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407.708.2045
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Standards of Academic Progress for Financial Aid Recipients

Federal regulations require that all students who receive financial assistance demonstrate that they are moving through their academic program at a reasonable rate and are making progress toward their degree. A student must maintain Standards of Academic Progress (SAP) in a course of study regardless of whether the student received financial aid or transferred in from another institution (see section for Transfer Students below).

Standards of Academic Progress (SAP) Monitoring

Standards of Academic Progress (SAP) at Seminole State will be monitored at the end of each term and must include the student's total academic history (Seminole State, AP, dual enrollment/transient and transfer hours). To receive federal aid, a student must be meeting SAP regardless of whether he or she previously received federal aid.

In order to be considered in good standing, a student must meet ALL THREE of the following criteria when SAP is checked at the end of every semester:

• Maintain a 2.0 cumulative financial aid grade point average.* Due to the new regulations regarding SAP, you will have two GPAs: a Financial Aid GPA and an academic GPA. The academic GPA is the one that will be on your unofficial and official transcripts and may be different from the Financial Aid GPA. The Financial Aid GPA is the one that will be used to evaluate SAP. If you are unsure of your financial aid GPA, please seek the advice of a Student Success Specialist.
  
  
• Complete 67 percent of all credit hours attempted including transfer hours. This is called the pace. The chart below demonstrates 67 percent for attempted hours in a semester. The left column is the attempted hours and the corresponding number in the right column is the number of hours you must successfully complete with a 2.0 GPA to maintain SAP.
  
  
• Not exceed the maximum time frame for degree completion. A student may receive financial aid for up to 150 percent of the required number of credit hours needed to graduate from a specific program of study. See section for Transfer Students below.

*Financial Aid GPA versus Academic GPA

Why is there a difference between the Academic GPA and the Financial Aid GPA? The financial aid GPA considers all college credits attempted, including remedial, dual enrollment, repeated coursework and all transfer hours. The academic GPA does not count most of these. SAP is measured against the financial aid GPA and not the academic GPA.

67 percent Completion Chart for Successful Progression Toward a Degree or Eligible Certificate by Term
(Pace)

Effects of Withdrawals and Failures

Withdrawing from classes after the add-drop period may affect your financial aid eligibility. Withdrawing does not differentiate between withdrawing yourself and an administrative withdrawal done by the instructor or other college official. It is very important to familiarize yourself with the withdrawal policy in the College Catalog and understand all the ramifications.

It is important to keep the following information in mind whenever you're faced with the decision about whether or not to reduce your enrollment:

• If you've borrowed a Federal Stafford Loan to pay for college, you will enter the grace period on your loans if you withdraw or drop below half-time status (less than six hours). Typically, this grace period lasts six months; after the grace period ends, you must begin making your monthly payments.
• If you receive loans, Pell Grant or any other Federal student aid, you may be required to repay all or a portion of those funds depending on when you drop or withdraw from class. If you receive Bright Futures, you might have to repay the funds given to you for any classes from which you have withdrawn or failed.

From an SAP perspective, classes from which you withdraw or fail have a grave impact on your ability to receive financial aid:

1. GPA: An "F" earned in any class will contribute toward reducing your GPA.
2. Pace: Your pace is calculated by dividing the number of hours earned by the number of hours attempted. Each "F" or "W" on your transcript increases the number of hours attempted but has no effect on the number of hours completed. This will decrease your pace, which must be a minimum 67 percent.
3. Maximum Time Frame: You cannot receive financial aid for hours in excess of 150 percent of the hours required for your program plan. For example, if you are in the A.A. program and require 60 hours to graduate, financial aid cannot pay for more than 150 percent of 60 hours, or 90 hours. If you exceed 90 hours, you will not be eligible to receive financial aid. It is important to remember here that any excess hours you accumulate at Seminole State will follow you to any institution to which you transfer, and you will be subject to the same SAP restrictions there as well.

It is clear to see that it is extremely important to:

• Pick a program plan and stick with it for the duration - resist changing program plans or majors.
• Avoid failing or withdrawing. Be sure to take only as many hours as you feel comfortable handling in a semester. If you have to register for part-time hours only, that's O.K.
• Seek out Seminole State's many free tutoring options and other acadmic assistance as necessary.
• Keep in touch with your academic advisor and instructors to assure you are on the right path to completion.

Standards of Academic Progress (SAP) Warning Period

Students who drop below SAP standards for the first time will be placed on Financial Aid Warning at the end of the semester in which they did not meet the standard(s). They will be eligible to receive federal financial aid funding for the following semester in order to have an opportunity to bring up their GPA and pace.

Students who do not meet SAP after this period of Financial Aid Warning will be denied eligibility for future semesters and placed on Financial Aid Suspension status until they meet the SAP standards or submit an SAP Appeal that is approved.

Financial Aid Suspension

Students who do not meet the SAP standards the Warning period will not be awarded Federal financial aid until they meet SAP standards or submit an SAP Appeal that is approved. Students who submit an SAP Appeal that is approved will be placed on an Academic Plan. The student will continue receiving financial aid as long as he/she successfully complies with the prescribed Academic Plan requirements, meets SAP standards or graduates.

Academic Plan

Academic Plans will be assigned only if the student has an approved SAP Appeal. The Academic Plan is designed to ensure that the student will be meeting SAP by a specific point in time. Seminole State’s Academic Plan requires that students:

• Maintain a 2.0 financial aid GPA or higher for each class taken under the plan for that semester. If the student is on an Academic Plan due to a GPA deficiency, then the student must maintain a 2.5 semester GPA for each semester he/she is on an Academic Plan.
• Complete 100 percent of enrolled coursework for that semester (no failures or withdrawals)
• Enroll only in the specific courses required for their current degree program each term

As long as the student adheres to the Academic Plan outlined by the three conditions above, the student may remain on the Academic Plan until he or she re-establishes eligibility for financial aid. The student will not have to re-appeal each term.

