ACADEMIC PROGRESS
A Survival Guide
Dissecting the Academic
Progress Petition
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Instructions
Very Important !!!
Dear Student: To be considered for further financial aid, you must complete
an Academic Progress Petition. DO NOT submit this petition until Sections
I, II, and III are completed, including signatures. Section IV should be
completed only by Post Baccalaureate students. Incomplete petitions will
be returned by mail, unreviewed. Return completed petitions to the office
of Student Financial Affairs. Complete petitions will usually be evaluated within
five working days. You will be notified of the outcome of your petition by mail.
If you need further assistance completing this form, please visit our office
(8:00 am - 5:00 pm, Mon - Fri) or call (352) 392-1275.
Yes….We really do return incomplete petitions!
Section I - General Information
Student should complete this section and sign.
Signature
This information section is very important. The
contact information can be crucial to obtaining a
faster ruling when additional information is
required.
Section II - Statement of Appeal
Student needs to specify term. It does make a difference.
Student also needs to fully explain progress issues.
****Additional paper can be attached to the petition.
Section III - Academic Advising
 This section is absolutely necessary to determine department
support. We cannot approve a petition if the student’s
department does not support it.
Are
Classes
Required?
Signature
Number of
Hours Needed
Contact
Information
Section IV - Post Baccalaureate
Students
 Must be filled out for post baccalaureate petitions
Classification
Terms
Required
(Must Choose 1)
Contact
Information
Signature
Post baccalaureate petitions have the least
amount of subjectivity to them.
Section V - Academic Progress
Committee Action
 Completed by the Academic Progress Committee
Decision
Postbac
Category
Signature
Date
This section must be completed before the
petition is sent to scanning.
Academic Progress Issues
 Maximum Hours for Degree
 Percent of Hours Completed
 GPA Under 2.0
 Postbaccalaureate Status
Students can have multiple issues and must address each issue.
Maximum Hours for Degree
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Federal Regulations state that a student has 150% of his or her
program to graduate. That means for a degree requiring 120 credits,
a student has 180 credits to complete the program.
This rule applies to Graduate and Professional students, also.
Includes all hours attempted at all schools.
Includes dual enrollment / advanced placement classes
Per federal regulation, all hours are used to calculate the maximum
hours, even if the student did not receive aid for the hours. This is
specifically mentioned in federal regulations and cannot be ignored.
Percent of Hours Completed
This is the most common academic progress issue.

Completion Rate = All earned credits /all attempted credits
Example: 102 earned credits/140 attempted credits = 72.8%
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Includes all attempted UF hours and all attempted transfer hours
after admission to UF
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Incomplete Grades (I’s), Non-Grades (N’s) Withdrawals (All W’s),
Drops (W’s), Failed Classes (E’s, E1’s, E0’s, + U’s), and Repeated
Courses (R’s) are counted in attempted hours only and bring the
completion rate down.
Percent of Hours Completed
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A 75% completion rate is the minimum completion rate to receive
federal financial aid.
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Most students receive a warning the first semester that they fall
below 75% and a termination the following semester if they have not
corrected the deficit.
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All hours are used to calculate the completion rate, even if the
student did not receive aid for the hours.
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When flagged for academic progress for completion rate, students
must explain all deficient classes, not just the one class or one
semester that caused them to fall below the standard.
GPA Under 2.0
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GPA is calculated using all grade points earned in all classes
after a student starts UF.

Transfer hours from other schools never count in UF GPA.

A student can have a 4.0 at a community college, then transfer
to UF, get a 1.99 the first semester, and be put on AP Warning
for GPA if they have attempted 60 or more hours anywhere.
GPA does not transfer in.

GPA = total number of grade points / total number of credits attempted

Drops and withdrawals are not counted in GPA calculations.
GPA Under 2.0
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N*’s, NG*’s and I*’s are not calculated in GPA. Grades with
asterisks are not counted in GPA. They must be made up the
following semester that they were given or the asterisk falls off and
the grades become punitive.
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I’s, NG’s and N’s are calculated as E’s (0.0) for GPA purposes.
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Again, the rule applies to attempted credits, not earned credits and
is not declared major specific.
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All graduate students and transfer students with AA degrees are
considered to have more than 60 hours by default.

