Petition Letter
Dear Associate Dean,
This letter of academic appeal is with respect to the grade I received in the course ECON 360, Labour Economics with Professor Jan Zabojnik. In the semester of Fall 2018, I was enrolled in four economics courses, one of them being my mandatory seminar, and also had two part-time jobs. My main job was as the lead TA for the Smith School of Business Marketing course where I managed 5 other TAs, created a new online course with Professor John-Kurt Pliniussen, and was the direct contact for the 300 enrolled students. I am a hard working and diligent student. Managing my time between school and part-time work comes easily, as school always takes priority. I have been very focused on increasing my GPA in 3rd and 4th year, as most masters programs that I am interested in require a 3.5 and above GPA in the last two years of undergrad and are extremely competitive. I enjoyed the content of ECON360 and it was relevant to the topic I selected for my seminar research paper. In my advanced microeconomic seminar with Professor Berkok, I received an A-. I regularly attended and participated in the ECON360 class and also sought out Professor Zabojnik¿¿s office hours for questions about material I didn¿¿t fully understand. Professor Zabojnik was also a resource for my seminar as my topic closely related to his course.
In ECON 360, I received a 72 on the midterm and over 87 on all the assignments (if my memory is correct). I do not have access to the course page any longer as it was closed. I was very happy with my midterm grade as close to 22 of the students in the class failed the midterm, and many students dropped the course thereafter. Unfortunately, Professor Zabojnik was sick around the time of the final exam and was unable to host office hours or attend the final examination to answer any questions or provide direction on his exam. Going into the exam with an A-, and what I believed to be a firm grasp on the course material, seeing a C on my transcript was quite a shock. I believe that this grade is an unfair representation of my work effort in both my major of Applied Economies and in ECON 360. I have only received 3 B¿¿s in the last 16 courses I have taken, all the rest are in the A range. I have never previously appealed a grade.
The goal of this appeal letter is not for reconsideration of my exam, but instead to change ECON360 to a pass/fail credit as it was not a mandatory degree requirement, but instead a course that was taken due to my interest in the course material. Given the application of ECON360 to my final seminar research paper, the course was valuable to my knowledge base however should not be included in my GPA, as the grade is an outlier. Simply reflecting it as a pass on my transcript would achieve this result. The grade I received in ECON360, if it does not become a pass/fail credit, will most importantly, negatively impact my applications to any graduate program. I have had many meetings with Jennine Ball, the head of the Economics department, and she believes I have a strong basis for my request for a pass/fail credit.
Thank you for taking the time to read my letter. Please do not hesitate to contact me for further information.
Sophie MacLellan
10191504
This letter of academic appeal is with respect to the grade I received in the course ECON 360, Labour Economics with Professor Jan Zabojnik. In the semester of Fall 2018, I was enrolled in four economics courses, one of them being my mandatory seminar, and also had two part-time jobs. My main job was as the lead TA for the Smith School of Business Marketing course where I managed 5 other TAs, created a new online course with Professor John-Kurt Pliniussen, and was the direct contact for the 300 enrolled students. I am a hard working and diligent student. Managing my time between school and part-time work comes easily, as school always takes priority. I have been very focused on increasing my GPA in 3rd and 4th year, as most masters programs that I am interested in require a 3.5 and above GPA in the last two years of undergrad and are extremely competitive. I enjoyed the content of ECON360 and it was relevant to the topic I selected for my seminar research paper. In my advanced microeconomic seminar with Professor Berkok, I received an A-. I regularly attended and participated in the ECON360 class and also sought out Professor Zabojnik¿¿s office hours for questions about material I didn¿¿t fully understand. Professor Zabojnik was also a resource for my seminar as my topic closely related to his course.
In ECON 360, I received a 72 on the midterm and over 87 on all the assignments (if my memory is correct). I do not have access to the course page any longer as it was closed. I was very happy with my midterm grade as close to 22 of the students in the class failed the midterm, and many students dropped the course thereafter. Unfortunately, Professor Zabojnik was sick around the time of the final exam and was unable to host office hours or attend the final examination to answer any questions or provide direction on his exam. Going into the exam with an A-, and what I believed to be a firm grasp on the course material, seeing a C on my transcript was quite a shock. I believe that this grade is an unfair representation of my work effort in both my major of Applied Economies and in ECON 360. I have only received 3 B¿¿s in the last 16 courses I have taken, all the rest are in the A range. I have never previously appealed a grade.
The goal of this appeal letter is not for reconsideration of my exam, but instead to change ECON360 to a pass/fail credit as it was not a mandatory degree requirement, but instead a course that was taken due to my interest in the course material. Given the application of ECON360 to my final seminar research paper, the course was valuable to my knowledge base however should not be included in my GPA, as the grade is an outlier. Simply reflecting it as a pass on my transcript would achieve this result. The grade I received in ECON360, if it does not become a pass/fail credit, will most importantly, negatively impact my applications to any graduate program. I have had many meetings with Jennine Ball, the head of the Economics department, and she believes I have a strong basis for my request for a pass/fail credit.
Thank you for taking the time to read my letter. Please do not hesitate to contact me for further information.
Sophie MacLellan
10191504