Satisfactory Academic Progress for Financial Aid

Satisfactory Academic Progress Requirements

Federal regulations require that all students make Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) in a program of study to maintain eligibility for Title IV (TIV) federal financial aid. North Central State College has established policies to monitor the academic progress of students who apply for and receive federal financial aid. These standards are designed to ensure that students are making progress toward completion of their program of study and apply to the following financial aid programs: Federal Pell Grant, Federal Supplemental Opportunity Grant (SEOG), Federal Work-Study (FWS), Federal Direct Loans (subsidized and unsubsidized), and Federal Direct Parent Loans for Undergraduate Students (PLUS).

Satisfactory Academic Progress assessment at North Central State College occurs at the end of each payment period/semester (summer, fall, and spring) after the qualitative and quantitative measures have been reviewed. Failure to meet SAP standards after each semester enrolled may result in loss of TIV financial aid eligibility. Students applying for financial aid must be making satisfactory progress as outlined in this policy. It is the student’s responsibility to understand and adhere to these standards to continue receiving federal financial aid at North Central State College.

Definitions

Credit hours attempted: those in which a student is enrolled at the end of the College’s 100% refund period

Credit hours earned: those in which a student has received at passing grade

Passing grades: A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D+, D, D-, P.

Non-passing grades: F, NP, ADW, W, WNP, I.

The three standards for SAP at North Central State College are cumulative grade point average (GPA), completion rate, and maximum timeframe.

Cumulative Grade Point Average (GPA) – Qualitative Component of SAP

Students must maintain the minimum cumulative GPA of 2.0. North Central State College does not round up (ie. 1.99 does not meet the 2.00 requirement).

Minimum Completion Rate for Attempted Credit Hours (Pace) – Quantitative Component of SAP

All students must progress at a pace that allows the student to complete their program within the maximum allotted timeframe. The completion rate, or pace, is calculated by dividing the number of successfully completed credits by the number of attempted credits. Students must successfully complete at least 67% of the courses they attempt at North Central State College. North Central State College does not round up (ie. 66.9% does not meet the 67% requirement). 34 C.F.R. §§ 668.16(e)(2)(ii)(B), 668.34(e)

The following are NOT “successful completion” for purposes of financial aid Standards of Academic progress: F (failure), WNP (withdrawal for non-participation), I (incomplete), NP (non-passing), ADW (administrative withdrawal), W (withdrawal).

Consequences of Not Meeting GPA or Completion Rate (Warning, Suspension)

Official Satisfactory Academic Progress assessment at North Central State College occurs at the end of each payment period/semester. Failure to meet SAP requirements after each semester enrolled may result in loss of TIV financial aid eligibility.

First-time students must earn at least one credit hour in the first semester enrolled at the College

Consequence of noncompliance: Financial aid eligibility terminated.

The first-time students fail to meet GPA and/or completion rate at the end of a semester, they are placed on a SAP Warning. Students are notified of this warning status via their North Central State College email address as well as their MyNC student portal.

Consequences of noncompliance with either standard: Students will be issued formal Warning and will remain eligible for TIV financial aid.

Students who fail to meet GPA and/or completion rate while on Warning Status are then placed on a SAPSuspension Status (ie. not meeting SAP requirements) and will be ineligible for TIV financial aid. Notification of this Suspension Status as well as the requirements to regain TIV eligibility via appeal process will be emailed via their North Central State College email address as well as their MyNC student portal.

Consequence of noncompliance: Financial aid eligibility terminated

Reviewing Academic Progress to Determine Compliance

Student academic progress is reviewed at the end of every semester for students who received aid that semester.
All courses bearing academic credit are reviewed, whether or not a course qualified for financial aid, and whether or not a course is considered college-level.

Incompletes, withdrawals, and repetitions all count as attempted credits for purposes of the maximum attempted credit hour allowance and affect quantitative progress.
34 C.F.R. § 668.16(e)(2)(ii)(D)

Incompletes

An Incomplete, or “I” grade, is given when a student is unable to complete the work for the course within the semester or term due to extenuating circumstances. The student contracts with the instructor to complete the additional work within a specific length of time which generally cannot exceed six weeks from the end of the term. Once the student completes the work, the instructor replaces the “I” with an earned grade.

