Federal and state regulations require institutions of higher learning to establish standards of Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) for students receiving financial aid. All students receiving financial aid must maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress. New students and/or transfer students are considered to be making Satisfactory Academic Progress their first term of enrollment. This SAP procedure applies to all students regardless of course credit load, e.g. full- time or part-time. Students must declare a major and be working toward the completion of that major to receive financial aid. Failure to maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress will result in the loss of federal and state aid after the warning term.
Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) is comprised of the student’s cumulative grade point average (GPA) – (qualitative standard), the student’s completion rate – (quantitative standard), and maximum time frame (quantitative standard).
Qualitative Standard
To maintain eligibility for financial aid with the qualitative standard, a student must maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.0. The cumulative grade point average will be used to determine the academic standing for financial aid eligibility. The cumulative GPA is computed by the Registrar’s Office and is calculated on a 4.0 scale (A=4.0, B=3.0, C=2.0, D=1.0, F=0.0 and WF=0.0). The cumulative GPA will be calculated at the end of each semester for Satisfactory Academic Progress. All attempts of repeated courses are included in the GPA calculation.
Grades of Incomplete (I), In Progress (IP), Withdrawal (W), Withdrawal Passing (WP), Transfer (TR, TRA, TRB, TRC, TRM), Exempted (EXE, EXP), Articulated Credit AC (ACA, ACB, ACC), Audit (AU), Satisfactory (S), Unsatisfactory (U), and COVID-19 Withdrawal (Z) have no impact on a student’s GPA.
Quantitative Standard
Completion Rate – In addition to meeting the qualitative standard, a student must satisfactorily complete at least 66.67% of all attempted credit hours. A student’s course completion rate will be evaluated at the end of each semester by dividing the number of cumulative hours a student has successfully completed by the number of hours the student has attempted.
Satisfactory completion is defined as earning grades of A, B, C, S, AC (ACA, ACB, ACC), TR (TRA, TRB, TRC, TRM), EXE, and EXP.
Courses attempted include any course in which grades of A, B, C, D, F, W, WP, WF, I, IP, S, U, AC (ACA, ACB, ACC) and TR (TRA, TRB, TRC, TRM) were given.
Grades of AU, Z, EXE, and EXP are not counted in attempted hours.
Maximum Time Frame - The purpose of Federal Title IV and State Grant financial aid programs is to assist students in meeting their educational expenses while they progress toward timely completion of their educational objectives. For that reason, federal and state regulations require students to complete their educational objective within a maximum time frame of one and one-half times the length of the program in which they are enrolled. Program length is measured in credit hours and is determined by the number of credit hours required for completion of the program. Maximum time frame is calculated by multiplying the number of credit hours required to complete the program by 150%. For example, if a student is enrolled in a diploma program that takes 60 semester hours to complete, that student may receive financial aid (if eligible) for 90 semester hours before financial aid is suspended.
Once a student is found to have exceeded the maximum time frame allowed, or if it is determined that a student cannot mathematically complete his/her program of study within 150% of the program’s length, then he/she will become ineligible for financial aid. In this situation, if extenuating circumstances prevented the student from completing his/her program within the specified time, and the student is within 1-2 semesters of graduating, he/she may appeal the loss of financial aid.
If a student graduates from one program and re-enrolls in another program, the maximum time frame will be reset. However, all previous credit hours attempted that can be counted toward the new program requirements will be included in the new time frame calculation. (For example, if a student graduates from the Accounting diploma program, and then re-enrolls in the Accounting degree program, all previously taken courses that count toward the degree are counted in the time frame calculation for the new program.)
Financial Aid Warning
Students who fail to meet the minimum cumulative GPA of 2.0 or fail to complete a cumulative minimum of 66.67% of attempted credit hours at the end of a semester will be placed on financial aid warning for the subsequent semester of enrollment. During the warning period, a student remains eligible for financial aid and must improve his/her academic standing to meet the minimum requirements. An appeal is not required for this status. Students will be notified in writing via mailed letter or student email when they are placed on warning status. If the 66.67% completion rate and the 2.0 cumulative GPA are achieved the following semester, the student is placed in good standing.
Financial Aid Suspension
Students who fail to meet the qualitative or quantitative SAP requirements for at least two consecutive terms of enrollment are placed on financial aid suspension and are not eligible for any form of financial aid (HOPE, Pell, FSEOG, FWS). Students will be notified in writing via mailed letter or student email when they are placed on financial aid suspension. Students have the right to appeal a financial aid suspension if there are extenuating circumstances that prevented them from meeting the SAP requirements.
