Satisfactory Academic Progress Regulations Full-Time Students In order to receive maximum consideration for all institutional, state, and federal financial aid for which the student is eligible, the student must be matriculated into a degree program and must register for at least 12 credit hours per semester. Students registering for fewer than 12 credit hours per semester may receive limited institutional, state, and federal aid. To maintain eligibility for federal financial aid, a student must maintain a minimum GPA and successfully complete a specified percentage of the work attempted. The Office of Student Financial Services will measure incremental progress toward degree completion annually at the end of the academic year in May. Undergraduate full-time students are ineligible for federal aid once they have attempted 180 credit hours or 12 semesters. This time limit also applies to institutional funds. Students enrolling part-time (registration for at least six hours per semester but less than 12) may not receive financial aid for more than 10 years, 20 semesters, or 180 attempted credit hours. For transfer students, the GPA requirement will be based only on those grades earned at FPC, but will include the total credit hours attempted at all institutions. Total hours attempted at all institutions will be used to calculate the successful completion percentage calculation. The following provisions apply to the standards of satisfactory academic progress for receipt of federal and institutional student financial aid: 1. Credit hours attempted are defined as those credits for which the student is enrolled at the expiration of the tuition refund period. 2. Satisfactory academic progress in any or all of the optional summer sessions will be determined after the last summer session in which the student takes courses. 3. Courses may be repeated. GPA and credits will be calculated in accordance with FPC’s repeat course policies found under the academic regulations of this catalogue. 4. A grade of “I” (incomplete) is considered unsuccessful, and the attempted credit hours will be attributed to the successful completion percentage requirement. 5. The credit hours for course withdrawal (W) will be attributed to the successful percentage completion calculation, except for semesters in which the student successfully completes a minimum of 12 credit hours.
The Student Financial Services Office will notify students who fail to meet the progress requirements listed above. Such students have the option to satisfy the requirements in one of two ways: 1. Taking summer course(s) (at their own expense) to raise either their credit hour or grade point average performance, or both. 2. Students who wish to have the requirements waived due to mitigating circumstances (such as illness, death of a family member, family difficulties, etc.) should write a letter to the Director of Student Financial Services detailing the reasons for failure to meet the requirements. A Financial Aid Appeals Committee will review all appeals. Students who receive this waiver will receive notification of the requirements necessary to bring the hours or grade point average into compliance for the next incremental measurement period. Students who fail to meet the requirements will be ineligible for any federal, state or institutional financial aid until the student is once again in compliance. If the requirements are met through the satisfaction of either of the two options listed above, the student may continue to receive federal, state and institutional financial aid without interruption. |
