Petition Letter
I¿¿m writing to be granted the ability to drop PHYS P20 after the drop deadline date. I should be granted this ability due to the circumstances surrounding the course PHYS P20. I was prevented from dropping the course before the drop deadline date because I had not received any assessment before the drop deadline date. It was not until November 11th that I received any feedback as to how I was doing in the course. It was at this point that I received sixty percent of my mark. After receiving sixty percent of my mark I wish to have the ability to drop the course. I should be able to drop the course because it is not fair that I was not given any feedback as to how I was doing in the course until after the drop deadline. As such, by the drop deadline I was not able to make an informed decision as to whether or not I should remain in the course. I took this course because it is very different from the other courses I am enrolled in as part of my degree plan. I took it to expand my educational experience and add more breadth to my academic career. However, this course is not necessary to the completion of my degree. I have enough credits without this course to graduate. Further, after engaging with the material, it has become clear that this course is not expanding my educational experience as I had expected. There is no direction from the professors or teaching assistants. There is but required readings every week with no engagement with the professor or other students. I do not believe that the course is contributing as much as I would have hoped it would to broadening my academic career. Consequently, I did not fare as well as I would have in the assignment that was worth sixty percent of my mark. On this assignment I received a seventy percent, which I do not think reflects myself as a student. With this assignment, I was unable to consult with the professor and the teaching assistants as I normally do in my other courses, in order to ensure I am on the right track. With this assignment I did research and spent several days crafting two insightful essays. My grade does not reflect the work I put in. I am not writing to dispute the grade I was given, as there seems to be a miscommunication in what the teaching assistants were expecting and what I interpreted the assignment to be. However, I do not see myself being able to improve my mark with the forty percent final. I know I can put in the work and study and write a good final, however I do not think I will be able to do well. I will not be able to finish the course with anything above a B. It is for this reason that I must drop the course. I have applied to law school for September 2015. I am a split candidate, meaning that my GPA is slightly below average and my LSAT is slightly above average. At this point in my academic career, I need to receive at least eighty percent in every course. I firmly believe that my mark in this course could bring my GPA down enough for me to be rejected from my first choice schools. I would have dropped the course should I had been given any feedback as to how I was doing in the course before the drop deadline. However, I was not granted this privilege. As such, I believe I should be granted the privilege to drop the course now, because I am now able to make an informed decision about what is best for my academic career and my future. Every grade I receive is crucial at this time, and I can only have A- marks or above. I am aware that I will receive a DR on my academic transcript, however I believe that that will be better than a B, and I will still be able to gain admission into law school.