The Office of
Financial Aid
Satisfactory Academic Progress for Federal Student Aid
The following Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) policy measurements are effective July 1, 2012. These measurements shall be used to determine student eligibility for all need-based and federal Title IV financial assistance, unless the terms of a particular grant or funding source state otherwise.
Title IV of the 1992 Higher Education Amendments requires that institutions establish a minimum standard of “Satisfactory Progress” for students. A minimum standard for “Satisfactory Academic Progress” (SAP) is defined as follows:
“SAP” is a measure of whether a student is progressing adequately toward completion of his or her degree. It is determined in terms of grade point average and course completions. For a student to be eligible for Title IV aid during his/her attendance at Wiley College, the student must matriculate based on the established policy.
Frequency of Monitoring and Evaluation
Wiley College will review a student’s progress at the end of each academic year. For this purpose, the Wiley College academic year is defined as two semesters of 15 week of course work occurring between August 1st and May 31st.
Transfer students must meet the same SAP requirements and maximum enrollment limit as other students.
At the end of each academic year, the Financial Aid Office determines whether or not a student is making SAP towards his/her program of study and is thus eligible to continue to receive federal student financial aid during the next academic year. A student progress is measured both qualitatively and quantitatively according to the eligibility stated below
The following are considered when evaluating a student’s satisfactory academic progress:
- Grades of A, B, C, or D are considered attempted and earned hours.
- Withdrawals (W), Incompletes (I), Failures (F), No Credit (NC), and In Progress (IP) grades are considered attempted but not earned.
- Audited courses are included in the attempted hours but not in the total of hours earned.
- Remedial courses are included in the calculation of both attempted and earned hours.
- Transfer credits are included in the calculation of both attempted and earned hours and the cumulative GPA.
- If the removal of an incomplete grades (“I”) makes the student eligible, the student must make sure the Financial Aid Office is informed of the removal of the incomplete grade.
| Cumulative Hours Attempted | Minimum Hours (%) to Complete | Minimum Cumulative GPA |
|---|---|---|
| 1-59 | 67% | 1.75 |
| 60 and above | 67% | 2.00 |
SAP Requirements: Undergraduate
Wiley College will determine the eligibility of a student for financial assistance based on the following:
Figure 1
Academic Amnesty:Academic Amnesty only impacts a student’s GPA measurement. For financial aid purposes
ALL HOURS attempted (see pace measure above) are considered.
Pace
In calculating the student’s pace, all hours attempted, including courses from which the student withdrew, received a grade of no credit (NC), incomplete (I), and/or in progress (IP) are considered.
Credit Completion Rate Each student is required to complete successfully 67% of all credit hours attempted, including transfer hours accepted towards the student’s major. Attempted hours are credit hours that the student is enrolled in after the drop/add period and includes grades of A, B, C, D, F, I, and W. See Figure 2 for example.
| 18 | 36 | 60 | 84 | 106 | 130 |
If a student has attempted these hours:
Then the student must have successfully completed at least these hours:
Figure 2
| 12 | 24 | 40 | 56 | 71 | 87 |
Note: Repeating courses that have already been passed with a grade of D or better will decrease the credit completion rate.
Maximum Time Frame
The maximum timeframe a student is eligible for financial aid is 150% of the published length of the educational program in which the student is currently enrolled. Most baccalaureate degrees require a minimum of 125 credit hours; and associate degrees require a minimum of 65 credit hours. Therefore, a student working towards a bachelor’s degree is eligible for financial aid up to 188 credit hours attempted. A student working towards an associate degree is eligible for federal aid up to 98 semester hours attempted. Students should also be reminded that only hours needed to complete the declared degree, including those attempted from previous institutions, will be counted in the total hours and therefore calculation by Wiley College.
To determine the maximum allowable hours for a specific major, refer to the University Catalog locate, the total hours required for the degree, and multiply that number by 1.5.
The maximum timeframe is not increased for changes in major, double majors, or adding a minor in another subject area.
NOTE: MAXIMUM TIME FRAMES FOR SECOND DEGRESS WILL BE DETERMINED ON A CASE-BY- CASE BASIS.
Financial Aid Probation
If the students appeal is approved and the student can reestablish SAP in one semester the student will be placed on SAP Probation (this type of probation is for financial aid purposes only and is separate from academic standing with university).The probationary period shall commence for one payment period. (Example: if a student completes an appeal for the fall semester, at the end of the fall semester the student’s SAP will be evaluated to determine if he/she is meeting minimum SAP requirements or successfully completing an academic plan to receive aid for the upcoming spring semester). The student’s progress will be evaluated again at the end of the spring semester to determine if he/she is meeting minimum SAP requirements. If not, the student shall be placed on financial aid suspension.
Financial Aid Suspension
If, at the end of the probationary period a student still does not meet all minimum cumulative SAP standards, the student will be placed on Financial Aid Suspension and will become ineligible for federal financial aid. Financial aid, once lost, cannot be reinstated retroactively for previous semesters. The student must pay expenses incurred while a student’s aid is suspended until the minimum SAP standards are met again. This policy applies to all students a Wiley College receiving financial Aid.