For purposes of calculating GPA, “I” grades are neutral for the length of the contract determined by the student and the professor. If the student fails to submit the work and have the “I” grade updated before the contract completion date the “I” is replaced with an F and counts as a failing grade. Grades of “I” do not advance the student toward graduation; therefore, those grades are recognized as non-progress grades. When an “I” is replaced with a passing grade, GPA is calculated according to the numeric value of the new grade.

Withdrawals
ADW, W, WNP grades do not figure in the calculation of a student’s GPA.

ADW, W, WNP grades count as attempted credits but not as successfully completed credits. Thus, are non-progress credits.

Repeated Courses

Attempted credits are accumulated each time a student takes a course.

Only the grade received for the most recent attempt of the course is calculated in the student’s GPA. Subsequently, only the most recent attempt of a course can count as successfully completed. All prior attempts of the course are considered non-progress credits. However, if a student does not pass the most recent attempt of a course, all attempts of the course result in non-progress credits. This is true even if the student passed the course on a prior attempt.

Successful completions of the course result in successfully completed credits, and all unsuccessful attempts of the course result in non-progress credits.

Regulations allow student’s in term-based programs to receive financial aid for repeating previously passed coursework. The repeated courses would also count toward a student’s enrollment status for financial aid eligibility, regardless of whether additional credit could be earned. Students may receive Title IV aid for only ONE repeat of a previously passed course. Students who repeat failed coursework may receive aid for multiple attempts.

34 CFR 668.34(a)(6)

Treatment of Transfer Students

All courses that appear on the student’s academic record (whether earned at the current institution or transferred from a previous institution) will count towards the pace of progression and maximum time-frame requirement, even if the student received no federal financial aid for those courses.

Credit hours that are accepted from another institution will be counted as both attempted and completed hours. GPAs and grades do no transfer in, only credit hours.

The analysis is completed using the satisfactory academic progress module within the college’s student information system (Ellucian Colleague).
Based on the review, statuses are assigned for both the academic and the maximum timeframe standards. Students are notified of their status via email to their NCSC email as well as their MyNC student portal.
The statuses are:
Academic

P0: meeting SAP standards
- PA: previously not meeting SAP standards, now meeting standards (academic eligibility for aid restored, or previous warning or probation or plan status canceled) – student notified
- W: previously meeting SAP standards, now not meeting standards, on Financial Aid Warning – student notified
- S1: no passing grade earned in first term of attendance (Supplants Warning) Aid eligibility suspended – student notified
- S2: previously on Warning, still below standards Aid eligibility suspended – student notified
- S5: previously on Financial Aid Probation, still below standards Aid eligibility suspended – student notified
- S8: previously on a SAP Plan, terms of plan not met Aid eligibility suspended – student notified

Should a student’s grade be changed after the computation, a supplemental computation is run for that student, and if necessary, revised statuses are assigned.

Regaining eligibility

Those whose financial aid eligibility has been terminated for noncompliance with these standards may regain eligibility by:

Bringing one’s academic record into compliance with the standards by achieving success in additional coursework; or
Submitting a written appeal to the college and receiving approval of the appeal.

Appealing the loss of aid: Academic Standards

Most students who lose aid eligibility due to lack of SAP are invited to appeal for additional eligibility and are sent an appeal form with their notice of suspension.
Students may submit the SAP Appeal Form for the following reasons:

Serious illness
Accident or injury
Medical or family emergency
Death of a student’s relative
Federally-declared disaster directly affecting the student and/or his family (U.S. Dep’t of Educ., Dear College Letter GEN-04-04)
Other personal crisis beyond the student’s control

The appeal form requires the following:

Name, NCSC Student ID and academic plan agreed upon by student and advisor. The academic plan of courses which if followed will bring the student’s academic record in line with the standards. Academic plans can cover from two to four semesters. Besides mandating specific courses, plans stipulate expected grade and completion percentage progression.
Statement detailing the unusual or extenuating circumstances that prevented the student from meeting the required SAP standards including: what specifically happened that prevented the student from meeting the required SAP standard and when the occurrence happened (month and year).
Statement describing what has changed (or what will change) that will ensure success during the next semester at NCSC.
It is highly encouraged to provide documentation or evidence of the circumstances.

