Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dear Associate Dean of Academics Dr. Dorit Naaman,

My name is Danica Yeung (20513205), a rising second year international student in Queen’s Arts and Science program. I am kindly reaching out to petition to drop PSYC 100 (Fall, 2025 and Winter, 2025) from my academic record.

The first year of university was quite challenging for me as I had to adjust to change for the first time. Being an international student studying abroad, being 15 hours away from home was very new to me. I had to learn and balance being in a new environment with a new community without my support system.

I was diagnosed with dyslexia at the age of 8 and have always needed guidance throughout my school years. I knew being dyslexic was something I had to adapt to, as it isn’t something that goes away. I needed more support compared to other students and always had to go in for tutoring. In 2023, I was re-diagnosed with dyslexia, which was more of a challenge as school became a lot more serious and challenging. It was hard overcoming the difficulties and facing reality, but I’ve never once let dyslexia be an excuse for anything related to my academics. Instead, I’ve always known I had to put in more effort compared to other students. Even at times when I wanted to give up, I had to keep pushing myself and sacrificing time away from my friends and hobbies. Dyslexia is a learning disability that has affected my ability to read, write and spell, as all the words are jumbled in my perspective. Coming into Queens, I had to adapt to a new environment, and it was hard balancing everything at once, especially not having that support system next to me. I was in a new country, trying to make new friends, adjust to the new climate, and, on top of that, struggled to keep up with my academics.

I particularly struggled in PSYC100, as science has always been a difficult subject for me. I’ve always struggled with understanding the scientific vocabulary, as the words all look similar to me. Part of this does come from being dyslexic, as the visual recognition of words confuses me. Science is all about memorising, understanding and knowing how to connect all the parts and terminology together, which is an aspect I struggle with the most. I never understood how everything connects, and even using flashcards and diagrams didn’t help. PSYC100, being a full-year course, also didn’t help, as I found it extremely challenging to connect content from the first semester with the content in the second semester, unlike geography, where first semester content didn’t correlate with second semester content.

After reviewing my PSYC100 grade from the first semester, I wanted to prove to myself that I was able to bring my grade up. I didn’t want to give up without finishing the entire course. I carried the hope that by the second semester, I would find a study method best suited for me in time for my May finals. After receiving the academic probation email, I wasn’t aware that dropping the course was an option prior to speaking with an academic advisor recently. If I had known that option was applicable, I would have dropped the course earlier.

After receiving this warning, my future plan is to find support and reach out to academic advisors more often when in need of help. I will book appointments to work one on one with an SASS staff member and attend SASS events and workshops as needed and to assist with my major papers, assignments, and before midterms and final exams. In high school, it was easier for me to reach support as I was more familiar with the staff members and the environment. I now know not to leave anything to the last minute and that even though I don’t have my typical support by my side, Queen’s does offer a strong support system that I can and will take advantage of. Furthermore, I will continue to try different and useful study methods such as mind maps, colour coding, or audio notes that will really help me with the upcoming years; this will ensure issues like this won’t occur again and will help me maintain my grades.