Satisfactory Academic Progress
Standards of satisfactory academic progress (SAP) must be maintained to remain eligible for Federal Student Aid (Title IV Aid). William Jewell evaluates progress annually to correspond with the end of a payment period. For most students this evaluation coincides with the conclusion of the spring semester. There are two requirements for SAP: 1) grade point average and 2) pace of completion and maximum timeframe.
Grade Point Average Requirement for Federal Student Financial Aid Eligibility (Qualitative Measure)
All students must maintain a minimum overall GPA for financial aid eligibility as follows:
- After first academic year (two semesters) – GPA of 1.5
- After second academic year (four semesters) and beyond – GPA of 2.0
Federal law specifies that by the end of the second academic year (regardless of how many credits the student has accrued), the student must have an academic standing consistent with the requirement for graduation (i.e., a minimum institutional GPA of 2.0).
Pace of Completion Requirement and Maximum Timeframe for Federal Student Aid Eligibility (Quantitative Measure)
Federal regulations require two quantitative measures 1) pace of completion and 2) maximum timeframe. Students should self-evaluate and monitor their status during and after each term to allow for any adjustments that can be made to remain in good standing.
Pace of Completion
To remain eligible for Federal Student Aid, a student is required to progress toward the completion of an academic program by successfully completing at least 66.67% of all credits attempted. The pace of completion is measured at each evaluation to ensure that the student completes degree requirements within the maximum timeframe. The pace of completion is calculated by dividing cumulative credits successfully completed by cumulative credits attempted.
Maximum Timeframe
Federal Regulations require that the maximum timeframe to complete an educational objective cannot take longer than 150 percent of the published length of the educational program for a full-time student. A program consisting of 124 credit hours, therefore, must be completed within 186 credit hours for financial aid eligibility.
Letter Grades and Financial Aid Eligibility
The following letter grades will count for determining eligibility for financial aid: F (Failure); PR (Progress); W (Dropped the Course); WD (Withdrew from the College); FA (Failed under Pass/Fail Option); NR (Not Reported). The letter grade AU (Audit) will not count. Hours for repeated courses will count toward the full-time student status in determining financial aid eligibility as follows:
(1) a previously passed course may be repeated once; (2) a failed course may be repeated until it is passed. For part-time enrollment, a repeated course may be counted in the total number of hours in assessing the enrollment status as long as the student has never passed the course.
Academic Status and Financial Aid
A student re-admitted to the College after academic dismissal from Jewell is not eligible for College, state or federal financial aid until the minimum overall institutional GPA of 2.0 is met and the required number of credit hours is satisfactorily completed.
A transfer student must have a minimum 2.0 cumulative GPA to be eligible to apply for financial aid. All transferable credit hours attempted and completed must be used to determine whether student has met the minimum standard for academic progress to receive financial assistance.
Failure to Complete Courses
Financial aid is awarded with the expectation that the student will attend school for the period in which the assistance is awarded. If students do not attend all their classes, the aid must be recalculated based on actual attendance. Students who do not attend a course or courses are not eligible to receive financial aid for the course(s).
The decision to withdraw from classes is an academic decision that may have both short- and long-term implications on the student’s ability to receive federal aid. A student may wish to consult both with the Financial Aid Office and with the academic advisor before making a final decision.
The long-term implication of not completing courses is that course withdrawals may result in a loss of federal aid eligibility. For a complete explanation, please refer to the prior section on Academic Progress and Financial Aid.
The short-term implication is that William Jewell College is required by federal regulations to complete a Return of Title IV Funds calculation for students who receive federal aid but do not complete more than 60% of the enrollment period for which they have received federal aid. For more information, see William Jewell College’s Return of Title IV Federal Student Aid. A balance will be created in the student’s account if financial aid funds are returned. A student cannot register for subsequent courses with a balance due. Future financial aid cannot be used to pay a past balance; it must be paid by the student.
If a Return of Title IV Funds is calculated and federal aid is reduced, the return of financial aid to the Federal Government will be completed within 45 days.