The review committee who is comprised of student affairs administrators, will review the appeal and make a determination.
A probation appeal form is provided to those who are close to meeting the academic standards. Should the appeal be approved, the student is given one additional semester of eligibility to meet the standards. If the student is not making SAP at the end of the probation semester, their aid is suspended again. They can appeal again using the plan appeal form.
Should the student fail to achieve prescribed progression benchmarks on their academic plan, aid will again be suspended.
- A student whose aid is suspended for failing to fulfill their academic plan may appeal again, but not until they successfully complete at least nine additional credit hours without Title IV or college financial aid.
Both the probation and appeal forms require the student to identify the academic and personal factors that kept him/her from meeting the satisfactory progress standards. The forms also ask the student to explain why they feels they can now be successful when they could not do so previously. The plan appeal form contains a grid for outlining the proposed schedule of courses.
After a plan has been adjudicated by the appeal committee, a notice is sent to the student explain the decision of the committee. A copy of the plan is sent to those whose plan appeal was approved. Approvals require students while on plan to complete a 100% of attempted hours each term to ensure graduation within the maximum timeframe. Approvals also require students to maintain a term GPA of 2.0 to be consistent with graduation requirements.
A student wishing to adjust their plan is required to receive approval of both their academic advisor and the financial aid office.

Maximum Timeframe (Degree Completion within 150% of the average length of the Program) – Quantitative Component of SAP

Students must complete their program within 150% of the published credit hour length of the program. . Attempted credits are counted for all courses in which a student receives a grade (passing and non-passing) with the exception of audited courses.

Students cannot use financial aid to pay for courses that are not part of the degree/certificate program in which they are declared. These courses are, however, counted in the SAP calculation. Taking courses that are not applicable to the program of study will cause students to reach this maximum timeframe faster.

Students pursuing one of our bachelor’s programs must have least a 2.0 GPA at the end of the second year.

Examples:

Program Requirement 150% of Program Requirement 60 credit hours 90 credit hours 30 credit hours 45 credit hours

Students may exceed the maximum timeframe for their program by changing programs, transferring in hours, enrolling in additional programs, and/or taking courses that do not apply to their current program. Students who exceed the maximum timeframe for their program will be placed on a Maximum Timeframe Termination and will be ineligible for financial aid. Since all coursework over the lifetime of a student’s career at North Central State college counts towards these SAP standards, the only way a student exceeding the maximum timeframe SAP requirement can regain TIV financial aid eligibility is through the Maximum Timeframe Continuing Appeal process.

Reviewing Academic Progress to Determine Compliance

Student academic progress is reviewed at the end of every semester for students who received aid that semester.
All courses bearing academic credit are reviewed, whether or not a course qualified for financial aid, and whether or not a course is considered college-level.

Incompletes, withdrawals, and repetitions all count as attempted credits for purposes of the maximum attempted credit hour allowance and affect quantitative progress.
34 C.F.R. § 668.16(e)(2)(ii)(D)

Incompletes

An Incomplete, or “I” grade, is given when a student is unable to complete the work for the course within the semester or term due to extenuating circumstances. The student contracts with the instructor to complete the additional work within a specific length of time which generally cannot exceed six weeks from the end of the term. Once the student completes the work, the instructor replaces the “I” with an earned grade.

For purposes of calculating GPA, “I” grades are neutral for the length of the contract determined by the student and the professor. If the student fails to submit the work and have the “I” grade updated before the contract completion date the “I” is replaced with an F and counts as a failing grade. Grades of “I” do not advance the student toward graduation; therefore, those grades are recognized as non-progress grades. When an “I” is replaced with a passing grade, GPA is calculated according to the numeric value of the new grade.

Withdrawals
ADW, W, WNP grades do not figure in the calculation of a student’s GPA.

