Decision Letter
Submission Number: 14148
Decision Date: April 30, 2026
Associate Dean: Dorit Naaman (Associate Dean Academic)
Student Name: Alexandra Neale
Student Email: 21an66@queensu.ca
Course: PSYC241
Term: Winter
Year: 2026
Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline
Dear Alexandra,
I have carefully considered your request to drop PSYC 241 (W26) after the academic deadline and while I’m unable to grant your petition, I want to assure you that I’ve taken your circumstances into account as part of this decision.
According to the Academic Petition and Appeals Regulation 1.7.1.2 a petition to drop a class late must clearly demonstrate the significant extenuating circumstances, beyond the student’s control, which prevented them from dropping the class by the deadline, as indicated in the Faculty’s Sessional Dates. A medical certificate or other documentation that outlines how the personal extenuating circumstances hindered the student’s ability to drop the class prior to the deadline should be provided with the petition.
I acknowledge the health condition described in your petition letter and how it affected your mid-term examination, and I appreciate that you were making efforts to manage your academic responsibilities during the Winter term while accessing professional support. That said, I must consider the timing of the request within the framework of the petition regulations.
It is the student’s responsibility to pause and evaluate the impact of extenuating circumstances on their coursework prior to the drop deadline of the term. If they fall behind in a course or find the material too difficult, they 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.
I appreciate the documentation that you supplied confirming serious academic impacts between February 24 and March 6, 2026. However, the documentation does not demonstrate that an unexpected extenuating circumstance prevented you from dropping PSYC 241 prior to the April 6 drop deadline. As such, I am unable to grant this request.
If you are concerned about the impact that your grade in PSYC 241 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. Appeals to the Board of Studies must be submitted within 10 business days of the date of this decision. Information on the appeal process and deadlines is available at queensu.ca/artsci/undergraduate/student-services/academic-petitions-and-appeals (click on “Second Level”). 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.
I hope that you continue to seek out the support and resources available to you, and I wish you the best in navigating your next steps.
Sincerely,
Dorit Naaman, PhD
Associate Dean (Academic)
Decision Date: April 30, 2026
Associate Dean: Dorit Naaman (Associate Dean Academic)
Student Name: Alexandra Neale
Student Email: 21an66@queensu.ca
Course: PSYC241
Term: Winter
Year: 2026
Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline
Dear Alexandra,
I have carefully considered your request to drop PSYC 241 (W26) after the academic deadline and while I’m unable to grant your petition, I want to assure you that I’ve taken your circumstances into account as part of this decision.
According to the Academic Petition and Appeals Regulation 1.7.1.2 a petition to drop a class late must clearly demonstrate the significant extenuating circumstances, beyond the student’s control, which prevented them from dropping the class by the deadline, as indicated in the Faculty’s Sessional Dates. A medical certificate or other documentation that outlines how the personal extenuating circumstances hindered the student’s ability to drop the class prior to the deadline should be provided with the petition.
I acknowledge the health condition described in your petition letter and how it affected your mid-term examination, and I appreciate that you were making efforts to manage your academic responsibilities during the Winter term while accessing professional support. That said, I must consider the timing of the request within the framework of the petition regulations.
It is the student’s responsibility to pause and evaluate the impact of extenuating circumstances on their coursework prior to the drop deadline of the term. If they fall behind in a course or find the material too difficult, they 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.
I appreciate the documentation that you supplied confirming serious academic impacts between February 24 and March 6, 2026. However, the documentation does not demonstrate that an unexpected extenuating circumstance prevented you from dropping PSYC 241 prior to the April 6 drop deadline. As such, I am unable to grant this request.
If you are concerned about the impact that your grade in PSYC 241 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. Appeals to the Board of Studies must be submitted within 10 business days of the date of this decision. Information on the appeal process and deadlines is available at queensu.ca/artsci/undergraduate/student-services/academic-petitions-and-appeals (click on “Second Level”). 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.
I hope that you continue to seek out the support and resources available to you, and I wish you the best in navigating your next steps.
Sincerely,
Dorit Naaman, PhD
Associate Dean (Academic)
Generated April 30, 2026 at 10:12:46 AM.