Decision Letter
Submission Number: 10804
Decision Date: July 31, 2023
Associate Dean: Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Student Name: Nelly Kaliza
Student Email: 19nk44@queensu.ca
Course: ARTF 101
Term: Summer
Year: 2023
Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline
Dear Nelly:
I have reviewed your petition requesting a late drop ARTF 101 (S 2023) and I am sorry to have read that not meeting a prerequisite for a course was difficult new for you. After reviewing your petition however, 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.
I am sure this is a disappointing decision, but the circumstance you presented is not considered extenuating in nature, and although you may have been disappointed and felt anxiety around that, it is a student’s responsibility to manage departmental policies related to prerequisites. Additionally, it is not clear why this course was impacted by that circumstance more so than your other course(s) taken that term.
Since you mention in your petition letter that you received this news during the initial week of summer term, you had sufficient time to assess the impact this policy had on your summer term courses. Going forward, I recommend that you pause and evaluate your health and progress in your courses prior to the drop deadlines. The drop deadlines, as they have been outlined in the “Important Dates” section on the Arts and Science web page, have been established by the Faculty of Arts and Science to ensure a fair and equitable treatment of all students at Queen's.
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 had to 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
Nelly, let me remind you that if a student repeats a course, the low grade is excluded from their grade point average and the higher grade is included, which would mean there would be no long term negative impact on your GPA.
If you wish to appeal the Associate Dean’s decision to the Board of Studies, information and deadlines can be found at https://www.queensu.ca/artsci/undergraduate/student-services/academic-petitions-and-appeals (click on “Submit a Board of Studies Appeal Here”). You may contact the Office of the University Ombudsperson for information about student rights and responsibilities https://www.queensu.ca/ombuds/appeal-process/procedural-fairness and guidance on policy and procedure by visiting their website at https://www.queensu.ca/ombuds/.
Sincerely,
Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Associate Dean (Academic)
20216817Kaliza
Decision Date: July 31, 2023
Associate Dean: Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Student Name: Nelly Kaliza
Student Email: 19nk44@queensu.ca
Course: ARTF 101
Term: Summer
Year: 2023
Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline
Dear Nelly:
I have reviewed your petition requesting a late drop ARTF 101 (S 2023) and I am sorry to have read that not meeting a prerequisite for a course was difficult new for you. After reviewing your petition however, 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.
I am sure this is a disappointing decision, but the circumstance you presented is not considered extenuating in nature, and although you may have been disappointed and felt anxiety around that, it is a student’s responsibility to manage departmental policies related to prerequisites. Additionally, it is not clear why this course was impacted by that circumstance more so than your other course(s) taken that term.
Since you mention in your petition letter that you received this news during the initial week of summer term, you had sufficient time to assess the impact this policy had on your summer term courses. Going forward, I recommend that you pause and evaluate your health and progress in your courses prior to the drop deadlines. The drop deadlines, as they have been outlined in the “Important Dates” section on the Arts and Science web page, have been established by the Faculty of Arts and Science to ensure a fair and equitable treatment of all students at Queen's.
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 had to 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
Nelly, let me remind you that if a student repeats a course, the low grade is excluded from their grade point average and the higher grade is included, which would mean there would be no long term negative impact on your GPA.
If you wish to appeal the Associate Dean’s decision to the Board of Studies, information and deadlines can be found at https://www.queensu.ca/artsci/undergraduate/student-services/academic-petitions-and-appeals (click on “Submit a Board of Studies Appeal Here”). You may contact the Office of the University Ombudsperson for information about student rights and responsibilities https://www.queensu.ca/ombuds/appeal-process/procedural-fairness and guidance on policy and procedure by visiting their website at https://www.queensu.ca/ombuds/.
Sincerely,
Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Associate Dean (Academic)
20216817Kaliza
Generated July 31, 2023 at 10:57:26 AM.