Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Appeal Number: 8908
Decision Date: May 16, 2022
Associate Dean: Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Student Name: Daniel Fichtinger
Student Email: 18daf3@queensu.ca

Course: CISC 335
Term: Winter
Year: 2022
Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline

Course: MUSC 255
Term: Fall/Winter
Year: 2021
Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline


Dear Daniel:

I have read with interest your appeal to drop MUSC 255 (FW 2021/22) and CISC 335 (W 2022), taking note of the challenges you outlined. After reviewing your appeal fully, 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 extenuating circumstances. 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 circumstances beyond his or her control. Extenuating circumstances normally involve a significant physical or psychological event that is beyond your control and debilitating to your overall academic performance.

I am certainly sympathetic to your situation and realize that this is a disappointing decision, however without documentation to support the circumstances you outline in your letter of appeal, I am unable to grant this appeal. Additionally, you have not provided an explanation as to why you were unable to drop the course by the drop deadline nor are there timelines associated with the circumstances presented, so it is not clear if the circumstances occurred after the drop deadline.

Going forward, I encourage you to carefully evaluate your progress in a course by week 7 of the term and if you are finding the material too difficult or have not kept up with the course work, you should drop the course by the week 8 drop deadline. The drop deadline is set at Week 8 to allow students plenty of time to assess their progress in a class and withdraw without any academic penalty if they feel that they cannot keep up with the demands or have the academic background needed to successfully complete it.

Another tool to manage your academics in addition to dropping a course by the drop deadline is our Academic Consideration protocol. A student can request short term consideration if they need more time to complete an assignment or miss a class due to documented extenuating circumstances. Here is the link for information about that process:

https://www.queensu.ca/artsci/undergrad-students/academic-consideration-for-students

Daniel, let me remind you that if a student repeats a course, the lower grade is excluded from their GPA and the higher grade is included.

If you wish to appeal the Associate Dean??s decision to the Board of Studies, information and deadlines can be found at www.queensu.ca/artsci/students-at-queens/academic-appeals (click on ??Board of Studies?). You may contact the Office of the University Ombudsperson for information about student rights and responsibilities as well as guidance on policy and procedure (www.queensu.ca/ombuds).

Student Academic Appeals Policy (SAAP) or Rules of Procedure for USAB are Queen??s University Senate approved appeal policies. If an inconsistency arises between these policies and Arts & Science regulations, SAAP and USAB will supersede.

Sincerely,


Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Associate Dean (Academic)

20148196Fichtinger