Satisfactory Academic Progress

Students are considered to be meeting Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) standards if the following three requirements are met:

• Course Completion Rate
• Cumulative Grade Point Average
• Maximum Timeframe Standard

Compliance is measured at the end of each semester. Students who meet all three requirements are placed on Good Standing

Students’ total earned (completed) hours must be equal to or greater than 67% of the cumulative total of students’ attempted credit hours for all periods of enrollment at College of DuPage. Hours attempted are courses for which any grades appear on your college record, including transfer credits and remedial courses. All attempted hours are counted for all terms, even those for which a student did not receive financial aid, as well as those waived under the  Grade Forgiveness Policy.

• Grades of A, B, C, D, P and S are considered earned hours.
• Grades of F, I, R and W are NOT considered earned hours.
• W grades from the Spring 2020 semester using a COVID-19 drop code will not be included in the calculation.
• Students with an incomplete class at the end of a term who are placed on warning or suspension must notify the Office of Student Financial Assistance when a grade change has been posted.
• Repeated courses count as attempted hours and the higher grade is used in the GPA calculation.
• Non-credit courses are not counted in attempted hours or GPA.
• Below 1000 level courses and pass/fail courses count in the attempted hours.

Each student must maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.0. All attempted hours are counted for all terms, even those for which a student did not receive financial aid, as well as those waived under the Grade Forgiveness Policy.

Students who cannot complete their program within 150% of the program’s standard length (calculated as program length x 1.50) are not eligible to continue to receive aid. Therefore, a student becomes ineligible for financial aid whenever it becomes mathematically impossible to complete their program without exceeding the maximum timeframe. All attempted hours are counted for all terms, even those for which a student did not receive financial aid, as well as those waived under the Grade Forgiveness Policy. It includes completed, failed and withdrawn classes. Transfer hours that are accepted count as both attempted and completed hours. Students may receive financial aid for up to 30 remedial credits, which are not computed into the maximum timeframe requirement. Eligible English as a Second Language coursework is not included in attempted hours. The total attempted hours are not adjusted for a student who changes majors or pursues an additional degree. 

Examples of maximum attempted hours:

• Certificate Program requiring 30 credit hours: 30 X 1.50 = 45 Maximum Credit Hours Attempted.
• Degree Program requiring 64 credit hours: 64 X 1.50 = 96 Maximum Credit Hours Attempted.

Students will be placed on financial aid Suspension status once it becomes mathematically impossible to complete their program without exceeding 150% of the required credit hours needed for the degree or certificate. The College strives to notify students who are close to reaching the maximum timeframe limit, however, students exceeding the maximum timeframe status may lose financial aid eligibility without benefit of a Warning term. 

Note: Students with a bachelor’s degree must appeal to receive aid due to the maximum timeframe standard associated with the federal standards of Satisfactory Academic Progress. College of DuPage uses all attempted credits, including transfer credits, when calculating the maximum timeframe for a student's program. Since College of DuPage only offers certificate and associate degrees, students that have already earned a bachelor’s degree have exceeded the maximum timeframe for the program they are seeking at College of DuPage.

Students failing to meet CGPA and/or completion rate requirements are placed on financial aid Warning for one semester. While on Warning, students are eligible to receive financial aid. College of DuPage does not have a Satisfactory Academic Progress forgiveness policy. Students on Warning will remain on Warning even after an extended absence of enrollment.

The Warning semester is meant to inform the student of academic problems.

Students who meet both the CGPA and completion rate requirements after the Warning semester will be returned to Good Standing.

Students who fail to meet CGPA and/or completion rate requirements after the Warning semester will be placed on financial aid Suspension. Students who cannot complete their program within 150% of the program’s standard length will also be placed on Suspension. College of DuPage does not have a satisfactory academic progress forgiveness policy. Students on Suspension will remain on Suspension even after an extended absence of enrollment.

While on Suspension, students are not eligible for any federal and certain forms of state financial aid.

A student’s eligibility can be reinstated from suspension status by:

• Enrolling at the student’s own expense and successfully completing the appropriate number of credit hours needed to achieve the 67% standard and/or 2.0 CGPA. (Not applicable to students on suspension for the maximum timeframe requirement.)
• Submitting an appeal that is approved by the Financial Aid Appeals Committee resulting in the student being placed on Financial Aid Probation.

This status is assigned to students who have successfully appealed their Suspension.

Eligibility for financial aid is reinstated on a probationary basis, for the period covered in the student’s approved academic plan. If students fail to meet the requirements of the approved appeal they will once again be placed on financial aid Suspension.

Students who are meeting the requirements of their approved academic plan but have not yet reached Good Standing status after the plan expires, may continue to be eligible for aid on a term-by-term basis under Probation status after a new academic plan has been submitted and approved. Students remaining on Probation status must continue to meet the requirements of their approved appeal each term, or they will once again be placed on financial aid Suspension.

Students may appeal their Suspension status if circumstances beyond their control (i.e. serious illness or injury, death of an immediate family member, etc.) prevented them from maintaining a 2.0 CGPA and/or completing 67% of their attempted coursework and/or completing a program within 150% of the maximum timeframe. Circumstances that will not be considered in an appeal on their own include, but are not limited to, being unprepared for college, not aware of SAP policy, lack of attendance due to work, etc. All appeal circumstances must be fully documented.

The appeal must: 

1. Clearly state the extenuating circumstances which prevented you from meeting the SAP requirements.
2. Clearly state what has changed in your situation that will allow you to successfully complete all future attempted classes.
3. Must explain the reason for exceeding the maximum timeframe requirement, if appealing the maximum timeframe requirement.
4. Include all supporting documentation.
5. Include an academic plan approved by an advisor or counselor.

Documentation of the circumstances and an academic plan must be provided prior to the consideration of an appeal. Once your appeal is complete, you may submit it to the Office of Student Financial Assistance. Complete appeals must be submitted by the following cutoff dates:

• Sept. 30 for the Fall semester
• Feb. 28 for the Spring semester
• June 30 for the Summer semester. 

Appeals are considered for the semester in which they are submitted and are never retroactive to previous terms. Appeals submitted after the current term cutoff date may be considered for the following term.

Federal regulations require the financial aid committee to consider several factors when reviewing an appeal, including whether or not a student will be able to meet CGPA and/or course completion rate requirements within the student’s allowable maximum timeframe. All appeal documentation must be submitted directly by the student. The committee will not contact third parties (doctors, counselors, family members, etc.) for additional information. All committee deliberations are confidential, and the decisions of the committee are final. Students will be notified of appeal results through their College of DuPage e-mail.

 

SAP Appeal Process Form

Request to Amend Appeal