Decision Letter
Submission Number: 12322
Decision Date: October 2, 2024
Associate Dean: Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Student Name: Aya Louaye
Student Email: 20al64@queensu.ca
Course: POLS 285
Term: Fall
Year: 2024
Category: Add a course after the academic deadline
Instructor: Yakimowski
Course: POLS 284
Term: Fall
Year: 2024
Category: Add a course after the academic deadline
Instructor: Albaugh
Course: BLCK 480
Term: Fall
Year: 2024
Category: Add a course after the academic deadline
Instructor: Ruwe
Dear Aya Louaye:
I have carefully considered your petition request to add BLCK 480, POLS 284 and POLS 285 (F24) past the academic deadline. After reviewing your file, I have decided to deny your request.
As you know, courses must be added on SOLUS within the published deadlines. The deadlines for adding courses have been designed and established to provide sufficient time for students to obtain the relevant permission, determine their interest in the course material, to consider their ability to handle each course, and to evaluate their overall workload.
I am sympathetic to your situation and understand that this is a difficult decision, however, I want you to know that I considered this request very thoroughly. In making this decision, I reviewed your petition letter, the additional information that you supplied the petition office on September 26, the documentation that you supplied, your transcript, and the input that I received from the instructors of these courses.
Academic Petition and Appeal Regulation 3.3.1.1. states that a petition to add a class late must clearly demonstrate the significant extenuating circumstances, beyond the student’s control, which prevented them from making the addition by the deadline, as indicated in the Faculty’s Sessional Dates. A petition to add a class late must have support from the Undergraduate Chair of the relevant department and from the class instructor.
I recognize that you spent time during the Summer term going through the petition and appeal processes related to a Requirement to Withdraw Faculty ruling. I also understand that you had a No Program/Plan block on your SOLUS account during this time that prevented you from being able to add courses for the 2024 Fall term. I have however denied this request for the following two reasons:
1) Your petition did not demonstrate an extenuating circumstance that prevented you from being to resolve the no program/plan block on your SOLUS account sooner than August 28 when you connected with the Arts and Science Student Services Office regarding this. I want to remind you that the petitions office sent you an email on June 14, 2024 to let you know that course registration for 2024 Fall classes would begin in July. It is unclear why you didn’t act sooner on your program/plan selection so that you could have enrolled in your desired Fall term courses on your enrollment date in July or in August during the Open Enrollment period.
2) Instructors are not obligated to accommodate a student due to late enrollment and looking at your current academic standing and recent course failures from the 2023 Fall and 2024 Winter terms, it would not be a smart academic decision to enroll in a course that you’ve already missed graded components in. The instructor of BLCK 480 has suggested that their course is reading and writing intensive, and they suggest that you consider taking it next year. The instructor of POLS 284 has confirmed that you have already missed the first graded assignment in the course. The instructor of POLS 285 has confirmed that you have already missed the entire first section and the beginning of the second quarter of their course.
Aya, I am glad to see that you have been accepted into a Plan in SOLUS and I encourage you to work with an Academic Advisor if you need assistance with an academic plan going forward. You can connect with an Academic Advisor on their website at queensu.ca/artsci/undergraduate/student-services/advising.
If you wish to appeal the Associate Dean’s decision to the Board of Studies, information and deadlines can be found at queensu.ca/artsci/students-at-queens/academic-appeals (click on “Board of Studies”). You may contact the Office of the University Ombudsperson for information about student rights and responsibilities queensu.ca/ombuds/appeal-process/procedural-fairness and guidance on policy and procedure by visiting their website at queensu.ca/ombuds/.
Sincerely,
Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Associate Dean (Academics)
Decision Date: October 2, 2024
Associate Dean: Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Student Name: Aya Louaye
Student Email: 20al64@queensu.ca
Course: POLS 285
Term: Fall
Year: 2024
Category: Add a course after the academic deadline
Instructor: Yakimowski
Course: POLS 284
Term: Fall
Year: 2024
Category: Add a course after the academic deadline
Instructor: Albaugh
Course: BLCK 480
Term: Fall
Year: 2024
Category: Add a course after the academic deadline
Instructor: Ruwe
Dear Aya Louaye:
I have carefully considered your petition request to add BLCK 480, POLS 284 and POLS 285 (F24) past the academic deadline. After reviewing your file, I have decided to deny your request.
As you know, courses must be added on SOLUS within the published deadlines. The deadlines for adding courses have been designed and established to provide sufficient time for students to obtain the relevant permission, determine their interest in the course material, to consider their ability to handle each course, and to evaluate their overall workload.
I am sympathetic to your situation and understand that this is a difficult decision, however, I want you to know that I considered this request very thoroughly. In making this decision, I reviewed your petition letter, the additional information that you supplied the petition office on September 26, the documentation that you supplied, your transcript, and the input that I received from the instructors of these courses.
Academic Petition and Appeal Regulation 3.3.1.1. states that a petition to add a class late must clearly demonstrate the significant extenuating circumstances, beyond the student’s control, which prevented them from making the addition by the deadline, as indicated in the Faculty’s Sessional Dates. A petition to add a class late must have support from the Undergraduate Chair of the relevant department and from the class instructor.
I recognize that you spent time during the Summer term going through the petition and appeal processes related to a Requirement to Withdraw Faculty ruling. I also understand that you had a No Program/Plan block on your SOLUS account during this time that prevented you from being able to add courses for the 2024 Fall term. I have however denied this request for the following two reasons:
1) Your petition did not demonstrate an extenuating circumstance that prevented you from being to resolve the no program/plan block on your SOLUS account sooner than August 28 when you connected with the Arts and Science Student Services Office regarding this. I want to remind you that the petitions office sent you an email on June 14, 2024 to let you know that course registration for 2024 Fall classes would begin in July. It is unclear why you didn’t act sooner on your program/plan selection so that you could have enrolled in your desired Fall term courses on your enrollment date in July or in August during the Open Enrollment period.
2) Instructors are not obligated to accommodate a student due to late enrollment and looking at your current academic standing and recent course failures from the 2023 Fall and 2024 Winter terms, it would not be a smart academic decision to enroll in a course that you’ve already missed graded components in. The instructor of BLCK 480 has suggested that their course is reading and writing intensive, and they suggest that you consider taking it next year. The instructor of POLS 284 has confirmed that you have already missed the first graded assignment in the course. The instructor of POLS 285 has confirmed that you have already missed the entire first section and the beginning of the second quarter of their course.
Aya, I am glad to see that you have been accepted into a Plan in SOLUS and I encourage you to work with an Academic Advisor if you need assistance with an academic plan going forward. You can connect with an Academic Advisor on their website at queensu.ca/artsci/undergraduate/student-services/advising.
If you wish to appeal the Associate Dean’s decision to the Board of Studies, information and deadlines can be found at queensu.ca/artsci/students-at-queens/academic-appeals (click on “Board of Studies”). You may contact the Office of the University Ombudsperson for information about student rights and responsibilities queensu.ca/ombuds/appeal-process/procedural-fairness and guidance on policy and procedure by visiting their website at queensu.ca/ombuds/.
Sincerely,
Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Associate Dean (Academics)
Generated October 2, 2024 at 10:21:17 AM.