Academic Plan
A Brief Overview of Projected Academic Plan for Callum Anderson (2015-2016 School Year)
In the interest of saving your time I will give a brief overview of my projected academic plan for the 2015-2016 school year. As you learned from the appeal letter, I am a philosophy major who took almost all psychology courses. I have acknowledged this to be a critical mistake, and have already set out to right this right and will continue to do so in September should this appeal be granted.
Before I present my course outline I would like to quickly point out a few important points that strengthen my plan and demonstrate how dedicated I am to my continuing education. For starters, I have enrolled in 15.0 units over the summer semester made up of the following courses: BIOL 102, GNDS 125, MUSC 171 (does not start until July), HLTH 230, and STAT 263. In the past I have received an 'F' grade in BIOL 102, by the end of July I am confident I will have that credit, I am currently averaging an 'A' grade in the course. Similarly I am also re-enrolled in STAT 263, which I am also confident I shall earn a passing grade this time. After earning both of these credits the two 'F' grades will no longer be factored into my GPA which will raise it past the minimum 1.60 required to continue. It is worth noting that by the end of the summer my GPA will be at a satisfactory level for the faculty. This is not counting the other three courses (GNDS 125, MUSC 171, and HLTH 230), of which I am either currently receiving a grade of 'B' or more in the course and in the case of MUSC 171 I anticipate to pass with at least 'B' grade. Taking these new summer grades into account, my GPA will be above 1.60 by the start of the fall term in 2015. I have consulted an academic advisor and we went over the heavy workload that these summer courses are proving to be. I think it is a testament to my strong commitment to turning around my academic situation that I am enrolled in all of these courses and receiving much better grades, to note, I am also working a forty hour work week, I mention this only to further outline my extreme commitment to this cause. Further, at present my GPA is 1.47, which is below the standards laid out by the faculty. Although I would like to respectfully point out that it is not much lower than required and I am turning my poor academic situation around, things are getting better in that regard and with the credits I earn in the summer semester my GPA will be a satisfactory one that will make me eligible to return to my studies, and I believe that this is worth emphasizing. I am completely aware that academic assessment is decided in May, but before the regular school year begins I will be eligible to return.
Now I would like to quickly outline my projected course mapping for the 2015-2016 school year. My transcript reflects that I am strongest in philosophy and political studies, so I would like to propose a plan that would eventually lead me to a philosophy major and a political studies minor. I also believe that I overworked myself in my first two years, which was caused by my post secondary immaturity, lack of knowledge and overconfidence. In the past month I have worked very hard and understand the importance of realistic goal setting and have developed an ability to set more appropriate goals. Having said that, I think a reduced course load would be the best course of action for me to take, especially to ease into things, just to be on the safe side. I would start out by enrolling in just four courses in first semester and if all goes well (a GPA of 3.0 in first semester), enroll in five courses in second semester, (indicated in brackets is the course that I will take conditionally). I also plan on enrolling in summer school again in the summer of 2016, re-taking two courses that I did not perform well in during first year (grade of 'D' in PSYC 100 and grade of 'D-' in SOCY 122). This will help to boost my GPA even more.
Fall 2015
PHIL 250A - Epistemology and Metaphysics (Core course)
PHIL 257A - Ethics (Core course)
PHIL 259 - Critical Thinking (online)
PHIL 204 - Life, Death, Meaning
Winter 2016
PHIL 250B - Epistemology and Metaphysics (Core course)
PHIL 257B - Ethics (Core course)
PHIL 296 - Animals and Society
POLS 212 - Canadian Politics
(POLS 262 - International Political Economy)
Summer 2016
PSYC 100 - Introduction to Psychology (online) Would re-take this course to boost GPA
SOCY 122 - Introduction to Sociology (online) Would re-take this course to boost GPA
The current intensive summer work has also helped me to mature, both academically and personally. Most of all I have learned the value of time management, balancing all of these course and work along with everything else was at first a real challenge, a challenge that I have overcome. Working in a food service position as a summer job I also have a new found appreciation for higher education and really do realise how privileged I am to be studying at Queen's University. This is not a privilege I want to lose, and I am trying as hard as I can and have never worked harder towards something. I apologize that this has been blunt and to the point with few details. Nevertheless I hope you understand how much my post secondary education means to me and how serious and hard working I am with regards to raising my GPA. I am turning my academic situation around even as I write this, and I sincerely hope you will allow me the chance to prove it to you, the faculty of arts and science, and myself. Associate Dean Benard, thank you so much for your time. I really appreciate it, and look forward to hearing your decision.
