Business ProfileforSaint Mary's University

I attended SMU for a total of three years. I spent over 30,000$ at this post-secondary school. My attendance was perfect, and my grades were A’s. Regardless of always paying my tuition and student fees on time, I feel the barriers, inequality, and lack of support, and how they handled complaints and suggestions unbearable to endure while paying this amount for education. After facing seven family deaths and severe trauma, I faced severe structural stigma, including being completely refused and denied mental health support at the counselling centre. I was unsure how a campus could justify taking the student fees from my account and denying support after that amount of grief and trauma while I had no support at all. I had multiple learning disabilities and requested accommodations numerous times. I was completely refused accommodations for a total of two years due to being unable to pay the 590$ fee. Due to going two years without my appropriate accommodations due to poverty, regardless of requesting them repeatedly through email, my GPA suffered greatly. I had to work extra hard to raise my GPA, which was rather tiring. When I voiced a concern about my experience of paying 30,000$ and expecting the campus to be supportive and accommodating of students who have barriers, including structural stigma and several learning disabilities, and who are currently living in poverty, I felt the replies were completely adverse. Their justification for deciding to reply to my valid concerns with EXCESSIVE adverse responses escalated the situation. I was shocked, alarmed and devastated by the reactions I would be given to the valid concerns. Willingly choosing to escalate valid complaints with adverse reactions instead of giving an apology for the student’s experience creates a complete lack of resolution. Providing EXCESSIVE prolonged extreme Adverse responses or completely ignoring students for voicing valid complaints = escalates the situation.