Manage Appeals
Petition Type: New
ID: 9264
Submitted: June 10, 2022 at 9:08:45 AM
First Name: Akriti
Last Name: Shrivastava
Student Number: 20130144
Email: 18as62@queensu.ca
Degree Program: BSC
Plan: MATH-G
Level of Study: 4
Petition Categories
Petition Categories: Drop a course after the academic deadline, Waive the requirement to withdraw for one year
Code: BCHM 218
Term: Winter
Year: 2022
Petition Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline
Code: BIOL 343
Term: Fall
Year: 2021
Petition Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline
Code: CHEM 281
Term: Fall
Year: 2021
Petition Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline
Petition Letter
Petition Letter: Respected Sirs,
My name is Akriti Shrivastava, student number 20130144, and I am writing to request to waive the requirement for me to withdraw for one year and request a late drop for my courses. I am experiencing extenuating circumstances that impact my academic performance and ability to excel at Queens. Below, I have provided an approximate timeline for these events to understand their impact on me and my education. I have also described my plan to better my situation.
My struggle began in the winter 2019 semester; I struggled with severe confidence issues; at the time, I attributed this to weight gain and loss of body confidence. My solution was to work with a trainer at a gym that summer, and I came back to the fall 2019 semester with what I thought was better health. Once back, however, this quickly changed. I struggled with poor eating and exercise habits again, frequently lacked energy, and would tire from climbing one flight of stairs. I began to isolate myself, struggled with extreme paranoia, and had severe insomnia, where I often would find myself going to bed once my housemates were up. I lacked energy, focus and drive, so I began to neglect my coursework and would scramble to work in bouts of anxiety. Even when I knew the content, the combination of sleep deprivation and low self-confidence had me second guess myself frequently.
I struggled to manage even two courses during this time, which further impacted my self-esteem. I battled serious intrusive thoughts and wanted to drop out of university. I felt lost and was so stressed and confused that I started losing hair as a physical response. A concerned friend brought me to student wellness and the academic guidance office, where a professional finally diagnosed me with Anaemia and Major Depressive Disorder.
I was prescribed medication to help stabilise my mood and given iron to help with the anaemia. I also began seeing an Occupational therapist, who helped structure my routine and worked with an academic advisor, who advised me to reduce my course load and shadow a plan. I retook some classes to help boost my GPA but struggled with them again.
That year, due to the pandemic, I had to return to my home country and was isolated from my support resources and unable to refill my prescription, which caused my depression to relapse.
I have since been working very hard to already meet my academic plan, and have increased my therapy sessions as well as met with academic advisors. This is further explained below.
My name is Akriti Shrivastava, student number 20130144, and I am writing to request to waive the requirement for me to withdraw for one year and request a late drop for my courses. I am experiencing extenuating circumstances that impact my academic performance and ability to excel at Queens. Below, I have provided an approximate timeline for these events to understand their impact on me and my education. I have also described my plan to better my situation.
My struggle began in the winter 2019 semester; I struggled with severe confidence issues; at the time, I attributed this to weight gain and loss of body confidence. My solution was to work with a trainer at a gym that summer, and I came back to the fall 2019 semester with what I thought was better health. Once back, however, this quickly changed. I struggled with poor eating and exercise habits again, frequently lacked energy, and would tire from climbing one flight of stairs. I began to isolate myself, struggled with extreme paranoia, and had severe insomnia, where I often would find myself going to bed once my housemates were up. I lacked energy, focus and drive, so I began to neglect my coursework and would scramble to work in bouts of anxiety. Even when I knew the content, the combination of sleep deprivation and low self-confidence had me second guess myself frequently.
I struggled to manage even two courses during this time, which further impacted my self-esteem. I battled serious intrusive thoughts and wanted to drop out of university. I felt lost and was so stressed and confused that I started losing hair as a physical response. A concerned friend brought me to student wellness and the academic guidance office, where a professional finally diagnosed me with Anaemia and Major Depressive Disorder.
I was prescribed medication to help stabilise my mood and given iron to help with the anaemia. I also began seeing an Occupational therapist, who helped structure my routine and worked with an academic advisor, who advised me to reduce my course load and shadow a plan. I retook some classes to help boost my GPA but struggled with them again.
That year, due to the pandemic, I had to return to my home country and was isolated from my support resources and unable to refill my prescription, which caused my depression to relapse.
I have since been working very hard to already meet my academic plan, and have increased my therapy sessions as well as met with academic advisors. This is further explained below.
