I am .01 points away from the minimum GPA requirement. Also if I have any grammatical or punctual errors let me know please!
I am writing to appeal my academic dismissal from xxxxxxxx. I was upset to recently receive a letter informing me that I am subject to academic dismissal. I am ashamed to admit that my low GPA is a reflection of my effort during my spring 2016 semester, but I take full responsibility for my actions.
Being away from home for so long was a very new experience for me, and I greatly overestimated my freedom. I made terrible choices this past year, especially during my second semester; not going to class because I could sleep in, going to parties knowing that I had upcoming exams, and letting my social life take over my academic career. I even missed quizzes frequently, and rationalizing that it was “only one quiz.” I thought that I could miss class and look at lecture notes online, not knowing that I was missing out on valuable information. When I received my quiz or exam grades, I always said that I will do better next time but this was never the case. I was more irresponsible not seeking extra help when struggling in class. Looking back at my last semester, not only did I waste my time not meeting the required accumulative GPA, but I wasted my professor’s time as well. I am by no means proud of my actions and it is certainly not easy to admit. However, receiving notice of my dismissal was a huge wake up call for me.
I realized that I lost my focus this past semester and receiving notice of my dismissal was a big wake up-call for me. I had lost sight of my purpose of coming to this university in the first place, to earn my degree. I will now take the initiative, because no one is responsible for my education but me. Starting with attending and being punctual to class, this was a major issue this past semester. I will see tutors for the extra help that I need, and see professors during office hours when I struggle to grasp the material. I lacked time management last semester, all though college can indeed be fun; it is important to know when to stop. I will have a weekly schedule of activities while making sure my academics come first. I know succeed at xxxxxxxxx, and I am determined to become the scholar I know I can be.
Thank you for taking the time to consider my appeal. Please contact me by e-mail or phone if you have any questions.
This is too long and doesn’t focus on the critical issue: HOW you are going to improve your grades.
Tell them you are writing to appeal the decision, own up to what you did wrong, make your explanation of what you did wrong very brief. Express regret for your actions. Then write a paragraph detailing how you are going to improve. You will attend every class, you will see professors during office hours, you will forego social activities, you will go to the library to study, etc… Then say you hope they will reconsider your dismissal and that you understand that being at X college is a privilege and an honor.
You need to emphasize further how you will be willing to work with school admin as well as school counselors to get the support you need.
Your whole paragraph about missing classes needs to be significantly edited. You should,have figured out after the first missed quiz that missing classes was NOT going to work.
You need to put in and succinctly and briefly…
- What actions you have already taken to change the situation.
- What you intend to continue doing when you return to school.
- What additional supports you will seek out.
Everything else is blah blah blah too wordy.
Last sentence of paragraph 2 and first sentence of paragraph 3 are virtually identical. Get rid of (or change) one of them.
This is not compelling. It is too long, full of typos and ungrammatical sentences, and saying you’ll have a schedule of activities while making sure academics come first is a huge red flag for me. If you are about to be thrown out, and are still trying to “balance” parties and class, you are missing the point. There can be no parties, if you want to pull your grades up and stay.
Think of it from their perspective – lots of freshmen DO manage time well, DO go to class, DO stay away from destructive behaviors. Why should you take up the spot of someone else? What makes you worth a second chance? That’s what you need to tell them. It’s fine to apologize and be full of regret. But you need a workable plan.
Focus less on the “how ashamed I am” and focus more on the plan you have to ensure success going forth.
And CC, we really need to have a section for best practices in writing appeals letters. They are ALWAYS too long, always give too much detail on the “bad behavior” and not enough detail on the plan for the future, and rarely clearly articulate a clear reason that the person should be given another shot. In my time on CC, I’ve never seen one that has been mostly-there right out of the gate.
You should have got a wake up call when the interim grades started coming in, I’m not sure why it took an academic dismissal letter to tell you that you were in academic trouble. But I agree, edit the second paragraph way down. Focus on exactly what steps you will take to resolve the problem. You need more than saying you will be on time and work harder. Take specific steps. Have you met with or contacted your academic advisors to develop an academic plan moving forward? Have you met with or contacted the tutoring center to discuss a plan for next semester? Have you met with or contacted a counselor at the college to work with you and help you focus on academics? I would also consider cutting out all EC activities until your academics are on track. Theses are but a few steps you might take right now. Play time is over.
I think the entire discussion (paragraph 2) of how you didn’t prioritize attending classes and preparing for quizzes and tests could be put into one sentence. Then that one sentence could be merged with paragraph 3, which also could be shortened. Once paragraph 3 turns into paragraph 2, then you could write a new third paragraph describing what you will do to improve your work habits. Good luck!
Can you help me with my typos and ungrammatical sentences? I agree i need to give them a reason for me to stay.
that makes a lot of sense, i agree it is too long
Pointing out a typo here or ungrammatical sentence there isn’t the point. Listen to what we are saying. Rewrite it with our suggestions in mind and then we will be happy to help.
