Academic Dismissal Letter

Parents Forum
1

To Whom It May Concern,
My name is XXX and I am a Psychology Major. I am writing in hope that with this letter my academic dismissal can be appealed. First, I would like to start out by taking full responsibility for the situation that I am currently in now. I am completely at fault for my low performance, which produced a low GPA. Although, I was struggling academically I did not attend office hours, meet with my professors, or go to the tutoring center for help. Instead I tried to handle it on my own, without anyone’s direct help. I came to SUNY Purchase College a Psychology major, and being completely honest it was a huge mistake. This was not because the course was challenging but because this was not what I really wanted to do.

SUNY Purchase was my top choice since I was a sophomore in high school. The balance of art and academia called to me. During my first semester, as a Psychology Major, I noticed that my passion for the arts was greater than I would’ve expected. I no longer felt as close to an attachment to the rigid part of psychology. Yet, It took me too long to actually make up my mind and during this time instead of trying things out and testing different waters, I stood still and didn’t move. This fear of choosing a path stopped me from progressing. I should’ve met with professors, along with other faculty in order to get me moving in the track that I wanted to take.

If my appeal is approved, and I am allowed to attend SUNY Purchase. I will meet with a variety of professors. I am mainly interested in Philosophy, Creative writing, or Screen/play-writing. My progress to move forward without a halt will not happen again. If I am stuck I will ask for help from not just my academic Advisory but also my EOP adviser and my professors. I now notice that the faculty of Purchase are here to propel me forward and help me succeed in whatever I chose to make happen of my life, but I must be the one asking for help.
2

Do you have a question bout this letter?

I’ll give some feedback.

I don’t see anything in it that shows that you have already taken action to improve your grades.

Your middle paragraph needs a significant edit. It is full of “stuff” that just isn’t going to matter. It’s just stream Of concsciouness blather.

Stick to the facts. Tell them what you currently are doing to improve your grades, what you will continue to do, and anything else that will show that you actually have. PLAN for becoming a better student.

3

Well im trying to appeal the dismissal letter,

4

Beyond all the fluff, the reason you’re giving them is that you did poorly because you didn’t like your major. I think you could come up with a better excuse for them.

5

The fact that you are a freshman and didn’t do what you needed to do to succeed because you decided you don’t like parts of being a psychology major… that’s not very convincing. You’re a freshman, you weren’t even deep into your major courses in Psych. What happens the next time you take a course that you decide you don’t like, or don’t feel a deep connection to? Frankly, I’d be less than swayed if I was reading this as the person making the decision on your dismissal. And I’d omit that whole second paragraph. It does nothing to help your case.

6

Were you on probation first? Why exactly were you dismissed? Did you fail all of your courses, for instance?

Have you seen a therapist or anything, or do you have a diagnosis that would mean accommodations of some sort that you did not seek?

Your explanation isn’t really sufficient, sorry. I think you could take some community college classes and work and build up a record of success academically and in life, then apply to a 4 year school when you are ready.

I have a kid who did this and really experienced a turn around. You can do it, but I don’t think Purchase is going to let you back in as a result of any appeal unless you have a really good reason for failing, or a really good reason for them to believe you are going to change.

Believe me, I understand exactly what you mean about kind of freezing rather than trying out different paths. If this was a situation of depression or anxiety , or even ADHD, and a therapist could back that up, that might be different, but otherwise it could be expected to work at a course even if your interest had changed.

7

Also keep in mind that this will be a two-step process. Unless your parents are full pay (whic you are not) you have been dismissed for not meeting satisfactory academic progress. This means that you may also no longer be eligible for TAP or PELL

It looks like you are an EOP student. As part of the program you are suppose to be meeting with your advisor in addition to attending tutoring and study sessions. If you are on academic dismissal, you have messed up big time. The biggest challenge is whether or not EOp us going to be supportive of you because you did not uphold your end. You have been given an amazing opportunity and have pretty much thrown it away.

