Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Good morning. My name is Mackenzie Baldry, and I am a first-year student in the Faculty of Arts and Science at Queen’s University. I am currently studying general sciences with the intent of transferring into Chemical Engineering for the Fall 2025 semester. I am submitting this petition to formally request late enrollment into CISC 101, as this course is beneficial for my transfer and I was unable to enroll before the deadline due to a series of extenuating circumstances beyond my control.
During the summer, I had been in contact with Peter Miller in an effort to better understand the requirements for transferring into Engineering. I was informed that I needed to enroll in PHYS 104/106 to fulfill missing high school prerequisites. Based on multiple advising sessions, I was informed that my three full-year courses (CHEM 112, PHYS 106, and MATH 121) would provide all necessary credits for my transfer.
However, at the beginning of this winter semester, I learned from a fourth-year student, who had gone through the process, that an Arts and Science elective could also count toward my Engineering transfer credits.
Once I realized the benefits of an elective, I immediately sought academic guidance, but I was repeatedly redirected without clear answers, causing critical delays.
I first went to Dunning Hall (the ArtSci Student Services Desk) to ask which electives would be beneficial. The advisors there were unsure of the process and could not provide a definitive answer. I was redirected to the Engineering Student Services Desk in Dupuis Hall, but upon arrival, I discovered that the actual advising office was in Beamish-Munro Hall. When I finally reached Beamish-Munro Hall, I was told that I could not take Engineering electives and needed an Arts and Science equivalent. However, the advisors did not know which Arts and Science courses were equivalent and referred me to a Zoom advising session. I waited in the Zoom queue for two hours but never had the chance to meet with an advisor due to high demand, forcing me to wait another week for assistance. When I finally spoke with an advisor, I was again told to seek out someone with more knowledge on the subject. At this point, I was feeling extremely frustrated, as I had been actively seeking answers for weeks but was unable to make progress due to miscommunication and a lack of clear guidance.
After persistent efforts, on January 23, I was finally able to connect with Liann Joanette, who provided me with a table outlining the Arts and Science courses that are equivalent to Engineering electives. This was the first time I was given a clear answer.
This is when I discovered CISC 101, a coding course taught by Dr. Anwar Hossain, which would assist in my efforts to transfer. However, by this point, the course add/drop deadline had already passed. I immediately returned to Dunning Hall to see if I could still switch into the class, but I was told that I would need to submit an appeal.
As I prepared to submit my appeal, I was advised to contact the professor of CISC 101 to confirm my ability to catch up and gather his opinion. Unfortunately, over the weekend, my phone broke, which created a technical issue. I was locked out of my Queen’s SOLUS account because I could no longer access my Authenticator App. As a result, I was unable to look up the professor’s name and contact information, confirm seat availability in CISC 101, and submit my petition in a timely manner.
On Monday, January 27, I went to IT Services, where they finally resolved the issue and restored my access to SOLUS. Only then was I able to identify Dr. Anwar Hossain and contact him.
Dr. Hossain confirmed that he does not mind my enrollment, provided that I put in the effort to catch up. Additionally, SOLUS currently shows that there are seven open seats available in the blended introduction to programming course.
Given these circumstances, I am formally requesting permission to enroll in CISC 101 and drop BIOL 103. The class time interferes with my MATH 121 lecture and therefore I would need to switch sections, but the ArtSci Student Services Desk assured me it would not be a problem if my petition was approved. I have received approval from Dr. Hossain to join the course, and I am fully committed to catching up on any missed coursework. Furthermore I would love to take this class and I am confident that I will succeed. I truly appreciate your time and consideration in reviewing my appeal. Please let me know if any further information is required.
Sincerely,
Mackenzie Baldry