A student may not change his or her program plan while under an Academic Plan.

If the student does not adhere to the Academic Plan (i.e., meet all three of the criteria above), the student will be placed on Financial Aid Suspension. As a result, the student will lose financial aid eligibility.

Transfer Students

Enrollment Services evaluates and posts transcripts from all prior institutions. All posted transfer credit hours on official transcripts are considered attempted and earned and are used to calculate SAP. Transfer credit hours and grades are included in the minimum cumulative financial aid GPA, pace and maximum time frame calculations. This is regardless of when or where the classes were taken or whether or not financial aid was used to pay for those classes. This also includes transfers from foreign schools.

If a transcript is provided after financial aid is awarded, SAP will be reviewed at the end of the currently enrolled term. If the student is not making SAP, then the student's financial aid will be suspended. This is why it is very important to make sure all official transcripts are received by Records and Registration before your first term begins.

Repeated, Audited, Consortium, Remedial Courses, Enrollment

• Financial aid eligibility will include repeated courses which were not successfully completed. Students who are on their third attempt of a class must pay full cost of tuition according to Florida statute unless they have a successful third attempt appeal through Records and Registration.
• Financial aid eligibility will include repeating a course one time if the student earned prior credit for the course with a grade of a “D” or higher regardless of whether the class was taken at Seminole State or transferred in from another institution. All classes taken must be counted as attempted classes regardless of grade forgiveness.
• Audited courses, continuing education, or credit by examination do not qualify for Federal financial aid.
• Courses funded through a consortium agreement are included in determining academic progress. All attempted transient enrolled hours at another institution are added to the attempted Seminole State hours, and these hours will affect a student’s completion ratio. To avoid Financial Aid Suspension for insufficient hours completed, students must submit their grades (official transcript) from the other institution to Records and Registration for all terms that they were enrolled in transient hours.
• All attempted remedial credits will be included when evaluating SAP. A maximum of 30 remedial credit hours, excluding English as Second Language (ESL) courses may be funded.
• Enrollment in any part of term will be considered in the respective fall, spring, or summer term to be evaluated for SAP.

Second Degree-Seeking Students

If a student has completed an A.S. degree and is now seeking an A.A. degree (or vice-versa), the student will be allowed to receive financial aid for the second degree as long as the total hours combined from the first and second degree do not exceed 150 percent of the hours requried for the second degree.

If this is the case, the student may pursue the second degree under an Academic Plan. An Academic Plan for second degree-seeking students means that:

• Student must maintain a minimum 2.0 cumulative financial aid GPA
• Student cannot fail or withdraw from any class
• Student cannot change program plans and must take only those classes that are mandatory under their current program plan

As long as the student adheres to the three bullet points above, he or she will not have to petition each semester for reinstatement; however, his or her aid cannot be renewed each semester until grades are posted and evaluated. It is recommended that students find alternative ways to pay for their classes so the classes will not drop.

Re-Establishing Eligibility

A student who is on Academic Plan or Suspension status may regain his or her financial aid eligibility after any semester in which he or she meets SAP and regains good standing status (2.0 cumulative financial aid GPA, 67 percent completion rate, and not exceeded 150 percent of program plan). 

	GPA Calculator To find out what it takes to raise your GPA, use the GPA Calculator.
	Pace Calculator To find out how many credits you need to get back to the 67 percent completion rate, use the Pace Calculator.

Financial Aid Appeal Process

Federal regulations allow students to appeal the denial of their Federal financial aid if they have extenuating circumstances. The circumstances include, but are not limited to, illness, death in the immediate family, call to active military duty, natural disaster or other circumstances that are beyond the student's control.

Deadline to Submit an Appeal: The deadline to submit an SAP appeal is listed on the checklist item under the student's MySeminoleState student portal. Normally, the deadline date is 15 days after grades post for the term. SAP appeals will not be accepted after the deadline date posted on the SAP checklist item.

1. To determine if you are able to appeal your SAP suspension, complete the SAP Appeals Assessment at http://www.seminolestate.edu/financial-aid/sop-assessment.php.
2. If the Assessment determines that you have a valid reason to appeal, the Financial Aid Appeal Form will be made available to you. Print out the form and attach documentation that supports the specified circumstance(s) to the appeal form. An appeal form will not be considered if no documentation is attached. Examples of documentation could include an obituary notice, divorce decree, or a letter from a physician, attorney, social services agency, etc.
   
   The supporting documentation submitted with the appeal form is vital, and can be the difference between the appeal being approved or denied. The documentation must contain at least the following three components:
   

• The nature of the circumstances that caused the student to fail SAP standards
• The timeline of when these circumstances occurred
• Corrective action(s) taken to assure that these circumstances have been resolved and no longer exist

     3.  Submit the appeal form and the supporting documentation to a Student Services representative on any campus.

The SAP Appeal Committee will review the appeal along with the supporting documentation. If the appeal is submitted before the deadline date, the student will receive notification of the decision within three days through his or her MySeminoleState email account. If the appeal is approved, the student will be placed on an Academic Plan (see Academic Plan above). If the appeal is denied, the student will not be eligible for Federal financial aid until he/she is able to meet SAP standards. The Committee’s decision is final.