Hi, so brief intro. I’m looking for help editing an Appeal for my school since i’m pending academic dismissal. I would love to hear everyone’s thoughts and edits! I need all the help i can get. Thanks in advance.
What I wrote:
- My academic goal is to earn a bachelor’s degree in psychology. I believe that XXX offers the best base for my undergraduate studies because of its flexibility within the psychology major. It both encourages me to explore different fields within the degree and also leaves room for electives across other academic disciplines. After my undergraduate studies I plan on pursuing a masters in cognitive psychology. While I do not have a specific career in mind, I believe that through my course work at XXX I will find something that I am passionate about.
- In the beginning of the Fall 2015 semester, I fell behind in my schoolwork due to mental health issues and the passing of a close family member early on in the semester. Because of this, I fell behind academically and struggled immensely to catch up. Since I was a newly admitted transfer student, I was unaware of the on campus help that XXX offered. I felt alone and lost during this time and my grades suffered from it. During winter break I addressed my issues and sought help from family and friends. I made the decision to better myself, both mentally and academically so that I will not be faced with this issue again. In the Spring 2016 semester I started off strong in an effort to bring my grades up. I established good study habits by going to office hours, tutoring and made every effort to attend classes and finish assignments. While I ended my spring semester with a 3.XX GPA, I was unable to meet the academic standard for my cumulative GPA. While this saddens me, I know that I have the potential to thrive as a student at XXX.
- If I were to be reinstated I would repeat BIOL 117, THEA 100, and CHEM 116. Although these classes aren’t required for my major, I have an interest in learning more about these subject matters. By utilizing both the professor’s office hours and SI sessions I hope to improve my academic performance in these classes. I plan on dedicating more time into reading each textbook and attending all lectures. Also, if I find myself falling behind I plan on emailing my professors and letting them know I am struggling instead of being sitting by and trying to handle it myself.
- Some campus resources that I plan to use to help me reach my target academic goals are the counseling center, for when I feel overwhelmed and stressed, the writing center, and the office of career development. Along with using on campus resources, I am currently taking and plan on taking more summer courses in order to help me with my degree progression.
- On campus I am involved in the GOLD Leadership Program, the Psychology Club, and have participated in intramural sports. I dedicate about 1-2 hour(s) per week to these activities. However, if I were to be reinstated, I would like to join XXX Pathways so that I can assist other students suffering through tough times. I would also like to join GSTV since I have an interest in broadcast media.
The prompt for the appeal is as follows:
Number answers to the following questions, giving as much information as possible with emphasis on questions 2 and 3.
- What are your academic goals?
- List honest, specific reasons why you did not do well academically last semester, especially when you knew you were on academic probation.
- List the classes you plan to repeat and the specific changes that you would make to improve your performance next semester if you were reinstated.
- List campus resources that you would use to help reach your target academic goals.
- Are you involved in outside activities (Ex: work, clubs, sports)? If so, how many hours per week?
