Manage Appeals
Petition Type: New
ID: 2774
Submitted: October 26, 2016 at 11:17:07 PM
First Name: Myrthe
Last Name: Glastra van Loon
Student Number: 20038052
Email: 16mgvl@queensu.ca
Degree Program: Bachelor of Arts
Plan: ARTSCI
Level of Study: 3
Petition Categories
Petition Categories: Add a course after the academic deadline
Appeal Category Detail: Change of course with retention of credit
Code: SOCY 122
Term: Fall
Year: 2016
Petition Category: Add a course after the academic deadline
Instructor's Name: Rob Beamish
Petition Letter
Petition Letter: To the Associate Dean (Studies)
I am hereby appealing for a course change from SOCY 122 to SOCY 300 for the current Fall term.
The circumstances that have urged me to write this appeal are the following. I am a student in my final year from University College Utrecht in the Netherlands, majoring in Psychology and Sociology. As I am in my final year I have already finished a large proportion of my required courses back at my home university, and so my exchange left some room for electives courses. However, in consultation with my tutor I was informed that it was highly advisable to take on an introduction level Sociology course while on exchange.
Although this might sound illogical considering I am an upper year student, fits my curriculum. When I took my first Sociology course I was initially allowed to skip the introductory level because of sufficient background knowledge. Over time I became very interested in the discipline and decided to take on the consecutive 300 level and make it a track. The graduation regulation requires all students to finish a track in the same department as their major, which in my case is a track in Sociology within the Social Sciences, and so I am required to take the 100 level in order to meet this graduation requirement.
As I am also required to take a 300 level Psychology course in my final semester in Utrecht, and this will overlap with the 100 Sociology course, my tutor strongly suggested to take the course while on exchange. When registering I was not aware of the labelling system for half-year and full-year courses, and so I was able to register myself through OnQ after dropping conflicting courses. The system never notified me that this course is a full year course, I am assuming because it is made up of two separate modules.
As I was not aware of the duration of the course, I sent in my Learning Agreement to my home university, which in turn approved of my courses and stated to give full credits for all four of my courses, including SOCY 122.
Immediately after I was notified of the full-year nature of the course, I spoke to Professor Beamish, with whom I agreed on an arrangement where he would supply a letter to my home university stating that I had completed the first half of the course. However, I was then informed by Janice Tough that not taking the second half of the course would irreversibly lead to an F on my transcript. She suggested that I drop SOCY 122 through OnQ and in correspondence with Professor Beamish we found a solution where I could change to SOCY 301. This course would include all the material I have completed in SOCY 122 so far, and the material that is yet to be completed. Professor Beamish kindly offered to write a letter to my home university stating that SOCY 300 should translate back as the equivalent to the introduction (100) level Sociology course. This way I would still be eligible to receive the credits for the course, and more importantly, I would not run the risk of not being able to take both my required Psychology course and Sociology course in my final semester as they conflict in terms of time slots. This final scenario is very undesirable as it would hinder my graduation.
Should this appeal be granted, I will be able to take my required courses when going back to Utrecht, and successfully finish my requirements for graduating by completing the Introduction level Sociology course here at Queen¿¿s.
In anticipation of your response.
Kind regards,
Myrthe Glastra van Loon
I am hereby appealing for a course change from SOCY 122 to SOCY 300 for the current Fall term.
The circumstances that have urged me to write this appeal are the following. I am a student in my final year from University College Utrecht in the Netherlands, majoring in Psychology and Sociology. As I am in my final year I have already finished a large proportion of my required courses back at my home university, and so my exchange left some room for electives courses. However, in consultation with my tutor I was informed that it was highly advisable to take on an introduction level Sociology course while on exchange.
Although this might sound illogical considering I am an upper year student, fits my curriculum. When I took my first Sociology course I was initially allowed to skip the introductory level because of sufficient background knowledge. Over time I became very interested in the discipline and decided to take on the consecutive 300 level and make it a track. The graduation regulation requires all students to finish a track in the same department as their major, which in my case is a track in Sociology within the Social Sciences, and so I am required to take the 100 level in order to meet this graduation requirement.
As I am also required to take a 300 level Psychology course in my final semester in Utrecht, and this will overlap with the 100 Sociology course, my tutor strongly suggested to take the course while on exchange. When registering I was not aware of the labelling system for half-year and full-year courses, and so I was able to register myself through OnQ after dropping conflicting courses. The system never notified me that this course is a full year course, I am assuming because it is made up of two separate modules.
As I was not aware of the duration of the course, I sent in my Learning Agreement to my home university, which in turn approved of my courses and stated to give full credits for all four of my courses, including SOCY 122.
Immediately after I was notified of the full-year nature of the course, I spoke to Professor Beamish, with whom I agreed on an arrangement where he would supply a letter to my home university stating that I had completed the first half of the course. However, I was then informed by Janice Tough that not taking the second half of the course would irreversibly lead to an F on my transcript. She suggested that I drop SOCY 122 through OnQ and in correspondence with Professor Beamish we found a solution where I could change to SOCY 301. This course would include all the material I have completed in SOCY 122 so far, and the material that is yet to be completed. Professor Beamish kindly offered to write a letter to my home university stating that SOCY 300 should translate back as the equivalent to the introduction (100) level Sociology course. This way I would still be eligible to receive the credits for the course, and more importantly, I would not run the risk of not being able to take both my required Psychology course and Sociology course in my final semester as they conflict in terms of time slots. This final scenario is very undesirable as it would hinder my graduation.
Should this appeal be granted, I will be able to take my required courses when going back to Utrecht, and successfully finish my requirements for graduating by completing the Introduction level Sociology course here at Queen¿¿s.
In anticipation of your response.
Kind regards,
Myrthe Glastra van Loon
Academic Plan
Academic Plan: I am currently in my final year of my studies, which revolve around a major in Psychology, and tracks in Sociology and Neuroscience.
This semester I am spending at Queen's on exchange, and in correspondence with my home university we agreed I have to complete 4 courses here for credit, of which one would have to be an introduction level Sociology course because it is required for my graduation, and clashes with another required course I have to take when I go back home.
The four courses I am now taking are:
- SOCY 122 - the subject of my appeal
- DRAM 204
- MUSC 104
- PSYC 335
So my plan is as follows:
If I can complete my 4 courses here at Queen's, including an introduction to Sociology course, I will be able to transfer those credits to my home university and be on schedule when I come back for the second term. In my second, and final, term I will then take the other required course (a Psychology course) alongside my mandatory thesis courses which I will be taking on. This way I can graduate on time without having to extend my stay at my university in order to complete my requirements, which would be a very costly and undesirable situation.
This semester I am spending at Queen's on exchange, and in correspondence with my home university we agreed I have to complete 4 courses here for credit, of which one would have to be an introduction level Sociology course because it is required for my graduation, and clashes with another required course I have to take when I go back home.
The four courses I am now taking are:
- SOCY 122 - the subject of my appeal
- DRAM 204
- MUSC 104
- PSYC 335
So my plan is as follows:
If I can complete my 4 courses here at Queen's, including an introduction to Sociology course, I will be able to transfer those credits to my home university and be on schedule when I come back for the second term. In my second, and final, term I will then take the other required course (a Psychology course) alongside my mandatory thesis courses which I will be taking on. This way I can graduate on time without having to extend my stay at my university in order to complete my requirements, which would be a very costly and undesirable situation.
Documentation
Professional Letter Detail: Supporting note from Professor Rob Beamish