Title:    #VI-10A.  Standards of Satisfactory Progress for Financial Aid Recipients

 

 

 

Satisfactory Academic Progress

 

Federal regulations require that students who receive financial aid from WVU Parkersburg must remain in good academic standing and must make satisfactory progress towards the completion of their academic goals. These standards are called “satisfactory academic progress.” These standards apply to all students who receive assistance from any federal financial aid program or other program administered by the college that requires a determination of satisfactory academic progress as a criterion for eligibility.

 

The federal government defines satisfactory academic progress as maintaining a minimum quantitative (completion rate and maximum hours) and qualitative (grade point average) standard. This standard for WVUP students consists of three parts and is defined as follows:

 

1.  Quantitative Standard - Pace

 

Pace is the rate at which a student is progressing toward program completion. Satisfactory academic progress requires all students receiving financial aid to maintain a 75% completion rate. This means a student must complete 75% of all credits attempted, as scheduled after the close of registration, with passing grades of A, B, C, D, P or X. Grades that will be counted toward hours attempted include F, W, FIW, and R.  A grade of I for incomplete will be evaluated once it has been updated to reflect a permanent grade.

 

2. Qualitative Standard – GPA

 

All students receiving financial aid must maintain a minimum of a 2.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale. Individual programs may have individual standards for program participation.

 

3. Quantitative Standard - Maximum Time Frame

 

Students are also limited to the number of credit hours for which they can receive financial aid. A student is ineligible to receive financial aid after she or he has attempted 150% of the credit hours required to complete the degree program. The maximum time frame is one and a half times the degree program length. The standards are listed below:

 

One Year Certificates and Two Year Degrees (AAS, AA, or AS)

Students are expected to complete their program within 108 credit hours.

                           

Four-Year Degrees (bachelor’s level)

Students are expected to complete their program within 191 credit hours.

4. Review of Progress

 

Students will be subject to review under this policy at the end of each semester. The quantitative and qualitative standards used to judge academic progress will be cumulative and will include all periods of the student’s enrollment, even periods in which the student did not receive financial aid funds or enrollment periods at other institutions.

 

5. Repeated Courses

 

Students are permitted to repeat a course for which they received a grade of D or F if they originally took the class within their first 60 credit hours of study.   Repeating courses must be in accordance with Answer Book #VI-6B. The grade achieved in the repeated course is recorded on the academic record; however, the original grade also remains on the academic record. The course with the highest grade is used in determining cumulative credit earned and in computing the GPA. All repeated courses are included in hours attempted.

 

6. Appeals

 

Students who fail to meet the standards of satisfactory academic progress and are terminated from financial aid may appeal the termination to the Financial Aid Director who will submit the appeal to the Financial Aid Appeals Committee. All appeals must be in writing and must be initiated before the deadline stipulated in the notification of ineligibility.

 

The Financial Aid Committee will convene promptly (within two weeks) to hear all appeals. The Committee will normally consider factors beyond the reasonable control of the student to be grounds for an appeal. The student must be prepared to offer any proof to substantiate the appeal.

 

When granting a student’s appeal, the Financial Aid Committee may impose certain requirements or restrictions as conditions to granting the appeal. Documentation should be submitted with the letter of appeal and must include an unofficial copy of the student’s transcript.  The student may submit statements from medical professionals to bolster their appeal but must not submit full medical records.

 

After appeals or exceptions are granted, students are placed on “Financial Aid Probation.” Failure to consistently make satisfactory progress towards meeting the standards allowed would cause the student to be declared ineligible for future financial aid.

 

Consistent progress for Financial Aid Probation is defined as:

 

·        Earning a 2.5 semester GPA for each semester while on probation

·        Not withdrawing from a class without the express permission of the Office of the Vice President of Student Services

·        Not earning an F, FIW, or R for any class.

 

Students whose appeals have been denied by the Financial Aid Committee may make a final appeal to the Office of the Vice President of Student Services.

7. Changes in Standards

 

The Standards of Satisfactory Progress for financial aid recipients that are in effect at the beginning of the fall semester for each academic year will remain in effect for the remainder of that academic year  unless superseded by state or federal authority.