Decision Letter
Appeal Number: 5560
Decision Date: April 22, 2019
Associate Dean: Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Student Name: Yinuo An
Student Email: 17ya14@queensu.ca
Course: MATH121
Term: Fall/Winter
Year: 2018
Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline
Dear Yinuo An:
I have carefully considered your appeal to drop MATH 121 (FW 2018-19) and understand the challenges you have experienced this year. After reviewing your appeal and documentation, I have decided to deny your request.
As you know, courses must be dropped on SOLUS within the published deadlines. The Academic Regulations (Appeal of Academic Decisions, IIIb) stress that exceptions to this will only be waived under extenuating circumstances. 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.
I am certainly sympathetic to your situation and I realize that this is a disappointing decision, however there is no clear indication as to why this course is impacted by your circumstances more so than your other courses. You note in your letter of appeal that you are anticipating a trip home before the exam in this course, but that is not considered an extenuating circumstance. I strongly encourage you to take advantage of the many services we have available to students and I hope that you will reach out to our Student Wellness Services office to seek support regarding the many challenges you are dealing with.
In the future, I encourage you to carefully evaluate your progress in a course by week 7 of the term and if you are finding the material too difficult or have not kept up with the course work, you should drop the course by the week 8 drop deadline. The drop deadline is set at Week 8 to allow students plenty of time to assess their progress in a class and withdraw without any academic penalty if they feel that they cannot keep up with the demands or have the academic background needed to successfully complete it.
This is a difficult learning experience Yinuo but one that will be valuable as you proceed with the pursuit of your university degree. The long term impact of a failure or low grade should not weigh particularly heavy when, and if, you apply to a graduate program. Please note that if you repeat a course, the lower grade will be excluded from your GPA and the higher grade would be include in your GPA once the course is completed.
If you wish to appeal the Associate Dean€™s decision to the Board of Studies, information and deadlines can be found at www.queensu.ca/artsci/students-at-queens/academic-appeals (click on €œBoard of Studies€). Do not use the on-line application for this process. You may contact the Office of the Ombudsman (www.queensu.ca/ombudsman) for advice on matters of procedure and on obtaining a representative.
Sincerely,
Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Associate Dean (Studies) 20103471An1
Decision Date: April 22, 2019
Associate Dean: Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Student Name: Yinuo An
Student Email: 17ya14@queensu.ca
Course: MATH121
Term: Fall/Winter
Year: 2018
Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline
Dear Yinuo An:
I have carefully considered your appeal to drop MATH 121 (FW 2018-19) and understand the challenges you have experienced this year. After reviewing your appeal and documentation, I have decided to deny your request.
As you know, courses must be dropped on SOLUS within the published deadlines. The Academic Regulations (Appeal of Academic Decisions, IIIb) stress that exceptions to this will only be waived under extenuating circumstances. 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.
I am certainly sympathetic to your situation and I realize that this is a disappointing decision, however there is no clear indication as to why this course is impacted by your circumstances more so than your other courses. You note in your letter of appeal that you are anticipating a trip home before the exam in this course, but that is not considered an extenuating circumstance. I strongly encourage you to take advantage of the many services we have available to students and I hope that you will reach out to our Student Wellness Services office to seek support regarding the many challenges you are dealing with.
In the future, I encourage you to carefully evaluate your progress in a course by week 7 of the term and if you are finding the material too difficult or have not kept up with the course work, you should drop the course by the week 8 drop deadline. The drop deadline is set at Week 8 to allow students plenty of time to assess their progress in a class and withdraw without any academic penalty if they feel that they cannot keep up with the demands or have the academic background needed to successfully complete it.
This is a difficult learning experience Yinuo but one that will be valuable as you proceed with the pursuit of your university degree. The long term impact of a failure or low grade should not weigh particularly heavy when, and if, you apply to a graduate program. Please note that if you repeat a course, the lower grade will be excluded from your GPA and the higher grade would be include in your GPA once the course is completed.
If you wish to appeal the Associate Dean€™s decision to the Board of Studies, information and deadlines can be found at www.queensu.ca/artsci/students-at-queens/academic-appeals (click on €œBoard of Studies€). Do not use the on-line application for this process. You may contact the Office of the Ombudsman (www.queensu.ca/ombudsman) for advice on matters of procedure and on obtaining a representative.
Sincerely,
Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Associate Dean (Studies) 20103471An1
Generated April 22, 2019 at 9:45:46 AM.