Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Lynn Nguyen
200 Ontario Street, Apartment 4
Kingston, ON
K7L 2Y9

Associate Dean (Studies)
Student Services, F200 Mackintosh-Corry Hall


July 25, 2014


To whomever this may concern:

My name is Lynn Nguyen. I am currently a fourth-year student enrolled in Economics and Life Sciences at Queen's University. I am appealing to drop the Organic Chemistry I (CHEM 281-700) course taught by Dr. John Carran in Summer 2014. I do not believe that my grade in the course reflected my abilities to perform in school and complete the course. I have progressively earned higher grades and improved my GPA substantially since my first year of university, and I am continuing to work on my health issues in order to perform better in academics. I took CHEM 281-700 in order to fulfill the Life Sciences requirement of my degree since it is the only remaining required course left that I need to take in order to receive a general BSc degree in Life Sciences.

In spite of these circumstances, I have been challenged by unexpected hardships outside of school that have severely interfered with my schoolwork in the summertime. I am struggling financially to pay for school, which is why I continued to work during the summer as I had limited funding options, in particular, lack of enough student aid to cover my education expenses. In mid-July 2014 (please refer to attached supporting documentation), I had unexpectedly found out that my roommate was going to move out as well, which placed a heavy financial burden on me in addition to tuition, as I have not yet found a replacement roommate. The reasons for my roommate moving out were beyond my control. In addition, I have struggled with taking care of and counselling my family, as my brother, who has autism, is having a hard time finding a job without a high school diploma. These issues affect my life as I am the only person in my family to understand the process of applying for post-secondary education and the struggles my brother faces in applying for further education. I am the first in my family to attend university. The personal direct hardships I currently face outside of school have heavily affected my otherwise excellent academic standing during my third year of studies at Queen's.

I have tried to retake CHEM 281 in the summer with fewer courses and commitments in order to perform better, and have failed, in spite of my hard work during the year. I have also continued weekly consultation and counselling with a health-care professional during the school year and present to this day, in order to help alleviate the stresses associated with my health issues. After speaking with an academic advisor to ensure my plans are on the right track, I realize that I still require CHEM 281 in order to fulfil my degree requirements. In my third attempt of taking this course in Fall 2014, I will be in a better financial standing with access to further loan assistance in order to afford a part-time tutor for CHEM 281, or I will consider taking a transferable equivalent course at another university on a letter of permission in order to complete my degree requirements. I am gradually recovering from my health conditions with continual therapy and counselling. I will continue to work hard, apply for further funding through grants and/or bursaries to assist with finances and continue my Work-Study entitlement in the pursuit of continuing my academic success at Queen's. Special accommodation forms will be sent to the Faculty of Arts and Science on my behalf by my psychiatrist, Dr. William Kenny, at the Lasalle building, early next week. If you have any further questions, please feel free to reach me via e-mail at lynn.nguyen@queensu.ca. Thank you for your time and consideration.


Sincerely,


Lynn Nguyen
Student ID: 10000286