RMASFAA SUMMER & FALL
TRAINING SERIES –
SATISFACTORY ACADEMIC
PROGRESS AKA SAP
Janet Dodson, presenter
Today’s Focus
 What is Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)
 SAP Standards
 SAP Evaluation
 SAP Measurements
 SAP Communication
WHAT IS SAP?
What is Satisfactory Academic Progress
 Established U.S. Department of Education requirement
 Each school may have slightly varying internal processes based upon the school
type and organizational structure
 To be eligible for Federal Student Aid (FSA) funds a student must make and meet
SAP minimum guidelines at your school
 Your school’s SAP policy must be reasonable
 Reasonable means the policy measures both the qualitative and quantitative portions of the
student’s academic transcript
 Must be as strict as the school’s policy for determining good academic standing at
the college
 Must be communicated with all students
 Bottom line – SAP is about student success!
SAP STANDARDS
SAP Standards required in your POLICY
Grades - Qualitative
Time - Quantitative
 Require a minimum grade point average  Require a pace at which the student
must progress to ensure graduation
(GPA) at each evaluation period
within the maximum timeframe
 Programs greater than two years in
 Cumulative hours completed
length
Cumulative hours attempted
 At the end of the student’s second academic
year, the GPA must be a “C” or its equivalent;
or
 Must have an academic standing consistent
with your school’s graduation requirement
 Maximum timeframe
 Undergraduate 150% of published program
length
 Graduate based on school’s defined program
length
 Transfer students
 Accepted credits count in attempted and
completed hours
SAP Standards consideration for your Policy
 Remedial courses. Will you include them when making the quantitative assessment
– NOT required but must be consistent
 Consider the variations of enrollment status when calculating PACE
 When it becomes mathematically impossible for a student to complete his
undergraduate program within 150% of its length or within the school’s established
maximum timeframe the student is considered ineligible.
 If your school accepts appeals – an appeal from the student is possible
 Explain how the GPA and Timeframe are affected by
 Incompletes; Withdrawals; Course Repeats; and/or Transfer Credits from other schools
 Grade changes require a SAP review using the new information
SAP EVALUATION
SAP Evaluation
 Schools are required to evaluate at least once per academic year both the
qualitative and quantitative measures
 All official SAP evaluations must be completed at the end of a payment period
 A SAP review is not complete until both the Qualitative and Quantitative measure is
completed.
 The student must meet BOTH the Qualitative AND Quantitative measure in order to
be eligible for FSA
 Procedure for late notification of grade changes
SAP Evaluation
Once a year
At the end of every payment period
• Students not meeting all SAP standards  Students meeting all SAP standards continues to
are not eligible for FSA funds unless…
be provided FSA funds
•
Your school allows for Appeals
• If your school allows Appeals
•
When a student is provided FSA funds
because of a successful appeal, the school
MUST review the student's SAP at the
conclusion of EVERY payment period
•
A successful appeal is referred to as
Financial aid probation (FAP)
 Students failing to meet any/all SAP standards
are assigned the status of Financial aid warning
(FAW)
 School can reinstate FSA fund eligibility for
one payment period without a written student
appeal provided…
 FAW has not been assigned to this student at any
time in the past at this school
 FAW is only available to students making SAP in the
most recent payment period; unless this payment
period is the student’s first payment period
SAP Evaluation - Appeal
 Appeal – is a formal, written petition submitted by the student thoroughly explaining
why the student failed to meet the SAP required credentials
 Acceptable reasons for failing to meet SAP requirements include:
 the student experienced
 injury or illness;
 death of a relative; or
 other special circumstances
 Written petition must explain and document the student’s
 reason for failing to meet SAP and
 what has changed in the situation that will allow the student to make SAP at the next evaluation
SAP Evaluation
 Appeals – if allowed
 Students must document their individual circumstance(s)
 School should
 provide acceptable SAP Appeal reasons and limitations of SAP Appeals if applicable
 outline in the Financial aid suspension letter the steps a student can follow to Appeal – if Appeals
are allowed
 provide deadlines for submitting any Appeals, if allowed
 share how and when the student will be notified regarding the outcome of their Appeal
 share how the student can escalate their Appeal in the case of the original Appeal is denied
SAP Evaluation
Appeals
Financial Aid
Probation
Academic
Plans
Student not
meeting SAP.
School offers
Appeal options.
Student’s appeal
is successful.
School reinstates
FSA for one
semester
SAP
Student not
meeting SAP.
