Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dear Associate Dean (Academic),

I am writing to respectfully petition for academic consideration regarding my first-year academic record. Specifically, I am requesting permission to withdraw from SOCY100 and GNDS120 after the academic deadline, removing the resulting failing grades from my transcript. I am also requesting Credit Standing for MUSC104, which I completed twice during my first year but was unable to successfully complete due to significant extenuating circumstances affecting my mental health and academic functioning.

Throughout my first year at Queen’s University, I experienced significant psychological challenges that substantially affected my ability to attend classes, complete coursework, manage deadlines, and demonstrate my academic abilities. These circumstances were beyond my control and directly contributed to my academic performance in these courses.

Prior to beginning university, I experienced a prolonged period of significant personal hardship that affected my mental health. During the year before entering Queen’s, I experienced severe depressive symptoms, isolation, and difficulty maintaining academic responsibilities. Although I was excited to begin university and saw Queen’s as an opportunity for a fresh start, I entered my first year without having received consistent mental health support or developing the coping strategies necessary to manage the impact of my past experiences.

Throughout the Fall 2025 semester, my mental health declined significantly. As the semester progressed, I experienced symptoms consistent with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), which was later informally identified through assessment with a Nurse Practitioner at Queen’s Student Wellness Services. These symptoms included difficulty concentrating, emotional distress, low motivation, impaired executive functioning, and difficulty maintaining daily routines. As a result, tasks that are normally manageable for students, such as attending lectures, completing readings, responding to emails, and submitting assignments, became increasingly difficult.

These challenges directly affected my performance in SOCY100and GNDS120. Both courses required consistent engagement with readings, lectures, written assignments, and critical analysis. As my symptoms worsened, I began missing lectures and falling behind on course material. Each missed class created additional academic pressure, and the accumulated workload became increasingly difficult to recover from.

I want to emphasize that I continued making attempts to complete my coursework. I created schedules, organized my notes, and repeatedly tried to catch up on missed readings and assignments. However, because I had fallen behind over several weeks, the amount of work required to recover became overwhelming. I often found myself unable to begin tasks despite genuinely wanting to complete them. The combination of academic backlog, worsening mental health symptoms, and feelings of shame created a cycle where each attempt to recover became more difficult.

I also reached out to my professors and teaching assistants during this period. They were understanding and offered support, including guidance and flexibility where possible. I appreciated these opportunities and intended to follow through; however, my mental health challenges affected my ability to consistently attend meetings, complete the required work, and make effective use of the support provided.

I recognize that I could have withdrawn from SOCY100 and GNDS120 before the academic deadline. However, at the time, I genuinely believed that I would be able to recover the missed work and successfully complete the courses. I continued telling myself that with additional effort and time, I could regain the progress I had lost. By the time I recognized that I was unable to realistically catch up, the deadline had passed. Looking back, I understand that my impaired concentration, executive functioning difficulties, and inability to accurately assess my academic capacity were connected to the mental health challenges I was experiencing.

My circumstances also affected MUSC104. I initially completed the course during the Fall semester but was unsuccessful. Rather than withdrawing from my academic goals, I chose to retake MUSC104 during the Winter semester because I believed I could succeed with another opportunity. However, my mental health challenges continued into the Winter semester. Because Music Theory is cumulative, falling behind early created additional barriers as each new concept depended on previous material. Although I continued attempting to catch up, the accumulated coursework became difficult to overcome within the remaining time available.

In February 2026, I began actively seeking support. I connected with Queen’s Student Accessibility Services (QSAS), where I underwent an assessment related to ADHD and was referred to Queen’s Student Wellness Services for additional support. Through this process, I connected with an academic strategist and Neurodivergence Specialist through Student Academic Success Services, who helped me identify academic barriers and develop strategies to better manage my workload.

I received temporary academic accommodations, including access to lecture notes before class, approval to use a lecture recording application, and flexibility regarding deadlines and due dates where appropriate. These supports helped identify that my academic struggles were not due to a lack of commitment, but rather barriers affecting my ability to engage consistently with my coursework.

Following my assessment, I began working with Nadia Sawaya Fehr, an in-residence therapist through Queen’s Student Wellness Services, and was assessed by a Nurse Practitioner, who provided an informal PTSD diagnosis based on my history and symptoms. I am also currently working with an Occupational Therapist to develop practical and sustainable strategies that I can apply to both my academic and professional life.

Seeking support has allowed me to better understand the factors that affected my first year and begin developing the tools necessary for future success. I now have access to a support system and accommodations that I did not have during the period when my academic performance was impacted.

I respectfully ask the Committee to consider the exceptional circumstances that affected my ability to meet academic expectations during my first year. I am not asking for my academic record to be overlooked, but rather for my performance to be considered within the context of documented circumstances that significantly impaired my ability to demonstrate my academic abilities at that time.

Thank you for your time and consideration of my petition.

Respectfully,

Camille Majewska