Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dr. Johanne Bénard
Associate Dean (Admission & Recruitment) and Associate Dean (Studies)
99 University Avenue
26 September, 2017
Subject: APPEAL LETTER TO ADD STAT 351 (Fall, 2017) AND MATH 221 (Fall, 2017)
Dear, Dr. Bénard

I am David Biorac, a second year Arts and Science student who is majoring in statistics and hopefully a minor in economics later this year. I am appealing to add the courses MATH 221-001 (Fall, 2017) and STAT 351-001 (Fall, 2017) and the subsequent tutorial STAT 351-002 (Fall, 2017) past the deadline of September 22, 2017. If these courses are successfully added, I would like to drop CHEM 281-001 (Fall, 2017) and MUSC 171-001 (Fall, 2017) to make room for these courses. Finally, I would like to request, that if CHEM 281-001 (Fall, 2017) and MUSC 171-001 (Fall, 2017) are dropped and MATH 221-001 (Fall, 2017) and STAT 351-001 (Fall, 2017), along with STAT 351-002 (Fall, 2017) are added, that the two courses dropped are backdated to September 22, 2017 (the date to add/drop courses without financial penalty).

I decided to major in statistics this summer, a field that I feel I excel in and have a lot of interest in. Unfortunately, in first year I was planning on majoring in life sciences so I took all the pertinent science and math courses for this major. This has hindered my progress in my statistics major as I did not take MATH 110, a pre-requisite for most statistics courses. I am currently taking MATH 110 in second year and I thought beforehand that I would still be able to finish my major in 4 years. Unfortunately, after discussing my major with my academic advisor I learned that I was not taking essential courses in the fall term which were STAT 268 (Fall, 2017) and MATH 280 (Fall, 2017). I was unable to take these courses because I am currently taking MATH 110, a pre-requisite for MATH 280 (Fall, 2017), which is a co-requisite for STAT 268. After contacting the mathematics and statistics undergraduate chair, I got permission to replace STAT 268 with STAT 351 (which is currently open), she advised that I also take MATH 221 (which is currently open) which would replace MATH 280. I had found out about this past the deadline to add/drop courses. Taking these courses would catch me up on my major and have me on track to finish my major in 4 years. Furthermore, if my request is granted to take these two courses, I would like to drop CHEM 281-001 (Fall, 2017) and MUSC 171-001 (Fall, 2017) to make room for these courses. As MUSC 171 conflicts with STAT 351 and CHEM 281 is not pertinent for my major and I feel it would take away time I need to put into courses for my major. As for my final request which is that, if CHEM 281-001 (Fall, 2017) and MUSC 171-001 (Fall, 2017) are dropped and MATH 221-001 (Fall, 2017) and STAT 351-001 (Fall, 2017) are added, that the two courses dropped are backdated to September 22, 2017 (the date to add/drop courses without financial penalty). I ask for this only if my first two requests are granted as I would not have to suffer the financial penalty for dropping two courses and I would be fully refunded my tuition, to rid myself of financial stress.

I have devised an academic plan for success if my requests are granted. To start, for my major plan in second year I need 3 units in MATH 221 (Fall, 2017) and 3 units in MATH 281 (Winter, 2018). Also, I need 3 units in STAT 351 (Fall, 2017) and 3 units in STAT 269 (Winter, 2017). I will be enrolling in MATH 281 and STAT 269 in the winter term if my requests are granted. Furthermore, I have included screenshots of emails confirming permission from the STAT 351 professor and MATH 221 professor to enroll in their courses as they feel that I can catch up on the past two weeks of material. The MATH 221 professor has also agreed to drop the homework and quiz I missed in the past two weeks and the STAT 351 professor has informed me that I missed an assignment but it will not be counted towards my mark. Finally, I have planned on discussing the past two weeks of lectures with students currently taking the course and getting their notes. I have also planned on going to the math help to catch myself up on topics that I find trouble with. I will be spending numerous hours catching up on past work and doing all the assigned readings, as well as consistently going to the lectures. I am confident that I will be able to catch up. All in all, I am willing to use every resource at my disposal to catch up on the missed work, as I would rather be a couple weeks behind than staying an extra year. I do not want to create that financial and emotional stress for my family.