Satisfactory Academic Progress
The Higher Education Amendment of 1965, as amended, mandates institutions of higher education to establish minimum standards of "Satisfactory Academic Progress" for students receiving financial aid. UIW makes its standard applicable to all federal, state, and institutional financial assistance programs for the purpose of maintaining a consistent policy for all students receiving financial aid.
To make Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP), students must meet all of the following standards:
Academic Standards:
Students must maintain a cumulative GPA minimum requirement at the end of each academic year for all credit hours attempted, including transfer work (Undergraduates, 2.0; Graduate students, 3.0; Professional students, the GPA set by their respective programs). If the cumulative GPA drops below the minimum requirement, the student will no longer be eligible for financial aid.
Maximum Time Frames:
The number of credit hours a student attempts may not exceed 150% of the number of credit hours required for graduation in their program of study, as published in the University Catalog. It must also be mathematically possible to complete degree requirements within 150% as published in the University Catalog.
That is, if the published number of hours required for graduation is 120, a student may not attempt more than 180 credit hours (120 x 1.5 = 180) and continue to receive financial aid. All periods of enrollment must be considered, even those for which the student did not receive financial aid, as well as hours transferred in from another school. If the number of attempted hours reaches 150% of the hours required for graduation, or it is mathematically impossible for the students to graduate before attempting 150% of the required hours, the student will no longer be eligible for financial aid.
Attempted hours include all registered hours per semester whether or not the student earns a grade or receives credit.
The following are considered hours attempted, but not completed:
"F" grades for undergraduate students, "D" or "F" grades for graduate students
"AU" Audited courses
"W," "U," or "IP" grades
Completed hours include all semester hours for which the student earns a grade:
"A" through "D" grades for undergraduate students
"A" through "C" grades for graduate students
"P" or "S" passing with credit
All transfer hours accepted for credit
Enrollment Status:
During the academic year (Summer, Fall and Spring) a student who receives financial aid must successfully complete a minimum of 67% of all attempted coursework. If the number of completed hours drops below 67% of attempted hours, the student will no longer be eligible for financial aid. (See completion definitions above).
Examples:
If a student attempts (registers for) 30 credit hours in an academic year, they must complete a minimum of 21 credit hours (67% x 30 = 20.1 = 21) in order to make SAP for the year. NOTE: All partial credit hours earned will be rounded down to the nearest hour.
If a student attempts 36 credit hours, they must complete a minimum of 25 credit hours (67% x 36 = 24.12 = 25) to be making SAP.
If at the end of the second year a student has attempted 60 credit hours, they must have completed a minimum of 41 credit hours (67% x 60 = 40.2 = 41) to be making SAP.
The calculation of earned hours divided by attempted hours will be rounded up/down according to traditional rounding rules to determine if the student has met the 67% minimum.