Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: To

Associate Dean (Academic)

Queen’s University

99 University Ave

Kingston, Ontario, Canada

K7L 3N6

20 November 2023

Request to drop a course after the academic deadline



Associate Dean (Academic),

I am requesting to drop PHIL 259 (Fall, 2023) after the deadline. As a second-year Bachelor of Arts in Psychology online student, I am currently taking four courses this semester. I took five courses in both Fall of 2022 and Spring of 2023 and three courses in the Summer of 2023. Despite my busy schedule as a single mother to two boys, I managed the prior three semesters well, and my cumulative GPA is currently at 3.410.

Unfortunately, this semester has been a challenging time for me. My long-term relationship ended, and my dad's health has been declining further. As a result, I have been struggling to focus and manage my emotions. I understand the deadline for dropping courses has passed, but I hope you can make an exception for me.

I have fallen behind in one of my electives, PHIL 239, because I used the time I could concentrate on my PSYC courses. I enjoy the content in PHIL 259 but have struggled to absorb the material thoroughly, resulting in two assignments with B grades that I was happy with, but also with two failed tests. I did not drop the course before the deadline because I wanted to push through. However, after failing the second test with a grade of 30%, I realized I lacked a large amount of course content knowledge, so I decided to petition to drop the course after the deadline. The reason for this is that, as exams approach, I am still struggling with emotionally distracting thoughts, and even though I am slowly feeling my ability to focus return, I do not have enough time to learn the material that I have fallen behind on.

I fear this will result in both failing the course and additional emotional distress. I have started seeing a therapist weekly, which is improving my emotional state. As I advance into next semester, I plan to regain much of my ability to concentrate and the optimistic attitude I usually have.

I appreciate your consideration,

Sincerely,

Laura Harrington (20376683)