Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dear Associate Dean,

I, Francisca Matos Viegas Fernandes, Student Number 20278425, am appealing to drop PHIL 111B (Fall 2021- Winter 2022), PHIL 157 (Winter 2022), PHYS 118 (Fall 2021- Winter 2022), ENGL 100B (Fall 2021- Winter 2022), and for Credit Standing for PSYC 100B (Fall 2021- Winter 2022).

I am appealing because of issues with acute mental health illnesses and the acquirement of COVID-19 during the Fall, and especially Winter, Terms.

I was diagnosed with my mental health illnesses in 2018 but was able to achieve satisfactory results throughout secondary school with minimal management of my symptoms. The transition to university, especially with online schooling due to COVID-19, was much more difficult than I anticipated. The increased workload and stress exacerbated my normal symptoms to a level that was extremely strenuous to handle. From the end of October 2021, I started struggling to complete tasks, focus, and even get out of bed. I was not able to complete many of my assignments and began falling behind on course content and readings. I was not prepared for how debilitating my illnesses would become and took on too much work with 5 courses each semester.

As most of my classes were 6.0 credit courses over two semesters, I did not want to drop them and ??quit? after doing poorly in the Fall Semester. I incorrectly believed that if I just kept working and ??tried harder?, I could overcome my illnesses and improve my performance. I eventually was not able to handle my mental health illnesses and sought professional help.

I began taking medication to manage my symptoms at the end of February 2022 and saw improvement in my behaviours and moods, which extended slightly to my academic work. I am very grateful to my professors who reached out to me about my performance and worked with me to catch up on late and missing assignments and meet the learning requirements of their courses. Thanks to support from Professor Davies in particular, I reached out to Queen??s Student Accessibility Services (QSAS) and received accommodations I did not believe were available to me.

Regrettably, it was too late in the semester for many of my courses to recover from my previous poor work, even with my new accommodations; however, I still hoped to do well on my final exams. Unfortunately, from April 22, 2022, I began experiencing COVID-19 symptoms. Although I had symptoms, I did not return a positive RAT test until April 29, and resultingly, could not defer some of my exams. Although my COVID-19 case was not severe enough to require hospitalization, it made it incredibly difficult to concentrate and do well on my final exams.

The increased severity of my mental health illnesses, lack of proper support throughout the year, and acquiring COVID-19 at the end of April during exam season are the reasons why I am submitting an appeal to drop PHIL 111B, PHIL 157, PHYS 118, and ENGL 100B and for Credit Standing for PSYC 100B.

Regardless of the outcome of my appeal, I will be implementing changes in my academic plan to support future success. I will take full advantage of QSAS and my personal accommodations for the entire school year and arrange for meetings with my QSAS advisor and professors if I am struggling. I will limit the number of courses I take to no more than 3 per semester to better manage my workload, as well as retake the courses I am appealing to drop. Additionally, as I am a remote student currently living abroad, I will plan to return to in-person learning for the Fall Term 2023, as online learning has been a particularly difficult barrier to my university transition.
Thank you for your time and consideration of my appeal.

Sincerely,
Francisca Fernandes