There is nothing in you letter that remotely talks about your plan to do better there is also nothing in your letter that states why you were unsuccessful in a program that has so many mechanisms in pmCr for your success that you apparently did not take advantage of.

I hope for your sake that you can pull this out and that this is s wake up call for you to do better. If you don’t , you will never have this opportunity again.

8

I’m really, really sorry that you are going through this. The transition to college can be rough for a lot of students. Clearly, none of this anonymous internet feedback can REALLY offer you quality advice, but perhaps the suggestions can be food for thought.

Other suggestions above are VERY useful, particularly the one about a “diagnosis” that might serve your cause.

I’d suggest your approach/letter be edited in two ways:

(1) be more specific about WHY you did not seek help before and WHY you know that you will now. Oftentimes, when you are in the middle of a difficult semester, it can be hard to take the right steps. What was your story? Did you feel overwhelmed? Embarrassed? Unsure where to start? You need a better explanation than just that you didn’t really like your major. Then, for how you would change things moving forward: maybe you can have a tutor from Day 1 who is not course-specific, but more general - someone who perhaps is an upperclassman at the school who can help you go through your syllabi, set up preliminary meetings with each professor, arrange for any course-specific assistance you might need, learn how to monitor progress regularly, form study groups, etc.

(2) I’d also suggest framing the letter somewhat differently - more like making suggestions, and asking for feedback. For example, asking to return to the same school but also acknowledging that that may not be feasible, and so also asking for assistance in formulating a plan for a FUTURE return, after, maybe, a successful semester or two at a local community college.

Best of luck to you. Please remember that life is not linear. So, so many people change schools for any number of reasons, just as so many change jobs/careers after graduation. Some careful self-examination about what you really want and how you might be able to get where you want to be…I know, easier said than done!

9

Some of this is general, and some specific to your situation.

  1. search this topic on CC and you will see many other posts on academic appeals
  2. Make sure your letter states what the issue was that caused you to have academic difficulties
  3. Did you talk to your professors/dean of students about the issue?
  4. Did you make use of the many resources your school has? if not, why not?
  5. Find out what those resources are…e.g. counseling center, talking to professors, talking to your adviser, withdrawing from class, talking to dean, maybe taking incompletes,
  6. State how you would use those in the future
  7. How are you addressing what caused the issue?
  8. Think about if you should continue at college, or take a break.
  9. Think about if you should continue at a community college, to be close to your family
  10. How is your college funded? Will that continue?
  11. If you are academically dismissed, is that after one semester? More than one? If after more than one, why didn’t you change what you were doing? If one…what were your grades?
  12. Why were you afraid to change? Do you have anxiety?

In general, keep in mind what the college wants…they want students who can succeed. They need to know that you understand what the issue was, know now the resources that you can use, how the problems is resolved so you will not have academic issues in the future.

10

Part of OP’s challenges is that he was accepted to SUNY through the Educational Opportunity Program (EOP), which
provides access, academic support and financial aid to students who show promise for succeeding in college but who may not have otherwise been offered admission.

At Purchase EOP students are assigned a personal counselor who assists them with academic strategies and personal concerns. This is accomplished by student meetings with their counselor throughout the semester to discuss their progress, plans, goals, achievements, and related concerns. Most students develop a strong relationship with their EOP counselor.

Other services include:

Other Services

Tutoring: Student and professional tutors are available for students having difficulties in any of their courses.
Learning Skills Assistance: Help with academic problems and the development of study skills is available.
Academic Advisement: Advising for course selection and graduation pursuit is provided as a supplement to the student’s faculty advisor.
Student receive a peer-mentor in their first year of college.
Pre-freshman year summer program.

If OP got to the point where s/he stands to be academically dismissed, s/he literally blew off all of the supports that were provided to him, including checking in with his advisors/counselors and attending tutoring along with the various supportive programs that the program provides.