Academic Plan
Academic Plan: When I finally got help again, I began therapy and took steps to late drop some of my courses to boost my GPA. I spoke with my professors and asked for accommodations when I struggled with assignments, and I have been learning to recognise sooner when I feel less like myself. My current therapist has helped me realise that my self-worth is not tied to my successes and failures in life and has given me tools like breathing exercises and anxiety soothing techniques that help me adjust my mental state. I am also taking medication to manage my insomnia and help stabilise my condition.
I am working on finding a new OT to help me adjust my study patterns; I have built a schedule with planned workout times and attend Zumba classes weekly. I have also made a solid diet plan with my mother's help and am consistent with these plans. I realise that healing from mental illness is not instantaneous, so if my appeal is granted, I've decided to take courses online for at least one semester, with the intention of staying home till I am more capable of living alone again. This way, I have a support system (my parents and extended family, therapists, and other doctors) that will help me through high stress and anxiety, allowing me to focus more on my education.
As it stands, I am shadowing a BA in psychology and plan on taking a reduced course load. This would allow me to reach greater credit within three or four semesters. I also plan to take courses freely available online this summer to inform my understanding of the course content I will study later, making me better prepped to learn later in the school year. In my opinion, this will help me control my anxieties and anxious behaviour and staying home will allow me to continue developing a more positive thought process.
Although I am still not at the level I would like to be at, I feel I have made improvements in the past semester, and I hope to continue this trend upwards.
I am working on finding a new OT to help me adjust my study patterns; I have built a schedule with planned workout times and attend Zumba classes weekly. I have also made a solid diet plan with my mother's help and am consistent with these plans. I realise that healing from mental illness is not instantaneous, so if my appeal is granted, I've decided to take courses online for at least one semester, with the intention of staying home till I am more capable of living alone again. This way, I have a support system (my parents and extended family, therapists, and other doctors) that will help me through high stress and anxiety, allowing me to focus more on my education.
As it stands, I am shadowing a BA in psychology and plan on taking a reduced course load. This would allow me to reach greater credit within three or four semesters. I also plan to take courses freely available online this summer to inform my understanding of the course content I will study later, making me better prepped to learn later in the school year. In my opinion, this will help me control my anxieties and anxious behaviour and staying home will allow me to continue developing a more positive thought process.
Although I am still not at the level I would like to be at, I feel I have made improvements in the past semester, and I hope to continue this trend upwards.
Documentation
Professional Letter: PDF-1.pdf
Document: 20130144AS.pdf
Decision Letters
Level 1 Status
Status: DeniedLevel 2
Appeal Type: Level 2
ID: 83
Submitted: July 20, 2022 at 4:41:46 AM
Relevant Petition: 9264
Decision(s) Being Appealed: Waive the requirement to withdraw for one year
Appeal Letter
Appeal Letter: Dear Board of Studies,
My name is Akriti Shrivastava, student number 20130144, and I am appealing the Associate Dean's decision to deny my appeal to waive the Requirement to Withdraw for one year.
The decision indicated that the appeal did not demonstrate to me that your extenuating circumstances are being managed in a way that would allow you to be successful in future classes. I believe that I am managing my extenuating circumstances better than before, and would like to present more details in that regard.
I have enrolled in a wellness programme that takes care of all aspects of my health- physical and mental, and have been prescribed medication and supplements that help me regulate my hormonal state, and help me manage my anxiety. As part of the programme, I am also doing yoga, which employs meditation and deep breathing techniques to calm the mind, improve concentration and reduce the mood shifts that come with mental illness. I feel more energised, and calm and am more able to focus and work for longer periods, something I struggled with previously. I am also sleeping better, and am now able to sleep through the night and wake up to maintain a schedule. This has allowed me greater control in my life and has helped me organise my time, something I have struggled with in the past, exacerbated by poor mental health.
Additionally, by switching from Bsc Biology to shadowing Bsc psychology, I am also taking courses that interest me more, and that I am more capable of doing. I have already been taking courses online using sites like Coursera to keep my mind primed for the courses I will take, and have created a plan that involves me taking a reduced course load of about three courses a semester for three or four semesters to go towards completing my degree. I have made the necessary calculations on the number of credits, have a concrete semester-wise plan and have spoken with an academic advisor about this plan, and I believe I can graduate with a higher GPA in this manner. I am going to be taking these courses online using the ASO so that I can stay at home and in an environment with greater support for me. Being at home gives me a safety net, and reduces stress and anxiety caused to me by paranoia and isolation.