State aid programs (HOPE Scholarship and HOPE Grant) have program specific requirements regarding GPA. This minimum GPA requirement is in addition to maintaining Satisfactory Academic Progress requirements stated above. Students must earn a 3.0 GPA at all checkpoints in order to maintain eligibility for HOPE Scholarship funding. Refer to the HOPE Scholarship regulations for specific eligibility requirements. Students receiving the HOPE Grant must maintain a 2.0 GPA at all checkpoints.
Appeal of Financial Aid Suspension
Students for whom financial aid eligibility has been suspended have the right to petition for reinstatement of financial aid eligibility. An appeal committee will be appointed by the Vice President for Student Affairs to consider the appeal. Students must submit to the Financial Aid Office a completed and signed Appeal of Financial Aid Suspension form, a written explanation describing the basis of the appeal, and supporting documentation. Examples of extenuating circumstances include but are not limited to:
- Death of a relative
- Hospitalization of self or immediate family members
- Personal injury or illness
- Natural disaster
- Military service, if withdrawn due to military service
- Unexpected work issues beyond the student’s control.
The appeal should also include an explanation of what has changed that would allow the student to demonstrate Satisfactory Academic Progress during the next semesters of enrollment. Appeals submitted without documentation will be automatically denied. The appeal committee will evaluate each appeal on a case-by-case basis. The decision of the appeal committee is final and cannot be appealed further.
A student for whom an appeal for financial aid reinstatement is denied may continue enrollment at CPTC at their own expense.
Financial Aid Probation
This status is reserved for students who have successfully appealed and only require one semester to regain eligibility. After one semester on probation, if the student does not regain eligibility, the student will go on Financial Aid Suspension.
Academic Plans
Students whose appeal is approved may be placed on an academic plan. An academic plan is meant to help the student obtain Satisfactory Academic Standing within 3 academic terms or by the end of the academic plan. An academic plan will always require 100% completion as part of the requirement, which means a student cannot earn an F, W, or I. The student must be able to be in good standing by the end of the academic plan if followed successfully. If the student does not meet the conditions of the plan, then their financial aid will be denied for the following semester. Each academic plan must have an end date.
In some instances, the appeal committee will determine that it is mathematically impossible for the student to get back in good standing within the three semesters required by the procedure. In these instances, the appeal will not be approved, and the student will be notified.
Notification
Students are expected to know and understand the SAP procedure. After grades are posted each semester staff in the Financial Aid Office will notify a student in writing by mailed letter or by their student email address if he/she is in violation of the standards of SAP and of the termination of eligibility to receive financial aid. Students who do not read the notification because they did not check their mail or student email are not excused from financial aid probation or suspension. Students may check their SAP status at any time by logging into Stingray Experience and reviewing information on the Financial Aid card.
Audit Courses
Students are not eligible to receive financial aid for courses that are being audited. Audited courses are not included in the number of hours attempted or earned for Satisfactory Academic Progress determination. Once completed, students receive a grade of AU for audited classes.
Transfer Credit
Transfer credit will be included in the cumulative course completion (quantitative) percentage when determining eligibility for financial aid. If no credits are transferred in, then SAP will be evaluated solely on classes taken at CPTC. Transfer credits must also be included when determining progress toward the maximum timeframe allowed. Grades assigned to transfer credits include TR, TRA, TRB, TRC, or TRM.
Incomplete Courses
Any course with a grade of I (Incomplete) or IP (In Progress) is counted in hours attempted (quantitative). When an I or IP is changed to an actual grade, the course grade will be calculated in the cumulative grade point average (qualitative).
Grade Changes
Once a grade change has occurred, it is the student's responsibility to contact the Financial Aid Office to determine if a grade change results in a change of eligibility for financial aid.
Withdrawals
Any course with a W is considered as hours attempted. Students should be aware that excessive withdrawals from classes could result in the loss of financial aid at some point in future semesters due to the completion rate (quantitative standard) for SAP. Students who are unofficially withdrawn and are awarded all F’s or a combination of F’s, and W’s will be subject to the college’s Federal Refund Policy.
Repeating Courses
Repeated courses are included in the qualitative and quantitative calculation. Students may repeat each previously passed course only once for Title IV purposes.