Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Submission Number: 12369
Decision Date: December 18, 2024
Associate Dean: Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Student Name: Mazin Hussain
Student Email: 22mh13@queensu.ca

Course: PHAR 370
Term: Fall
Year: 2023
Category: Request aegrotat (AG) standing in a course or courses
Instructor: Mulder, Jeanne Elizabeth

Course: CHEM 212
Term: Fall
Year: 2023
Category: Request aegrotat (AG) standing in a course or courses
Instructor: Vlahakis, Jason

Course: CHEM 211
Term: Fall
Year: 2023
Category: Request aegrotat (AG) standing in a course or courses
Instructor: Wang, Peng

Course: BIOL 441
Term: Fall
Year: 2023
Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline

Course: BIOL 339
Term: Fall
Year: 2023
Category: Request credit (CR) standing in a course or courses
Instructor: Moyes, Christopher D

Course: BIOL 243
Term: Fall
Year: 2023
Category: Request aegrotat (AG) standing in a course or courses
Instructor: Yakimowski, Sarah

Course: MICR 221
Term: Winter
Year: 2024
Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline
Instructor: Banfield, Bruce W

Course: BIOL 430
Term: Winter
Year: 2024
Category: Request aegrotat (AG) standing in a course or courses
Instructor: Chin-Sang, Ian

Course: CHEM 222
Term: Winter
Year: 2024
Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline
Instructor: Lee, Lucia Myongwon

Course: BIOL 403
Term: Winter
Year: 2024
Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline

Course: BIOL 331
Term: Winter
Year: 2024
Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline
Instructor: Aristizabal, Maria

Course: CHEM 222
Term: Winter
Year: 2024
Category: Drop a course after the academic deadline

Dear Mazin,

Thank you for your petition regarding Credit Standing in BIOL 339 (F23), to drop BIOL 441 (F23), BIOL 403, BIOL 331, CHEM 222, CHEM 223, and MICR 221 (W24) after the academic deadline and for Aegrotat Standing in BIOL 243, CHEM 211, CHEM 212, PHAR 370 (F23), and BIOL 430 (W24). I have carefully reviewed your petition and the supporting documentation that you supplied, and while I’m unable to grant all of your requests, I want to assure you that I’ve taken your circumstances into account as part of this decision.

I will grant your requests for Credit Standing in BIOL 339 (F23), to drop BIOL 441 (F23), BIOL 403, BIOL 331, CHEM 222, CHEM 223, and MICR 221 (W24) after the academic deadline due to the timeline and academic impacts of extenuating circumstances as confirmed within the documentation that you supplied. Your grades in these courses will be replaced with a CR or DR notation on your transcript accordingly.

Unfortunately, I am unable to grant your requests for Aegrotat Standing in CHEM 211, CHEM 212, PHAR 370, BIOL 243 (F23) and BIOL 430 (W24). According to the Academic Appeal and Petition Regulation 3.3.1.3, Aegrotat Standing is intended for students who, due to illness or other significant extenuating circumstances, are unable to complete all the work for a course. To be eligible, at least 60% of the course’s components (assignments, midterms, labs, final exams, etc.) must be completed.

After consulting with the instructors of CHEM 211, CHEM 212 and PHAR 370 (F23) it has been confirmed that you did not meet the learning outcomes in these courses based on the work that you completed which makes you ineligible for Aegrotat Standing in this case. That said, I understand the challenges you have faced, and I do recognize the academic impact of the extenuating circumstances that you experienced during the 2023 Fall term, as confirmed within the documentation that you supplied. As a result, I will allow you to drop CHEM 211, CHEM 212 and PHAR 370 after the academic deadline so that your grades can be replaced with a DR notation on your transcript. If you would like to accept this offer, please email asc.petitions@queensu.ca within 15 business days of receiving this letter.

Regarding your requests related to BIOL 243 (F23) and BIOL 430 (W24), I regret to inform you that I cannot offer you Aegrotat Standing in these courses. I was unable to obtain your individual grades from the instructor of this course and therefore could not determine if you are eligible for Aegrotat Standing in it. The instructor of BIOL 430 (W24) reported that regular attendance is required for success in their course and that you rarely attended classes resulting in a low participation grade. They also let me know that they offered you an opportunity to complete a deferred final exam in the course but that you did not follow through with this option.

Going forward, it is the student’s responsibility to pause and evaluate the impact of extenuating circumstances on their classes before the drop deadline of the term. If they have fallen behind in a course or find the material too difficult, they should drop the course by the deadline. The drop deadlines, as they have been outlined in the “Important Dates” section on the Arts and Science web page, have been established by the Faculty of Arts and Science to ensure fair and equitable treatment of all students.

Additionally, if you wish to appeal this decision, you are welcome to submit an appeal to the Board of Studies. Information on the appeal process and deadlines is available at queensu.ca/artsci/undergraduate/student-services/academic-petitions-and-appeals (click on “Second Level”). The Office of the University Ombudsperson offers guidance on student rights and procedural fairness at queensu.ca/ombuds/appeal-process/procedural-fairness, and they are also available to support you at queensu.ca/ombuds.

I hope that you continue to seek out the support and resources available to you, and I wish you the best in navigating your next steps.

Warm regards,

Jenn Stephenson, Ph.D.
Associate Dean (Academic)