Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Subject: Request to Waive 21- Day Appeal Deadline

Dear Dr. Johanne Bénard,

I am writing to request to waive the 21-day appeal deadline so I may appeal to have a course removed from my transcript. The course I would like to appeal was completed in 2012. I understand that I am well past the deadline, however, I did not learn about the appeal process until recently speaking with an academic advisor. I hope that you will consider my appeal to extend the deadline, as I believe that there were several factors that contributed to my having not completed the course, which resulted in a grade of 0.

While attending Queen's University I struggled with depression and anxiety resulting in isolation, poor motivation and focus. I stopped attending courses that I perceived as difficult and sometimes, I did not attend school at all. These issues came to a head when I was working on GEOL543, Research and Thesis. Due to these issues, I neglected to do the coursework and not only failed to submit a thesis but stopped communicating with my advisor altogether. In the end, due to my struggles with mental health, I left Queen's 12 credits shy of graduation.

In the past year, I have been working with a therapist to deal with my issues with mental health. While in therapy, I have come to better understand these issues and have now become able to complete assignments and attend school. Thanks to the work I have done with my therapist I have completed the 12 credits required to graduate and held down a full-time job. I am now looking at graduate studies and working toward a future career in the field of geology. My main cause for the appeal is that I believe that this course is limiting my future educational/professional growth as it has a significantly negative impact on my GPA.

Thank you for taking the time to consider my request. Please contact me by e-mail or by phone if you have any questions.

Sincerely,

Jamie Sapera
ID 05692017