Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: I am appealing to drop the following courses: PHYS 117, BIOL 102 and MATH 121.

I have been diagnosed with depression and anxiety disorder. However, my illness began to affect me in the month of October 2018. I began missing lectures, labs, tutorials and eventually could not complete my readings and submissions. I gradually began having concentration issues, which prevented me from being able to perform academically. My attendance began to falter due to my inability to get out of bed and my scores began to drop.

My absences led me to submit multiple Self-Declaration of Absence forms. I reached out to Student Wellness Services and Queen¿¿s Student Accessibility Services (QSAS) for academic accommodation. I registered with QSAS in the month of November 2018.

My condition got worse over time, leading to multiple exam deferrals and missing tutorials and labs in the months of November and December 2018.
I got in touch with an academic advisor with the help of QSAS and was provided with Letter of Accommodations for my instructors. My instructors and advisors did the best to help my situation, but I was still unable to perform from my end.

I even made regular appointments with a physician on campus, who provided me with a referral to a psychiatrist for the 14th of March. Unfortunately, I had to wait 3 months for said appointment, which did very little to help my condition. Certain events in my personal life such as family emergencies took a toll on my mental health and my condition worsened.

I decided to drop three out of five of my courses for the Winter term in hopes of being able to focus on my health. I decided to reduce my course load to give myself a chance at balancing health and academics.
However, due to limited resources and worsening circumstances, I was unable to complete those courses.
I gravely underestimated the severity of my illness. For months I was unable to focus on my coursework, attend lectures, tutorials and labs, and do my readings.

After trying to reduce my course load and still being unable to perform my best. I returned to my family who has always been by my side and provided me with the care and resources I need. I have been in touch with mental health specialists regularly who have helped me set idealistic goals and taught me how to understand myself and my diagnosis better. I have understood that in order to perform my best academically, I have to be healthy mentally. I have even started a new medication and feel that even though it is a long way, I am on the right path.

While my treatment will take time, I am in a better place than I was a few months back. I am incredibly grateful for the help I received from Student Wellness Services and QSAS and will continue to use their services for a smooth transition back to my life at Queen¿¿s. Keeping my academic advisors¿¿ advice in mind, I plan on receiving all the help I can from Student Academic Success Services (SASS) and keeping up with my therapy appointments regularly.

I reassessed my current academic choices and the degree plan and have concluded that my current courses are the ones I genuinely enjoy and see myself pursuing in the future. I have decided to retake said courses but with a reduced course load, so I do not have to compromise my mental health.



I am in touch with a counselor who has helped me set realistic goals for myself and to strive to achieve the best of my capacity. As mentioned above, I will be taking a reduced course load. In addition to that, I plan on being regular for my therapy appointments and have been in touch with professionals in and outside my university to have constant support. I plan on taking full advantage of the learning resources at Queen¿¿s and to not be afraid to ask for help. I will continue to be in touch with Student Wellness Services at Queen¿¿s and my academic advisors. I have learned a lot about my shortcomings over the past few months and will use this knowledge to better myself and perform my best the following academic year of 2019-2020.

Sincerely,
Abha Shah.