All credit hours are used for the calculation even if the student did
not receive aid for the hours.
A= 4.0; B+= 3.5; B= 3.0; C= 2.5; C= 2.0; D+ = 1.5; D= 1.0; E= 0.0
Remarks Notes and AP screen!
 All relevant Academic Progress notes are recorded here.
Student was
also approved
for additional
hours.
Example: This student has a 61% completion rate and
must complete 12 hours during the semester and reach 63%
rate to meet expectations of the approved petition.
Additional Assistance in NERDC
and/or ISIS/Admin Screens
Current Student Record
Current Class /
College
0= non-Degree
6= Postbac
Student must be
degree seeking to
receive aid.
Current Class
Load
A “ZW” during add/drop
does not affect AP. A
“W”, however, is a drop
or withdrawal after
drop/add and is punitive.
Current Classes (Make note of dropped classes)
Student Transcript
Transcript
provides a
timeline to
compare
explanation
and/or
documentation.
Semester
Grade
Class
Student Transcript
Watch for
repeated
classes.
They lower
completion
rates.
Common Questions
Can a Student Petition the
Committee’s Ruling?
Yes.
 A student petitions a Academic Progress Committee ruling simply by
submitting a new petition. The committee evaluates the new petition
in conjunction with the previous petition.
 There is no limit to the number of appeals that a student can submit.
 If there is not a satisfactory resolution, a student can also request to
meet with an Academic Progress Committee member and address the
specifics of his or her case.
Are Extenuating Circumstances
Always Enough?
No
 Explanations are only half of the equation.
 A petition must also demonstrate a plan to improve or overcome
the obstacle(s) presented. It is not enough to state the problem and
not offer a solution.
 Common examples of solutions are:
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Counseling
Study Groups
Changing Majors
Medication Adjustments
Environmental Changes
Reducing Work Hours
Reducing/Eliminating Extracurricular Activities
 Many problems have natural solutions such as a broken leg. Many
do not.
What is an Extenuating
Circumstance?
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A Serious Documented Health Issue
A Interpersonal Problem
A Documented Death
Financial Hardship
Documented Disabilities
Adjustment Issues (To a Point)
Change of Major (With support of new college and documented progress)
Transfer Hours Not Relevant
Multiple Degrees/Minor(s)
Thesis Taking Longer Than Anticipated (with support of college and
demonstrated progress)
Dual Enrollment/Advanced Placement Hours
These are only a few examples. This list is not all inclusive.
Common Examples of NonExtenuating Circumstances
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Dropping classes to protect GPA
Changed majors and didn’t need the classes anymore
The classes were difficult
“Personal problems”
Reaching too many hours in old department to transfer to new
department
Academic advisor told me to drop
I need the money
I didn’t go to class
Restating the problem (Example: “My completion percentage is
low due to the fact that I dropped 3 classes and failed 4 others.”)
“I have no extenuating reasons”
When is Documentation Required?
It is always preferred for a student to provide documentation.
 Many situations arise where documentation is a reasonable
expectation. Example… Pregnancy, death, birth, divorce, medical
emergency, disabilities, etc.
 Sometimes, however, documentation is not available or nearly
impossible to obtain. Example... A family member’s addiction, an
untreated medical problem, a death overseas, etc. Personal statements
can suffice in these instances on a case by case basis but may require
an outside party to verify.
 If a situation continues from one petition to another, documentation
may be required even if the first petition was approved without it.
 Too often, legitimate academic progress petitions are denied due to
lack of supporting documentation.
What Sort of Documentation is
Valid?
These are only a few examples. This list is not complete.
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Medical Records
Legal Records
Police Reports
Letters
Birth/Death Certificates
Passports/ Other proofs of travel
Pay Stubs (verifying explanation, ie reduction in work)
Leases (demonstrating new living environment)
Paperwork for Medical Withdrawal From University (Not just the
application but the actual paperwork or an approval)
When Does A Student Need A
PLAN OF WORK?
In these cases:
 A student will need a Plan of Work completed by his/her
Academic Advisor for Max Hours to ensure the student is
on track. GPA and Completion Rate also need them to
outline courses that will help them to successfully meet the
conditions. These are indicated with an opt. doc 29.
 A NEW Plan of Work must be completed and submitted if
the courses do not match the Petition’s approved load. SFA
does not make assumptions that certain courses are the
equivalent to the approved course. These usually require
second visits to the Academic Advisor.
Questions