Satisfactory Academic Progress Review
- Satisfactory academic progress will be reviewed at the end of the spring semester for currently enrolled and re‐admitted students.
- Transfer students will be reviewed for satisfactory academic progress once all official transcripts have been received and grades have been posted in Jenzabar.
Appeal Procedures
Undergraduate students who fail to meet the SAP standard may appeal the suspension of their student financial assistance funds. Letters of appeal must be based on some type of mitigating circumstances that impacted negatively upon the students’ ability to meet the required standards. Examples of such circumstances are; (1) death/prolonged illness of an immediate family member, (2) medical illness by the student that created undue hardship, (3) natural disasters or other acts of God beyond the control of the student (i.e. hurricanes, earthquakes, etc) or other personal or family matters/situations which may have negatively impacted the students ability to meet the required standards.
- Student must submit a typed letter of appeal to the Office of Financial Aid 711 Wiley Avenue Marshall, Texas 75670.
- The appeal letter must describe the student’s special or mitigating circumstance. It must include how the circumstances affected the academic performance: include dates and time-periods involved. An appeal should explain how the situation has changed and the steps being taken to resolve the circumstances. If these items are not being addressed, the appeal letter will be considered incomplete and returned to the student. Incomplete appeals will not be reviewed.
- Students must attach all necessary documents. Important documents such as police reports, death certificates, birth certificates, medical records, medical bills, court or police documents, letters from third party professionals on his/her letterhead and other documents should be attached which may help with the Committee’s decision.
- Students must submit a written letter of appeal along with any requested documentation to the Office of Student Financial Aid & Scholarship within fifteen (15) business days of the notification, in order to have a decision made relative to financial aid assistance. (This does not apply to students that are on Financial Aid Suspension).
- If students are notified of financial aid ineligibility due to failure to meet minimum SAP requirements, during the registration period, students must submit a written letter of appeal along with any requested documentation to the Office of Student Financial Aid & Scholarship within three (3) business days of the notification, in order to have a decision made relative to financial aid assistance. (This does not apply to students that are on Financial Aid Suspension).
- The students’ letter of appeal will be reviewed within two (2) weeks of receiving the request and all necessary documents by the Financial Aid Appeals Committee. If any of the requested documentation is not received within the requested timeframe, a decision of denial will be rendered due to lack of sufficient evidence.
- Students who are DENIED financial aid due to appeal results and/or placed on Financial Aid Suspension are responsible for payment of tuition and fees. (Please see business office for possible payment arrangements)
- Notification of the decision will be sent to the student’s Wiley’s email account. All SAP Committee’s decisions are final. Explanation of justification for the decision is not provided to the student or parent(s).
Appeals can be approved for one or two semester. Financial aid will be awarded on a probationary basis.Terms and conditions of appeal approval will be included in an Academic Contract that the student must sign before financial aid will be awarded.
If student has attended any other colleges or universities, an official transcript from each college/university must be submitted to the Admissions office and must be posted in Jenzabar. If transcripts are unavailable, the appeal will not be accepted. Also, if the student does not disclose all previous schools attended, any approval appeal will be marked “VOID”, and the student will be required to appeal again with all previous enrollment history being considered.
Academic Plan
Students may be placed on an academic plan upon submission of granted appeal. If it is numerically impossible for a student to resolve all deficiencies during one term of attendance and the student’s reason for filing an appeal is appropriate according to federal regulations, the students may be placed on an academic plan with the end goal being to resolve all deficiencies. An academic plan varies in length and is determined by the Financial Aid Office.
Students granted aid eligibility through an academic plan will be reviewed after each semester to ensure progression with Academic Plan stipulations. If the student does not maintain Academic Plan stipulations then Financial Aid eligibility will be cancelled immediately.
NOTE: All academic plans will be disseminated and evaluated by the Dean of the Division of General Education and Special Studies.
Students who demonstrate mitigating circumstances that interfered with academic performance will have financial aid eligibility reinstated until the next SAP review period. To maintain financial eligibility a student must meet the SAP policy or successfully follow an approved Academic Plan.
SAP Probation
A status assigned to a student who fails to satisfy SAP requirements, and who has successfully appealed and had eligibility for aid reinstated. Reinstatement of aid during probationary period may not exceed one semester.
Reinstatement of Financial Aid without a Successful Appeal
Students who appeal and are denied become eligible to submit a subsequent appeal once completion of the following requirements are met at his/her own expense (no financial aid will be granted at Wiley College to those on financial aid suspension):
- Enroll and successfully complete at least six (6) hours with at least a 2.0 GPA for each semester (minimum requirement).
- Complete more hours and earn a higher GPA to remedy the SAP deficiency (determined on a case-by-case basis).
- When the required course work is completed, the student is eligible to file an appeal and the appeal must be approved for financial aid to be reinstated.