School does
not offer the
APPEAL option
Student pays
for school until
SAP is met
SAP
Student is meeting
SAP nothing
additional is
required
SAP
SAP Evaluation
Student again
does not meet
SAP and appeals
again. School
does not see any
change. Appeal
denied. Student
pays for school
until SAP is met
SAP MEASUREMENTS
SAP Measurements
 Good Standing
 Student is eligible to receive all types of aid
 Student’s cumulative GPA is at or above the required minimum
 Student’s Quantitative measure rate is at or above the required minimum
 Student has attempted less than the Maximum Timeframe % for the enrolled
degree or certificate program
 School is not required to notify this student of his Good Standing
– it is assumed!
SAP Measurements
 Alert – this applies to Time Frame only
 Student has attempted X%, but less than 150%, of the required
number of credit hours needs for the degree or certificate
program.
 Student is eligible to receive all types of financial aid
 Student needs to be notified of what is on his FSA horizon.
SAP Measurements
 Financial Aid Suspension
 Student did not comply with stated SAP criteria
 Student is not eligible to receive FSA
 Depending on your institutional policy, potentially state and
institutional funding is forfeited too
 If your school accepts Financial Aid Suspension Appeals refer to
slide 11
 Student must be notified of this standing and if appeals are
allowed, the student’s options
SAP Measurements
 Financial Aid Probation
 This status is available ONLY if your school accepts Financial Aid
Suspension Appeals
 This status is applied to student’s with an accepted Financial Aid
Suspension Appeal.
 Student’s FSA funds are re-established*
 This status requires a SAP review at the conclusion of EVERY
payment period
 Student must be notified of his SAP status
* Provided funding is still available
SAP Measurements
 Warning
 This is an option ONLY if your school reviews SAP at the
conclusion of EVERY payment period.
 Available for one payment period only
 Warning status is available for more than one time but NOT
consecutively
 Student can receive FSA during this period
 Student must be notified
 Schools are not required to use this status. Instead student can
be placed on Financial Aid Suspension and required to appeal this
status
SAP Measurements
 Academic Plans – must be shared with the student in writing
 Academic plans are used when the school determines the student will
not be able to be back in good SAP standing at the conclusion of the
academic term/next payment period
 Schools are not required to develop an academic plan
 ED does not define what office(s) must develop and oversee the
Academic Plan
 In the case of a student who completed successfully the probationary
payment period under an academic plan and is making progress under
that plan is considered to be an eligible student
 This student may be evaluated at the same time as other FSA
recipients or at more frequent periods based on the academic plan
 The academic plan must be designed to ensure that the student is able
to meet the institutional SAP standards by a specific point in time
SAP Measurements
 Reestablishing aid eligibility
 Must explain how student can restore their FSA eligibility
 The school can suggest that a student… However, this may not be sufficient to
reestablish aid eligibility
 successfully complete X number of credits or enroll for a number of academic
periods without receiving FSA funds is an option; or
 Interrupting attendance for one or more academic periods
 Bottom line – the student can only gain eligibility by taking action that brings the
student into compliance with the school’s SAP standards
SAP COMMUNICATION
SAP Communication
 Your SAP Policy(s) must be provided to potential and current students.
 Think about adding the policy to your College Catalog AND Student Handbook
 HINT – Consumer Information
 Current students must be notified.
 When SAP is calculated either…
 Once a year
 At the end of each payment period
 What is your school’s review calendar?
 The various SAP categories and what each category means
 If the results of SAP impact the student’s FSA eligibility. The impact must be shared with
the student
 If the schools allows for SAP Appeals you must describe the specific elements required to
Appeal
 All schools must describe how a student who has failed SAP can reestablish eligibility for
FSA
SAP Communication
 Other issues to consider
 Academic Amnesty is not an option when determining SAP
 Students applying for FSA later in a college career must be
reviewed from the beginning of his academic transcript at your
school.
 Past periods not making SAP, regardless of receiving aid or not,
can and does impact FAS eligibility in future terms
Resources/References
 FSA Assessments, Student Eligibility section
 668.16, 668.34 (SAP)
 FSA Handbook Volume 1, Chapter 1
 Electronic Announcement – September 2, 2011
 Policy Q and A webpage on program integrity regulations
 IFAP
 Topic – Satisfactory Academic Progress
 Google Search keyword Satisfactory Academic Progress
 NASFAA materials are available to NASFAA members only
Let’s Recap
 What is Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)
 SAP Standards
 SAP Evaluation
 SAP Measurements
 SAP Communication
Thank you for joining us today
 We hope you will join us again on
 July 11 for 2017-18 Verification;
 July 18 for Consumer Information, Drugs and Crime;
 September 26 for Enrollment Reporting; and
 October 3 for Return to Title IV
All RMASFAA Learning Webcasts are recorded and will be posted inside the RMASFAA
website
 All registration material is posted on the RMASFAA calendar
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