If student leaves EOP program and goes to CC, he will still have the same challenges of not receiving NYS /Federal aid for not meeting SAP so how is s/he suppose to pay for it. Op is not in a position to transfer hopefully into another EOP program. Some of the perks of EOP is that Op receives 5 years of state aid (where as non-EOP/HEOP students only receive 4 years of state aid whether or not they finish the degree) along with free grad school at SUNY. He may be better served taking the dismissal for a year, get him/herself together, get down to the root causes as to why student wasn’t doing to be successful, work on those things and then return to his/her program.

11

I don’t think this letter is half bad, honestly.

But I am concerned that you basically froze. I call it the head in sand syndrome. You need to get set up with someone to talk with at least weekly, someone who wlll go through the syllabus with you, help you plan, and keep you moving. By all means leave psychology, but if you find yourself in a class you dislike and aren’t working in again, try to withdraw before you are stuck with a failing grade. An advisor can help you make those decisions as well. It sounds like you isolated yourself and got paralyzed.

Will you have a chance to talk with someone?

Any school that has a program like EOP should also be making darn sure the students are meeting with their advisors. I feel as if the school dropped the ball a little here too.

12

@compmom what is the school supposed to do, go and drag a student out of his/her dorm to go to an advisor meeting?

For all we know, the school was sending daily reminders. I’m not sure how anyone can say whether or not the school dropped the ball.

13

That’s true. In fact, I came back too late to add the question, did your advisor try to reach you at any time? But I do think that these kinds of programs are problematic and have read a book or two on the subject. Colleges want to be inclusive and diverse, but students who are admitted to something like the EOP program may need some, um, assertive supports. Kids from prep schools are used to seeking help from adults. Not everyone is.

14

While you may have read a book of two on the subject, for the past 50 years there have been low income / first generation/ academically disadvantaged students in opportunity programs who would disagree with your assessment.

I literally know and assisted hundreds of students into getting into the NYS Opportunity Programs (SEEK, College Discovery, EOP and HEOP) and every student on my caseload that I have assisted in getting into an opportunity program, all of them have not only graduated college, but have gone on to successfully complete graduate/professional school. There is also a lot of data on the overall success of opportunity programs that show that Opportunity Program students in NYS graduate at a higher rate than non-opportunity program students because of the academic and financial supports provided.

I definitely recommend that if you are an educator or assist in providing college access to young people, especially in NYS that you watch the documentary Second Chances: The CUNY SEEK and College Discovery Story

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtGbYi4KtlE

The Percy Ellis Sutton SEEK (Search for Education, Elevation, and Knowledge),which set the foundation for not only other NYS opportunity programs but similar programs across the country (California UC and CSU has an EOP program) is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. SEEK is a state-funded educational opportunity program of the City University of New York. The Program provides access to the University’s senior colleges under non-traditional admissions criteria for talented and motivated high school graduates who need academic and financial support.

Remember the California, SUNY and CUNY are the 3 largest public university systems in the country with CUNY being the largest Urban public university in the country

EOP= Educational Opportunity Program (which started in ~1968) Full funding for Educational
Opportunity Programs on SUNY campuses was approved by the New York State Legislature in 1970. The purpose for the Educational Opportunity Program is to fulfill New York State’s commitment to provide access to higher education for economically disadvantaged students who possess the potential to succeed in college, but whose academic preparation in high school has not fully prepared them to pursue college education successfully. The primary mission of EOP is to facilitate the recruitment, enrollment, retention, and graduation of these students. With this year’s addition of 4 new programs, there is an EOP program and almost every 4 year and the majority of 2 year colleges that are part of the SUNY System.

The Arthur O Eve Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP) is a partnership between the State of New York and its independent colleges which provides economically and educationally disadvantaged residents the possibility of a college education. Some of the 64 Partner Colleges in NYS include- Columbia, Cornell (all colleges), Barnard, NYU/NYU Poly, Bard, Hamilton, Colgate, Fordham, Bard, Pratt, RIT, Marist, Syracuse & the New School.

The program is designed for students regardless of race who have potential but have been educationally and financially disadvantaged and didn’t have the luxury of being prep school students to seek help from adults or college educated parents who know how advocate to receive supportive services for them.

15

From your post, it would seem we agree on all points. Perhaps my post wasn’t clear.