Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dear Dr. Johanne Bénard:

My name is Claudia Sydor, and I am a third year undergraduate student doing a major in Life Sciences and a minor in World Language Studies. I am appealing to receive a credit standing (CR) in the MICR 221 course that I took during the Winter 2016 semester.

During my second year of studies, particularly during the winter semester, I began to develop problems with anxiety and stress management, which escalated to a debilitating point such that I was unable to write four of my five winter semester exams. Following consultation with a counsellor at Student Wellness Services and after being given permission by my professors, I received four exam deferrals. I successfully wrote and passed three exams in July and August. However, the days leading up to -- and the day I attended -- the MICR 221 exam at the end of August, a reoccurring episode of anxiety severely affected my academic performance, and my ability to complete the exam was compromised.

Following the exam, I was contacted by the course coordinator of the MICR 221 class (Dr. Jarrell), and after discussing my situation, he modified the weight of the final exam in order for me to pass the course with a minimum grade (D-). However, Dr. Jarrell also informed me that I had the opportunity to appeal the grade and replace it with a credit standing (CR); due to my extenuating circumstances, both he and Dr. Carstens (the second professor who taught the course alongside Dr. Jarrell) would both support such an appeal. I have since spoken to a counsellor at Student Wellness Services (Laura McLachlan), who also supports this decision and will be sending a letter of documentation to support my appeal.

I am a student who has, up until this point, been doing very well in their undergraduate studies. My grades have been consistently high, and it frustrates me greatly that my academic performance during the winter semester was affected so strongly by these extenuating circumstances. Not only do I know that I am capable of doing much better in my studies, but I am also a student award recipient, and maintaining a high GPA is a requirement for me to keep my scholarship (without which I would likely not have been able to attend this university).

That being said, I am making great efforts to resolve this extenuating circumstance now, at the beginning of the school year, so that it will not affect my academic performance to the extent that it did last semester. I have built myself a positive support group with my family and friends and have scheduled my semester so that it is more balanced. I have also decided to maintain regular meetings with a counsellor at Student Wellness Services this semester so that I can work on strategies and ways to manage my anxiety, and I have received a referral from my doctor to see a psychologist in the case that, at any point, I feel that that might be necessary. I know that I can succeed here at Queen's, and my utmost priority is to ensure that I take the necessary steps to improve my mental health so that it becomes an asset, and not a detriment, to my academic performance and my everyday life from here on out.

Thank you for taking the time to read this letter, and I truly hope that you will take this appeal into consideration.

Sincerely,

Claudia Sydor