Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Tuesday April 18th, 2017.

Dear Associate Dean(s) of Studies,

I write you this letter to request a past-deadline drop in the courses MUSC 102, and MUSC 160.


As a first year student I found this year to be an extreme adjustment, however overall a learning experience. Some aspects of it I excelled in, and others led me to fall behind. I missed class in first term due to general cold and flu sickness, and assumed it would be manageable in the long run. In general my immune system never fully recovered, and that led me to have an ongoing kidney infection for the entirety of February through to the first week of March. A doctor's note is attached framing a large portion of the timeline of my sickness, however for quite some time thereafter I spent sick and unable to go to class. I also decided to make a change in first semester to eventually switch out of the music specialization program, and into general arts. This required that to get ahead in the switch, I would drop some music courses and start new half-year arts courses in the winter. Unfortunately, this became an issue when mixed with my health problems and I fell behind in my new classes.
Regarding the courses I feel are necessary to drop past the drop date, they are the result of an unfortunately formatted course for my particular situation. Being a voice major, I was unable to make up certain assessments in comparison to my non-music classes which were structured in such a way that I could catch up and get extensions. I fell ill during concerts that I could not make up, and the constant issue of my vocal health being low beyond what was expected led to worse marks than hoped for. In MUSC 160 I unfortunately missed an examination and multiple rehearsals due to illness, leading to an inevitable fail. In MUSC 102, the tests were all online so I was not able to negotiate alternate dates with my professor when I felt ill, however because I missed so much lecture time my marks fell drastically regardless.
Overall throughout the year I have struggled with my mental health and being far away from my usual support system. My anxiety had gotten worse to the point that I did not know how to deal with my academic issues on my own, however I was not aware of how to get help. In regards to the drop deadline being missed, I unfortunately became busy trying to catch up that I hadn't recognized it necessary to fully drop the courses until it had passed. Speaking with the professors of the two courses I wish to drop, they both recommended it would be best for me to appeal. Being in first year I was also unaware of the deadline, and hadn't understood that there in fact was one. I would like to be given the chance to start over and restart my first year at Queens smoothly now that I have fully adjusted and am in good health. My first year marks do not reflect who I am as an academic, and instead reflect one who had issues adjusting to such a challenging environment. I know my GPA right now is not a reflection of what I am capable of, and instead a reflection of my struggles this past year.

I know I will need to take a fifth year as a result of restarting my first year, and will be actively taking a lighter and more cautious workload. While speaking to an Academic Advisor, I was given the information for peer mentors. I would like to organize for a peer mentor to help keep me on track and act as a resource for me to reach out to if I feel I need help with academics. I will also be more mindful of the drop dates in future in addition to being more on top of a personal schedule. I met with a counsellor within the faculty of education towards the end of the year, and am planning on continuing using that resource as a regular source of help to manage my anxiety. A letter from the Counsellor will soon follow. I have become more aware of who and what my support system is, and I do believe I can have a successful 2017-2018 year if granted these late drops.

Warm regards,
Amanda Grace Rankin