ADW, W, WNP grades count as attempted credits but not as successfully completed credits. Thus, are non-progress credits.

Repeated Courses

Attempted credits are accumulated each time a student takes a course.

Only the grade received for the most recent attempt of the course is calculated in the student’s GPA. Subsequently, only the most recent attempt of a course can count as successfully completed. All prior attempts of the course are considered non-progress credits. However, if a student does not pass the most recent attempt of a course, all attempts of the course result in non-progress credits. This is true even if the student passed the course on a prior attempt.

Successful completions of the course result in successfully completed credits, and all unsuccessful attempts of the course result in non-progress credits.

Regulations allow student’s in term-based programs to receive financial aid for repeating previously passed coursework. The repeated courses would also count toward a student’s enrollment status for financial aid eligibility, regardless of whether additional credit could be earned. Students may receive Title IV aid for only ONE repeat of a previously passed course. Students who repeat failed coursework may receive aid for multiple attempts.

34 CFR 668.34(a)(6)

Treatment of Transfer Students

All courses that appear on the student’s academic record (whether earned at the current institution or transferred from a previous institution) will count towards the pace of progression and maximum time-frame requirement, even if the student received no federal financial aid for those courses.

Credit hours that are accepted from another institution will be counted as both attempted and completed hours. GPAs and grades do no transfer in, only credit hours.

The analysis is completed using the satisfactory academic progress module within the college’s student information system (Ellucian Colleague).
Based on the review, statuses are assigned for both the academic and the maximum timeframe standards. Students are notified of their status via email to their NCSC email as well as their MyNC student portal.
The statuses are:
Maximum Timeframe
- M0: meeting timeframe standard
- A: 100% of number of attempted credit hours taken – student notified
- B: 125% of number of attempted credit hours taken – student notified
- C: 150% of number of attempted credit hours taken Aid eligibility suspended – student notified
Should a student’s grade be changed after the computation, a supplemental computation is run for that student, and if necessary, revised statuses are assigned.

Appealing the loss of aid: Maximum Timeframe Standard

Letters of warning are sent vial email to student’s NCSC email as well as their MyNC student portal who are nearing their maximum timeframe limit. Notifications are sent at both the 100% and 125% marks.
Suspension letters are sent to those who reach the 150% maximum. An appeal form is sent with the notification. Students may complete an appeal to request continuation of their aid.

The appeal form requires the following:

Name, NCSC Student ID and academic plan agreed upon by student and advisor. The academic plan of courses which if followed will bring the student’s academic record in line with the standards. Academic plans can cover from two to four semesters. Besides mandating specific courses, plans stipulate expected grade and completion percentage progression.
Statement detailing why the student has not been able to graduate within the 150% timeframe, how much additional coursework at the College is be required, and why they believe they have the ability and determination to now complete graduation requirements.

If at any point in time the Financial Aid Office determines that the student cannot complete their program within the 150% timeframe, the student will be immediately suspended from future financial aid for the remainder of their program.
Students may be eligible to complete more than one associate degree and/or certificate program at North Central State College pending approval through the Maximum Time Frame Appeal – Graduate Form, with review by the SAP Appeal Committee. The petition is required regardless of which educational institution awarded the previous credential.The appeal form requires the following:

Name, NCSC Student ID and academic plan agreed upon by student and advisor. The academic plan of courses which if followed will bring the student’s academic record in line with the standards. Academic plans can cover from two to four semesters. Besides mandating specific courses, plans stipulate expected grade and completion percentage progression.
Statement detailing why the student is pursuing the proposed academic program, their academic history, aid history, etc.

After a plan has been adjudicated by the appeal committee, a notice is sent to the student explain the decision of the committee. A copy of the plan is sent to those whose plan appeal was approved. Approvals require students while on plan to complete a 100% of attempted hours each term to ensure graduation within the maximum timeframe. Approvals also require students to maintain a GPA of 2.0 to be consistent with graduation requirements as well as academic standard requirements.
A student wishing to adjust their plan is required to receive approval of both their academic advisor and the financial aid office.