Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

FL3 Academic Decision Appeal/Petition Process

The following is a template of a consultation for a student who received a FL3 (required to withdraw from engineering program) academic decision. If the term has five 0.5 credit courses included in the term average (term GPA) then a students needs 248 of the possible 500 marks to get a 50% average (natural rounding). See the Important Dates page for when petitions are due this term.

You are strongly advised to read the Faculty of Engineering Examination and
Promotion web site to understand the regulations that govern your
academic progression.  In particular, read about the Academic Decisions,
Rules, and Petitions.

It is also important to look at the total number of marks you scored (add up
the marks you got in each course included in your term average) during your
__ term rather than just the average.  You currently have ___ total marks
out of ___ which is __ short of ___ or 49.5% (natural rounding is used)
which is required for a FLR (required to repeat term) academic decision
(letting you stay in the program).  __ marks over _ courses is significant
and generally indicates that this is not the program for you.  Ideally,
students should be well above ___ marks or 59.5%.

There are 2 steps a student with a FL3 decision can pursue to change their
status:
 1) review their course marks and hope for an increase due to marking errors
   (large increases are unlikely and decreases are possible), and
 2) file a petition for a change in their academic decision or standing.

1) Review of Course Marks

You have the right to see your final exam yourself, under supervised
conditions, to see what went wrong and check for marking errors (unmarked
questions and incorrect addition).  As such, contact your __ instructors to
book an appointment to view your final exam as well as get a break down of
your overall marks (so you can verify that assignments, quizzes, projects,
and midterms have been recorded correctly).

Please note that this review is not intended to be a debate on marking
schemes or a forum to get marks based on extenuating circumstances (e.g.,
"please give me X marks so I can be promoted", or "pass me because I was
sick", etc.).  Extenuating circumstances must be evaluated by E&CE Undergrad
Office and/or the Faculty of Engineering Examinations and Promotions
Committee (E&P).  It is also important to note that exam and course marks
can go up or down during the review.

A student's academic decision may change with changes in course marks (e.g.,
a student's average meets or exceeds 59.5 and their decision changes to a
promotion).

2) Petition

You can request a required to repeat term (or another change to your
decision) by filing a Petition for Exception to Academic Regulations Form
with the Registrar's Office.  You will have to complete the personal info on
the first page and check off the appropriate request box (in your case
"Reconsideration of academic decision").  You can fill in the top of the
second page by hand or alternatively attach a word processed letter.  It is
recommend that you attach a letter stating:
 a) the request,
 b) the extenuating circumstances,
 c) the actions taken during and after the term to address the
    circumstances, and
 d) the plan of action for success during the next academic term.
You should also attach any additional supporting documentation.

Essentially a petition is a document verifying your circumstances and
presenting an argument or case for an exception.  Please note that sometimes
E&P members are very sympathetic to a student's circumstances, but do not
approve the petition (i.e., they feel that the request is not
appropriate).  In this case, a member may propose an alternative decision or
accommodation.  A common example is a student with significant circumstances
but a very poor academic background who asks for a promotion.  The E&P
committee will not promote anyone who has not demonstrated past academic
strength and a suitable level of performance in __ (i.e., close to 59.5).
The E&P committee may conclude this is the wrong program for you and decide
your present FL3 decision is the correct decision.  The E&P committee may
instead change the student's decision from
 "Failed - Required to withdraw from engineering"
to
 "Failed - Required to repeat term - no penalty"
to reflect the circumstances (see the Promotion Rules).

The petition is due by ___ __ and will be reviewed by the E&P committee on
___ __, ____.  Your program coordinator (CEPC or EEPC) is a member of the
E&P committee and will present all Computer/Electrical Engineering
petitions.  The committee members also include representatives from each
engineering department (e.g., ChemEng, MechEng, E&CE, etc), a representative
from engineering counselling, and the on-stream ENSOC president.  Your
program coordinator is willing to advise you on how to strengthen your
petitions if possible.  Your program coordinator also has a vote and is
usually willing to give my impression of the overall E&P vote.

You are free to contact the ENSOC president or Engineering Counsellors,
 Kristine Meier (519-888-4567, x2798 or x2849; kmeier@uwaterloo.ca)
 and Neil Gibson (ngibsonconsulting@rogers.com),
to get their advice and/or support.  If your circumstances involve personal
problems (relationships, depression, grief, etc.) then it is highly
recommended that you contact Kristine or Neil to discuss your situation.


Finally, you should know that while repeating a term is painful in the short
term, it can be very beneficial in the long term.  It gives students an
opportunity to make the necessary adjustments and create support structures
to build a strong foundation.  Often, students who do this, place at or near
the top of their class.  And this academic strength continues in upper
years.