Best regards,
Callum Anderson
In the interest of saving your time I will give a brief overview of my projected academic plan for the 2015-2016 school year. As you learned from the appeal letter, I am a philosophy major who took almost all psychology courses. I have acknowledged this to be a critical mistake, and have already set out to right this right and will continue to do so in September should this appeal be granted.
Before I present my course outline I would like to quickly point out a few important points that strengthen my plan and demonstrate how dedicated I am to my continuing education. For starters, I have enrolled in 15.0 units over the summer semester made up of the following courses: BIOL 102, GNDS 125, MUSC 171 (does not start until July), HLTH 230, and STAT 263. In the past I have received an 'F' grade in BIOL 102, by the end of July I am confident I will have that credit, I am currently averaging an 'A' grade in the course. Similarly I am also re-enrolled in STAT 263, which I am also confident I shall earn a passing grade this time. After earning both of these credits the two 'F' grades will no longer be factored into my GPA which will raise it past the minimum 1.60 required to continue. It is worth noting that by the end of the summer my GPA will be at a satisfactory level for the faculty. This is not counting the other three courses (GNDS 125, MUSC 171, and HLTH 230), of which I am either currently receiving a grade of 'B' or more in the course and in the case of MUSC 171 I anticipate to pass with at least 'B' grade. Taking these new summer grades into account, my GPA will be above 1.60 by the start of the fall term in 2015. I have consulted an academic advisor and we went over the heavy workload that these summer courses are proving to be. I think it is a testament to my strong commitment to turning around my academic situation that I am enrolled in all of these courses and receiving much better grades, to note, I am also working a forty hour work week, I mention this only to further outline my extreme commitment to this cause. Further, at present my GPA is 1.47, which is below the standards laid out by the faculty. Although I would like to respectfully point out that it is not much lower than required and I am turning my poor academic situation around, things are getting better in that regard and with the credits I earn in the summer semester my GPA will be a satisfactory one that will make me eligible to return to my studies, and I believe that this is worth emphasizing. I am completely aware that academic assessment is decided in May, but before the regular school year begins I will be eligible to return.
Now I would like to quickly outline my projected course mapping for the 2015-2016 school year. My transcript reflects that I am strongest in philosophy and political studies, so I would like to propose a plan that would eventually lead me to a philosophy major and a political studies minor. I also believe that I overworked myself in my first two years, which was caused by my post secondary immaturity, lack of knowledge and overconfidence. In the past month I have worked very hard and understand the importance of realistic goal setting and have developed an ability to set more appropriate goals. Having said that, I think a reduced course load would be the best course of action for me to take, especially to ease into things, just to be on the safe side. I would start out by enrolling in just four courses in first semester and if all goes well (a GPA of 3.0 in first semester), enroll in five courses in second semester, (indicated in brackets is the course that I will take conditionally). I also plan on enrolling in summer school again in the summer of 2016, re-taking two courses that I did not perform well in during first year (grade of 'D' in PSYC 100 and grade of 'D-' in SOCY 122). This will help to boost my GPA even more.
Fall 2015
PHIL 250A - Epistemology and Metaphysics (Core course)
PHIL 257A - Ethics (Core course)
PHIL 259 - Critical Thinking (online)
PHIL 204 - Life, Death, Meaning
Winter 2016
PHIL 250B - Epistemology and Metaphysics (Core course)
PHIL 257B - Ethics (Core course)
PHIL 296 - Animals and Society
POLS 212 - Canadian Politics
(POLS 262 - International Political Economy)
Summer 2016
PSYC 100 - Introduction to Psychology (online) Would re-take this course to boost GPA
SOCY 122 - Introduction to Sociology (online) Would re-take this course to boost GPA
The current intensive summer work has also helped me to mature, both academically and personally. Most of all I have learned the value of time management, balancing all of these course and work along with everything else was at first a real challenge, a challenge that I have overcome. Working in a food service position as a summer job I also have a new found appreciation for higher education and really do realise how privileged I am to be studying at Queen's University. This is not a privilege I want to lose, and I am trying as hard as I can and have never worked harder towards something. I apologize that this has been blunt and to the point with few details. Nevertheless I hope you understand how much my post secondary education means to me and how serious and hard working I am with regards to raising my GPA. I am turning my academic situation around even as I write this, and I sincerely hope you will allow me the chance to prove it to you, the faculty of arts and science, and myself. Associate Dean Benard, thank you so much for your time. I really appreciate it, and look forward to hearing your decision.
Best regards,
Callum Anderson