Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dear Associate Dean of Studies,

I write this appeal letter to request a late drop for FREN 110, MUSC 204, MUSC 205, MUSC 191, MUSC 321 and MUSC 128 from my 2013-2014 academic year.

Last year, I dropped the same courses due to depression and anxiety. This year, I made sure to keep in touch with a counsellor at the HCDS throughout the year and accessed additional counselling services in the Kingston community (K3C). I did not ask to drop my courses sooner as I was notified by OSAP that I was now on OSAP Academic Probation and I was required to maintain a full course load; consequently, I did not think dropping my courses was an option for me.
I struggled this year because I expected everything to be better. I thought I'd be starting fresh, and I would be able to come back to Queen's and perform to the best of my ability, as I did in my first year at Queen's. However, I did not expect to be so overwhelmed by the fear of constant failure. I would keep myself up at night because I always felt like I should be studying or working because I did not want to fail again. This led to sleeping through classes, and performing very poorly on assignments. I was always worrying and afraid of disappointing my parents because they were very angry when I failed 5 of my courses and kept reinforcing that I had better not fail this time. I have continued to see counselors at the HCDS and physicians as I continue to struggle with depression, and severe anxiety
Constant reminders that I've failed so many times was driving me crazy, and I was no longer going to class, and I was not communicating with my professors anymore. I would be speaking at Residence 'High Tables' about my struggles with Mental Health and the importance of asking for help. (High Tables are dinners that every first year student in Residence gets to attend with their floor, and feature a guest speaker.) It was the only thing that made me feel like people wanted me here at Queens. I'd have people coming to me all the time saying how I helped them get through whatever their struggles were, and then other Residence Staff asking me to speak for their floors. Meanwhile, I still didn't really know how to help myself.

My plan for next year is to take a voluntary leave. I have spoken with a counselor at HCDS, an ArtSci academic advisor, and an academic advisor from the music department about possible course options to consider. I will also be considering switching into a General Arts program majoring in music, as opposed to the Bachelor of Music program. It was also recommended that I consider taking online courses and summer courses for following years, to lighten the course load upon my return. The counselors at HCDS and the ArtSci academic advisors support the decision to take a year off, and I strongly agree that it would be most beneficial for future successes here at Queen's.
The decision to take a year off was not an easy one and with the request granted to drop my failed courses this year, I can better prepare myself for academic success in the future as I complete my Queen's degree. I will continue with ongoing counselling during my voluntary leave.

Thank you,

Kyle Marriott
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