Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: To the Associate Dean and whom it may concern,

I am writing this appeal letter because I have been dealing with an illness that put a huge toll on my academic career over the course of several years. I have been struggling with mental health issues for several years now. I did see several counsellors on campus but did not consistently get help until it was too late and needed serious care. There were extenuating circumstances as well within my family that have been ongoing for years that added to my struggles. My health issues made it very difficult for me to attend my classes, and there were many days where I did not leave my room aside from making the occasional show of pretending I was okay ¿¿ but of course, the impression I made on my professors was that I simply did not care to attend classes or do my assignments. I wish I could have changed this. I have already had my failed courses from 2013 ¿¿ 2014 dropped in a first appeal I have recently sent. Had I been in the proper state of mind last year after my classes had ended, I would have requested that my classes been dropped during that time period.

I visited counsellors several times at Queen's, but did not see anyone consistently or get help before it was too late for my academics. I visited a counsellor at Queen's toward the end of 2013, but my problems escalated and I had to be hospitalized in Kingston General Hospital for several weeks a few days after reading week ended, and then hospitalized again in Toronto at North York General Hospital for a month and a half at the beginning of April until the middle of May. I was not hospitalized aside from this most recent time so I am sending this doctor's note from my recent stay at North York General Hospital, which refers to a condition I did not seek help for in the past and will continue to deal with in the future. I do not have a doctor's note prior to this one because I was largely avoidant of doctors and help, just as I had been in appropriately dealing with my courses at the right time.

I am hoping that the 21 day regulation can be waived so that I may submit an appeal to have the following courses dropped from my transcript:
W 2012: (ENGL 200 History of English Literature) and F/W 2012/2013 (ENGL 271; DRAM 300; ENGL 200; IDIS 210)

If I could get the regulation waived I would greatly appreciate it so that I could send another appeal to drop these courses. I am planning on going on Academic Hiatus and taking a year off to heal and get myself back on my feet. Having these courses removed from my transcript would boost my GPA so that I could be accepted at another school in my home city. I am no longer able to study in Kingston as I am receiving help here and it will be ongoing. I truly regret not having been able to take advantage of the great classes that I had been registered in, and if I could do it all over again I would have gotten help a few years ago and taken advantage of the great academics Queen's has to offer. Please consider this appeal.

Thank you,


Samantha Zurin