Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Student 10061146
12st3@queensu.ca
December 15, 2015



Appealing to drop CISC 432 and CISC 457 (Fall 2015)
Dear Assistant Dean.

I am writing this letter to ask for appealing to drop CISC 457(Image Processing) and CISC 432,(Database Management System) held within the fall semester of the 2015 academic year.

Due to mental conditional and family conditional, I failed these two courses and wish to drop them.

I have a serious mental health condition that has required prescription medications and therapies and I had a relapse in the middle of this fall term. I only have one mandatory course this term but I registered in six courses initially because I hoped to raise my GPA. I found that I could not manage the huge workload, so I dropped one course in October, I was very confident that I will do well in the remaining five at that time.The grade of the first midterm and first assignment of CISC 432 did not come out before the drop deadline, so I was not able to access my position in this course by that time. I did well on my CISC 457 assignment, although I did not do well on the first two tests, I aced the third one. Since the lowest mark will be dropped, I thought if I do well on the remaining one test and two assignments I will get a decent grade in this course, Professor Stewart said that he think I was able to get a C+ or B- ,but later I had a relapse of depression in late October. I was very anxious and could not function academically. I spent a lot of time on my third CISC 457 assignment but failed to complete it. In November, my mother was hit by a motorcycle driving on the wrong side of the road while she was biking which caused her eye socket fractured. Although she had a surgery in the following week but her visual acuity is markedly reduced and will have double vision for the next few years. I was very worried and devastated that I could not prepare for the last midterm of CISC 457 and CISC 432 or do the last assignment of CISC 457 and CISC 432, which are all scheduled in the last week of class.
Doctor Amin diagnosed that I had developed anxiety due to the tough situation recently. I also had a lower abdominal pain and hematuria for the last two months, I am still not diagnosed because Doctor Arminta Rahmani at Kingston general hospital said that she will have Queen¿¿s Health Services to contact me for an ultrasound but I have not heard from them yet. I feel hard to focus because of both mental and physical illness.
I think dropping these two courses could help me better preparing the other three courses ,which I have decent grades so far. Since these courses are my electives, I will not retake them. I will arrange weekly or monthly appointments with Queen¿¿s mental health, since I have a heavy workload and undergraduate thesis next term. I am considering taking an extra year to make my workload lighter.

Sincerely,
Student 10061146 (12st3)