I edited my 2 paragraphs. Making the issue less wordy, and focused more on what I will do.
Being away from home for so long was a very new experience for me, and I greatly overestimated my freedom. I made terrible choices this past year, especially during my second semester; not going to class because I could sleep in, going to parties knowing that I had upcoming exams, and letting my social life take over my academic career. I even missed quizzes frequently, and rationalizing that it was “only one quiz.” I was more irresponsible not seeking extra help when struggling in class. Looking back at my last semester, not only did I waste my time not meeting the required accumulative GPA, but I wasted my professor’s time as well. I am by no means proud of my actions and it is certainly not easy to admit.
I realized I lost my focus this past semester and receiving notice of my dismissal was a big wake up-call for me. I had lost sight of my purpose of coming to this university in the first place, to earn my degree. I will now take the initiative, because no one is responsible for my education but me. Starting with attending and being punctual to class, this was a major issue this past semester. I will see tutors for the extra help that I need, and see professors during office hours when I struggle to grasp the material. I will have a weekly schedule with adequate study hours to prepare for upcoming assignments, quizzes and exams. I will take advantage of all the resources available to me; what I should have been doing from the very beginning. I am certain that I can raise my GPA above the minimum requirement within one semester. Nothing is more important to me than graduating xxxxxxx and I plan to make my schoolwork a priority.
Edit the first paragraph down even more.
I took out a few more useless words.
Being away from home for so long was a very new experience for me, and I greatly overestimated my freedom. I made terrible choices this past year, especially during my second semester; not going to class because I could sleep in, going to parties knowing that I had upcoming exams, and letting my social life take over my academic career. I even missed quizzes frequently, and rationalizing that it was “only one quiz.” I am by no means proud of my actions and it is certainly not easy to admit.
First para, sentence 2: the semicolon is incorrect, as a semicolon separates two full sentences and your second part is not a complete sentence. Sentence 3: rationalizing should be rationalized (but frankly I would omit this entirely, as you are spending far too much time on describing the “bad”).
Second para, sentence 4: not really a coherent sentence; rewrite it. Sentence 3: a platitude, says the obvious, delete. Sentence 7: same mistake with a semicolon that doesn’t belong. Read up on semicolons.
Your plan is still light on specifics. There is nothing to keep you on track.
Thank you, and i looked up semicolons i was definitely using it incorrectly
Being away from home for so long was a very new experience for me, and I greatly overestimated my freedom. I made terrible choices this past year, especially during my second semester. Not going to class because I could sleep in, going to parties knowing that I had upcoming exams, and letting my social life take over my academic career. I was more irresponsible not seeking extra help when struggling in class. I am by no means proud of my actions and it is certainly not easy to admit.
I realized I lost my focus this past semester and receiving notice of my dismissal was a big wake up-call for me. I had lost sight of my purpose of coming to this university in the first place, to earn my degree. Starting with attending and being punctual to class, this was a major issue this past semester. I will see tutors for the extra help that I need, and see professors during office hours when I struggle to grasp the material. I will have a weekly schedule with adequate study hours to prepare for upcoming assignments, quizzes and exams. I will take advantage of all the resources available to me. I have contacted my adviser to retake one class I did poorly in last semester for fall 2016. I am certain that I can raise my GPA above the minimum requirement within one semester. Nothing is more important to me than graduating xxxxxx and I plan to make my schoolwork a priority.
You are .01 points away from the gpa goal. THAT should be your focus.
Being away from home for so long was a very new experience for every single freshman, so I would just delete it. It says nothing.
I don’t think that “greatly overestimated my freedom” is the phrase you are looking for. You didn’t overestimate your freedom. You overestimated your ability to MANAGE yourself in light of the freedom you now had.
I would say “I made poor choices,” not “terrible choices.”
The sentence that starts with “not going to class” is not a complete sentence. It’s a fragment.
The problem with how you’ve worded it is that you haven’t answered WHY you won’t make the same poor choices. What will prevent you this year from sleeping in, going to parties, etc? I think you also need to be clearer - was this a function of “I could have handled the material but I just didn’t bother” or “I had trouble with the material but didn’t seek help from the prof”?
“I am by no means proud of my actions and it is certainly not easy to admit” - I personally think your “emotion” is better served by talking about your commitment to getting things right, not your shame about the past. Others might disagree.
I would just delete the third sentence entirely. They don’t really care how you were irresponsible, just that you admit it. So the last sentence of the first graph is “I was irresponsible in not seeking help and am not proud of my choices or actions.” Don’t say “not easy to admit” , it’s whiny. And sounds like you want a pat on the back for admitting it, and you aren’t going to get one.
Don’t put excuses/explanations in the second paragraph, those belong in the first paragraph and you’ve ALREADY said you made bad choices. Don’t remind them again that you didn’t do the most basic, simple, and obvious thing. Keep the tense of your sentences consistent – no past tense, for example.
I would say “I am committed to raising my GPA” not that you are certain you can do it. And good luck. And don’t be stupid again – go to class 