Furthermore, the decision also stated that The integrity of Arts and Science transcripts, in general, would be greatly diminished if the Faculty were to effect changes to students records without clear and compelling documentation indicating that the student's performance was significantly compromised by circumstances beyond his or her control. When I was first diagnosed, it was with only Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), it was on a mild to moderate level. However, subsequent testing (from May and June 2022)and diagnosis have allowed learning that it was a severe level of MDD as well as previously undiagnosed anxiety. By recognising and managing my anxiety, I am now better able to function and can anticipate reactions or avoidance behaviours that stem from my anxiety. I have spent a lot of time working on myself, and this work is and will likely always be constant, but I finally feel sure enough that I am capable of handling the degree workload.
Battling mental illness is never an easy journey, and I recognise the value of the Dean's decision in taking a year off to re-strategise, but I truly feel ready and capable of continuing my education at Queen's. Taking a year off now would delay my graduation by a year and be disadvantageous to me and my status as an international student.
My name is Akriti Shrivastava, student number 20130144, and I am appealing the Associate Dean's decision to deny my appeal to waive the Requirement to Withdraw for one year.
The decision indicated that the appeal did not demonstrate to me that your extenuating circumstances are being managed in a way that would allow you to be successful in future classes. I believe that I am managing my extenuating circumstances better than before, and would like to present more details in that regard.
I have enrolled in a wellness programme that takes care of all aspects of my health- physical and mental, and have been prescribed medication and supplements that help me regulate my hormonal state, and help me manage my anxiety. As part of the programme, I am also doing yoga, which employs meditation and deep breathing techniques to calm the mind, improve concentration and reduce the mood shifts that come with mental illness. I feel more energised, and calm and am more able to focus and work for longer periods, something I struggled with previously. I am also sleeping better, and am now able to sleep through the night and wake up to maintain a schedule. This has allowed me greater control in my life and has helped me organise my time, something I have struggled with in the past, exacerbated by poor mental health.
Additionally, by switching from Bsc Biology to shadowing Bsc psychology, I am also taking courses that interest me more, and that I am more capable of doing. I have already been taking courses online using sites like Coursera to keep my mind primed for the courses I will take, and have created a plan that involves me taking a reduced course load of about three courses a semester for three or four semesters to go towards completing my degree. I have made the necessary calculations on the number of credits, have a concrete semester-wise plan and have spoken with an academic advisor about this plan, and I believe I can graduate with a higher GPA in this manner. I am going to be taking these courses online using the ASO so that I can stay at home and in an environment with greater support for me. Being at home gives me a safety net, and reduces stress and anxiety caused to me by paranoia and isolation.
Furthermore, the decision also stated that The integrity of Arts and Science transcripts, in general, would be greatly diminished if the Faculty were to effect changes to students records without clear and compelling documentation indicating that the student's performance was significantly compromised by circumstances beyond his or her control. When I was first diagnosed, it was with only Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), it was on a mild to moderate level. However, subsequent testing (from May and June 2022)and diagnosis have allowed learning that it was a severe level of MDD as well as previously undiagnosed anxiety. By recognising and managing my anxiety, I am now better able to function and can anticipate reactions or avoidance behaviours that stem from my anxiety. I have spent a lot of time working on myself, and this work is and will likely always be constant, but I finally feel sure enough that I am capable of handling the degree workload.
Battling mental illness is never an easy journey, and I recognise the value of the Dean's decision in taking a year off to re-strategise, but I truly feel ready and capable of continuing my education at Queen's. Taking a year off now would delay my graduation by a year and be disadvantageous to me and my status as an international student.
Documentation
Document: course plan.pdf
Decision Letters
History
Originally submitted June 10, 2022 at 9:08:45 AM.
| Field | Reference | Old Value | New Value | Note | User | Date/Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| status | N/A | Received | Incomplete | Kerri Andrews | 2022-06-10 2:27:59 PM | |
| documentation | N/A | 20130144AS.pdf | Kerri Andrews | 2022-06-20 10:31:33 AM | ||
| status | N/A | Incomplete | In Review | Kerri Andrews | 2022-06-21 10:14:44 AM | |
| status | N/A | In Review | Denied | Kerri Andrews | 2022-06-28 11:06:25 AM | |
| associate_dean | N/A | Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D. | Kerri Andrews | 2022-06-28 11:06:25 AM | ||
| decision_letter | N/A | N/A | Decision letter sent | Kerri Andrews | 2022-06-28 11:07:32 AM | |
| new_appeal_level_2 | N/A | Level 2 | Level 2 Appeal ID: 83 | 18as62 | 2022-07-20 4:41:46 AM | |
| status | N/A | Received | Denied | Pamela Briand | 2022-08-25 11:13:00 AM | |
| decision_letter | N/A | N/A | Decision letter sent | Pamela Briand | 2022-08-25 11:14:18 AM |