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Policy Basics
Federal regulations require all schools participating in Title IV federal financial aid programs to have a Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) policy that conforms to the two requirements detailed below. These requirements apply to all students as one determinant of eligibility for financial aid.
Your satisfactory academic progress status is based on your entire academic record, at all schools attended, regardless of whether you received financial aid.
Check your status each semester! SAP is calculated each semester after grades have been posted to academic history by the registrar. One week after the last day of final exams is a good time to check your status.
Two SAP Requirements Quantitative and Qualitative
1. Quantitative Requirement – The quantitative requirement has two parts, a maximum time frame and a required completion ratio. The requirements differ for undergraduate and graduate students.
Undergraduate Students
Maximum time frame (maximum attempted credit hours) - You must earn your degree before reaching 180 attempted credit hours, which includes credits attempted at any school prior to and while enrolled at USF.
Once you reach the maximum attempted credit hours, you are no longer eligible for financial aid as an undergraduate student. Federal regulations stipulate that the maximum time frame for an undergraduate student cannot exceed 150% of the published length of the academic program.
Completion Ratio – You must earn at least 67% of all credit hours you attempted at any school. This is a cumulative calculation and includes all credits attempted and earned at all schools.
Graduate students
Maximum timeframe (maximum attempted credit hours) - You must earn your graduate degree within the time limitations set by the Graduate School for your graduate program.
Completion ratio – You must earn at least 67% of all attempted credit hours.
2. Qualitative Requirement – The qualitative requirement sets a minimum Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) for the degree level at which you are classified. Note: This is the CGPA used to determine your USF academic status, and does not include grades from courses taken at another school.
Undergraduate Students - The CGPA required by USF for you to continue to enroll and to earn a USF degree.
Graduate students - The CGPA requirement specified by the graduate school for continued enrollment to earn a graduate degree.
Policy Details:
When is SAP Determined?
Initial Review – You are considered to be meeting SAP during your first USF term.
End of Every Semester Review – Your SAP status is calculated at the end of each semester, after grades are posted to academic history by the registrar, which is normally 3 business days after the end of final exams.
What happens when you do not meet the requirements?
Maximum Time Frame (maximum attempted credit hours) - When you have attempted the maximum credit hours, you are no longer eligible to receive financial aid.
An E-mail warning notice will be sent when you first fall within 24 credit hours of the undergraduate maximum, unless you were admitted with more than 156 credit hours.
A warning status is normally posted in OASIS when you are close to the maximum time frame. However, if your completion ratio is also low, and you are in warning or final warning status for low completion, the warning for maximum attempted hours may not show because only one warning status can be posted.
Low Completion Ratio - There are two warning statuses for low completion ratio before your eligibility for financial aid is cancelled. NOTE: You remain eligible to receive financial aid while in warning status.
Warning Status – The first time you fall short of meeting the required completion ratio, your status is Warning.
Final Warning Status – After attending one semester on Warning status, if you do not meet the required completion ratio, your status is Final Warning.
Cancelled - After attending one semester on Final Warning status, your completion ratio must be at least 67% of all attempted credits or your eligibility for financial aid is cancelled.
How do you regain eligibility?
Petition – If extenuating circumstances prevented you from meeting the requirements, you may file a SAP Petition, available on the Financial Aid web site. The petition requires you to provide information and documentation of extenuating circumstances for specific semesters of study.
Note: Petitions should be submitted within the first 4 weeks of classes. Although petitions received late are reviewed, your eligibility for some aid programs may not be reinstated if the petition is approved.
You change from undergraduate to graduate – If you reach cancelled status as an undergraduate, and then are admitted to a graduate degree program, you will be eligible to receive financial aid as a graduate student, if your graduate application status is final. However, if your undergraduate degree is not recorded at the time of the SAP calculation, you may need to notify us (in writing) after your degree is posted to OASIS. We can then verify your degree status and change your SAP status.
Is there extended eligibility for a 2nd bachelors degree?
No, there is not extended eligibility for a 2nd undergraduate degree. However, if you are admitted to a limited access 2nd degree program with a specifically designated sequence of courses, such as the accelerated nursing 2nd degree, your eligibility can be extended to cover the required courses for the 2nd degree only. This requires a petition. Petition - You may petition to have your undergraduate maximum time frame extended If you are classified as post baccalaureate status in a limited access degree program, or if considerable time has passed since your 1st degree and job related issues necessitate a 2nd undergraduate degree instead of a graduate degree.
Attach to your petition, a signed typewritten statement from your academic advisor for the new degree that clearly specifies the required courses and credit hours for you to earn the 2nd BA degree.
NOTE: This is a one-time option and does not apply to multiple bachelor’s degrees, extended study in the same degree program, or continued undergraduate study to raise your GPA or to prepare you for admission to a graduate degree program.
Academic Circumstances that Affect Your Status:
Changes in major, double majors or minors – may cause you to reach your maximum attempted hours, and lose your eligibility before earning a degree.
Incomplete grades, missing grades, failing grades, course withdrawals – all reduce your completion ratio, because they are counted as attempted, but not earned credits. They also count against your maximum attempted hours.
Repeated courses - count as attempted credit hours each time you register for them and count against the allowed maximum. This can also reduce your completion ratio because repeated credits count as earned credits only once.
Academic amnesty/renewal credits – count against your maximum attempted credits, and also lower your completion ratio because the credits count as attempted but not earned. These credits can only be reviewed and adjusted by petition.
Transfer credits, and credits taken while cross-enrolled, enrolled in study abroad, exchange programs or transient study- count toward your maximum attempted credits, and your completion ratio.
Note: Credits count as attempted, but not earned, until your official transcript is reviewed and processed by the USF undergraduate admissions office. This could cause you to fall in a warning or cancelled status for completion ratio.
Courses taken for pass/fail grades– count against both your maximum attempted credits and your completion ratio.
Remedial courses – do not count as either attempted or earned credits.
If your degree program requires more than 120 credits - an adjustment can be considered with a petition and written official documentation from the appropriate USF academic department that specifies the required credits for all students in that degree program.
Late posted grades or grade changes – require that you submit a written request to have your SAP recalculated after you have confirmed with the registrar that the grade change has been posted to your academic record.
updated:
svincent -
2/19/09 mpj |
