grant your appeal.
If you wish to appeal the Associate Dean€™s decision to the Board of Studies, you must submit an appeal to the Board of Studies within 21 days of the date this decision was sent. Guidelines for appealing to the Board of Studies and the appeal form can be found at: http://www.queensu.ca/artsci/students-at-queens/academic-appeals (click on €œBoard of Studies€) Do not use the on-line application for this process. You may contact Mr. Harry Smith, Office of the Ombudsman for advice on matters of procedure and on obtaining a representative. His office is located in room 421 Robert Sutherland Hall and he can be reached by phone (533-6495) or e-mail (ombuds@queensu.ca).
Sincerely,
Johanne Bénard, Ph.D.
Associate Dean (Studies)
10050737Bogle3
Generated January 3, 2017 at 9:42:36 AM.