Petition Letter
To: Associate Dean (Academic), Faculty of Arts & Science
From: Yikai Zhou (Student ID: 20340457)
Subject: Petition to add STAT 263, STAT 161, and CISC 422 for Fall 2025
Dear Associate Dean,
I am requesting permission to add STAT 263, STAT 161, and CISC 422 to my Fall 2025 schedule after the deadline. I understand that late adds are unusual, so I want to clearly explain what happened, why these courses matter for my program, and what I am already doing to catch up and succeed.
Why I could not add these courses on time. At the beginning of the add period, my SOLUS standing showed me as a third-year student. Because of that classification, I could not enroll in CISC 422, which is restricted to students with fourth-year standing and relevant prerequisites. I tried to resolve the standing issue, but by the time I received guidance, the late add deadline had passed. In the same time frame, during an advising conversation, I learned that I must retake STAT 263 and achieve at least a C- in order to take CISC 455 in the Winter term. That information changed my course plan in a way I could not act on before the add window closed. In short, a combination of system standing restrictions and late confirmation of the STAT 263 retake requirement prevented me from enrolling during the normal period.
Why these three courses now. The STAT 263 gives me the statistics foundation I need immediately and places me on track for CISC 455 in the Winter.I am also requesting STAT 161 as an elective. It is an entry-level data science course that will strengthen my foundation in data handling, basic inference, and practical workflow (from cleaning to simple modeling). Adding it now complements my Computing degree by giving me the statistical habits and tools that many upper-year CS courses and projects assume. It broadens my skill set for software work that interacts with real datasets. CISC 422 fits my degree plan and senior coursework; delaying it would push my timeline and create avoidable gaps in my final-year sequence. I have checked that there are seats available for all of these three courses. I am ready to join these classes and meet all course expectations.
What I have already done to catch up. I have contacted classmates in each course and obtained Week 1–2 notes, slides, and reading lists. I built a two-week catch-up schedule with daily study blocks focused on statistics problem sets and CISC 422 readings. I have also set up a detailed planner for all deliverables and added recurring reminders for quizzes, labs, and project checkpoints. I will attend office hours weekly (more often near midterms), participate actively on discussion boards, and meet with TAs/instructors to confirm any missed assessments or diagnostic tasks. If I fall behind on statistics, I will book peer tutoring and keep that support until my grades stabilize.
How I will manage workload and accountability. I have trimmed non-academic commitments this month to prioritize these courses. Every Sunday evening I update my plan for the week; every Wednesday I do a progress check. If anything slips more than 48 hours, I will inform the instructor, propose a concrete make-up plan, and follow through. I will also keep my advisor updated so we can adjust early if needed.
I appreciate your consideration. I accept full responsibility for the delay and am committed to meeting all course requirements. Approving this petition would allow me to stay on sequence for Winter CISC 455 and complete my program and my future success. I have attached a brief academic plan in the meantime indicating how I intend to catch up on the material that I missed in the courses.
Sincerely,
Yikai Zhou
Queen’s University | Faculty of Arts & Science
Email: 21yz191@queensu.ca | Student ID: 20340457
From: Yikai Zhou (Student ID: 20340457)
Subject: Petition to add STAT 263, STAT 161, and CISC 422 for Fall 2025
Dear Associate Dean,
I am requesting permission to add STAT 263, STAT 161, and CISC 422 to my Fall 2025 schedule after the deadline. I understand that late adds are unusual, so I want to clearly explain what happened, why these courses matter for my program, and what I am already doing to catch up and succeed.
Why I could not add these courses on time. At the beginning of the add period, my SOLUS standing showed me as a third-year student. Because of that classification, I could not enroll in CISC 422, which is restricted to students with fourth-year standing and relevant prerequisites. I tried to resolve the standing issue, but by the time I received guidance, the late add deadline had passed. In the same time frame, during an advising conversation, I learned that I must retake STAT 263 and achieve at least a C- in order to take CISC 455 in the Winter term. That information changed my course plan in a way I could not act on before the add window closed. In short, a combination of system standing restrictions and late confirmation of the STAT 263 retake requirement prevented me from enrolling during the normal period.
Why these three courses now. The STAT 263 gives me the statistics foundation I need immediately and places me on track for CISC 455 in the Winter.I am also requesting STAT 161 as an elective. It is an entry-level data science course that will strengthen my foundation in data handling, basic inference, and practical workflow (from cleaning to simple modeling). Adding it now complements my Computing degree by giving me the statistical habits and tools that many upper-year CS courses and projects assume. It broadens my skill set for software work that interacts with real datasets. CISC 422 fits my degree plan and senior coursework; delaying it would push my timeline and create avoidable gaps in my final-year sequence. I have checked that there are seats available for all of these three courses. I am ready to join these classes and meet all course expectations.
What I have already done to catch up. I have contacted classmates in each course and obtained Week 1–2 notes, slides, and reading lists. I built a two-week catch-up schedule with daily study blocks focused on statistics problem sets and CISC 422 readings. I have also set up a detailed planner for all deliverables and added recurring reminders for quizzes, labs, and project checkpoints. I will attend office hours weekly (more often near midterms), participate actively on discussion boards, and meet with TAs/instructors to confirm any missed assessments or diagnostic tasks. If I fall behind on statistics, I will book peer tutoring and keep that support until my grades stabilize.
How I will manage workload and accountability. I have trimmed non-academic commitments this month to prioritize these courses. Every Sunday evening I update my plan for the week; every Wednesday I do a progress check. If anything slips more than 48 hours, I will inform the instructor, propose a concrete make-up plan, and follow through. I will also keep my advisor updated so we can adjust early if needed.
I appreciate your consideration. I accept full responsibility for the delay and am committed to meeting all course requirements. Approving this petition would allow me to stay on sequence for Winter CISC 455 and complete my program and my future success. I have attached a brief academic plan in the meantime indicating how I intend to catch up on the material that I missed in the courses.
Sincerely,
Yikai Zhou
Queen’s University | Faculty of Arts & Science
Email: 21yz191@queensu.ca | Student ID: 20340457