Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dear Academic Petition Committee,

I am writing this petition letter to 1) ask to be admitted to two online summer school courses
offered through Queen??s University this summer, and 2) for your consideration for admission as
a transfer student into the Queen??s Kinesiology Program.

During my first year at Queen??s University in general sciences, I was faced with a number of
significant health issues related to a new medical diagnosis.? Without going into great detail, this
problem resulted in tremendous pain and blood loss.? As a result of these issues, there were
several periods when I was not able to sleep, eat or focus well on my studies, and also lead to
significant absences from class.? I made several trips to the Student Wellness Centre, Kingston
General Hospital, and Hotel Dieu Hospital in Kingston. Given the long wait times to see a
specialist in Kingston, I was eventually referred to Toronto Gastroenterologists Dr. Peter Rossos
(Toronto General Hospital), and to Dr. Natasha Bollegala (Women??s College Hospital.
Related to my underlying condition, I unfortunately contracted a flu during my final exams that
left me bed-ridden for a time. This resulted in having my final Biology exam deferred until May
11th.? It was not until I was able to return home at the end of the semester to Toronto and
receive medical care that I was able to resume proper studying and complete this exam, which
raised my mark significantly from what it was.? Unfortunately some of my first year grades were
already negatively impacted by these medical issues.
I can assure you that I am the most dedicated, driven and hard-working student you will meet.?
Entering Queen??s in my first year, I was awarded scholarships both from Queen??s University
and from Rogers Canada for my academic achievements, and hope to get back on track
academically going forward.? During this past year I took Psych 100 from September to
December and then needed to drop it for a course with a lighter work load to dedicate what little
energy I had to my core courses Biology, Chemistry and Calculus. I am therefore quite familiar
with the first half of Psych 100 and would be able to quickly and successfully pick up the course
material I have missed so far.? I am also asking to be admitted to the online summer (spring)
course in Health Studies 101 so that I may get as caught up with as many first year Kinesiology
pre-requisites as possible before September.? Given that these courses are both asynchronous,
I believe I will be able to work hard, get up to speed and achieve great results.
I understand that my GPA is lower than what you would normally consider for admission to the
Kinesiology Program.? However, I would ask you to consider what I had to battle to just make it
through this year.?? I firmly believe that undergraduate programs are meant to educate students
as well as help us orient ourselves into programs that we discover are best suited to our
interests and strengths.? There are so many facets to the Kinesiology Program that are more
suited to my physical, visual and hands-on approach to learning.
I can promise, that if given the chance, I will work exceedingly hard and will prove to be an asset
to the Kinesiology program at Queen??s University.? I am asking, with the utmost sincerity, to be
given a chance to prove myself both this summer in Psych 100 and Health Studies 101, and in
September in the Queen??s Kinesiology Program.

Thank you kindly for your consideration,
Ava Isabella De Pellegrin Overgaard