Petition Letter
Dear Associate Dean,
I am Keyu Liu, an undergraduate student majoring in Applied Economics. My student ID is 20361676. I am writing this petition to apply for a late drop for the CISC 124 Intro to Computing Science II course, which I have taken three times. I am fully aware of the university's regulations regarding course withdrawal and petitions process, and I understand that this application requires a detailed explanation of the special circumstances and their impact on my academic performance. Therefore, I will do my best to provide a true and comprehensive account of the entire process and I believe my situation fall directly within the policy framework.
Fall 2023
When I entered the school in the Fall of 2022, my major was Computing (Honours). At that time, I was quite clear about my direction and hoped to continue developing in this field. Looking back now, it was precisely because I was not good at computing and my GPA did not meet the requirements that I ultimately failed to enter the Honours program. But at that time, I stubbornly believed that it was because I was not in the best state or I didn’t go along with the new environment. I have always had high expectations of myself, so when I saw my poor academic performance, I could not fully accept it.
As you may know, I was ultimately unable to enter the Computer Science program that I had always hoped for. Watching many of my peers successfully move into their desired majors while I was redirected into a Mathematics program, and not even the honours stream, was deeply discouraging. The sense of disappointment and contrast made me question my own abilities and left me feeling lost about my future direction. This outcome made me feel as though I had let both my parents and myself down.
Soon after this incident happened, I reached out to the school’s PassHelp service to seek advice and better understand my academic situation, hoping to clarify a path forward. However, the information was complex and the option for me was quite limited. Instead of feeling reassured, I became even more anxious and confused. Entering my second year, I had not fully adjusted emotionally, and I struggled to develop a clear academic plan. I was uncertain whether I still had opportunities to change my situation, which made it very difficult to make confident decisions about course selection. During that period, I lived in a constant state of self-doubt and worry, yet I truly did not know how to move forward.
Therefore, although I transferred to Mathematics later, I did not like it and I always wanted to return to my original major to prove myself. Thus, in the Fall of 2023, I took CISC124 for the first time, hoping to improve my computing grades and reapply to return to my original major. In another words, I treated this course as my last chance to make my academic future clear.
It was precisely for this reason that when I first took this course, my state was actually in a highly stressed situation, but I am unwilling to admit the difficulty. The content of CISC124 required us to shift from Python to Java, and the course progressed at a fast pace. We had to complete relatively complex projects before fully mastering the language. This is quite a challenge for me, and it also aggravates my discomfort. However, for me, this course is not just an ordinary course, but more like a key point to prove whether I can return to the computer major. I have high expectations of myself and am extremely afraid of the consequences of failure. This mentality keeps me in a state of tension throughout the learning process. Although I think it is very dedicated on the surface, the learning efficiency is not ideal. I didn't withdraw from the class before the deadline, not because I didn't understand the risks, but because I couldn't accept the idea of
I am Keyu Liu, an undergraduate student majoring in Applied Economics. My student ID is 20361676. I am writing this petition to apply for a late drop for the CISC 124 Intro to Computing Science II course, which I have taken three times. I am fully aware of the university's regulations regarding course withdrawal and petitions process, and I understand that this application requires a detailed explanation of the special circumstances and their impact on my academic performance. Therefore, I will do my best to provide a true and comprehensive account of the entire process and I believe my situation fall directly within the policy framework.
Fall 2023
When I entered the school in the Fall of 2022, my major was Computing (Honours). At that time, I was quite clear about my direction and hoped to continue developing in this field. Looking back now, it was precisely because I was not good at computing and my GPA did not meet the requirements that I ultimately failed to enter the Honours program. But at that time, I stubbornly believed that it was because I was not in the best state or I didn’t go along with the new environment. I have always had high expectations of myself, so when I saw my poor academic performance, I could not fully accept it.
As you may know, I was ultimately unable to enter the Computer Science program that I had always hoped for. Watching many of my peers successfully move into their desired majors while I was redirected into a Mathematics program, and not even the honours stream, was deeply discouraging. The sense of disappointment and contrast made me question my own abilities and left me feeling lost about my future direction. This outcome made me feel as though I had let both my parents and myself down.
Soon after this incident happened, I reached out to the school’s PassHelp service to seek advice and better understand my academic situation, hoping to clarify a path forward. However, the information was complex and the option for me was quite limited. Instead of feeling reassured, I became even more anxious and confused. Entering my second year, I had not fully adjusted emotionally, and I struggled to develop a clear academic plan. I was uncertain whether I still had opportunities to change my situation, which made it very difficult to make confident decisions about course selection. During that period, I lived in a constant state of self-doubt and worry, yet I truly did not know how to move forward.
Therefore, although I transferred to Mathematics later, I did not like it and I always wanted to return to my original major to prove myself. Thus, in the Fall of 2023, I took CISC124 for the first time, hoping to improve my computing grades and reapply to return to my original major. In another words, I treated this course as my last chance to make my academic future clear.
It was precisely for this reason that when I first took this course, my state was actually in a highly stressed situation, but I am unwilling to admit the difficulty. The content of CISC124 required us to shift from Python to Java, and the course progressed at a fast pace. We had to complete relatively complex projects before fully mastering the language. This is quite a challenge for me, and it also aggravates my discomfort. However, for me, this course is not just an ordinary course, but more like a key point to prove whether I can return to the computer major. I have high expectations of myself and am extremely afraid of the consequences of failure. This mentality keeps me in a state of tension throughout the learning process. Although I think it is very dedicated on the surface, the learning efficiency is not ideal. I didn't withdraw from the class before the deadline, not because I didn't understand the risks, but because I couldn't accept the idea of