Graduate/ADEP
Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)
General Provisions - What is SAP
To be eligible for financial aid, students are required by the U.S. Department of Education, the state of California, and CLU to maintain satisfactory academic progress toward completing their degree. Academic progress criteria apply to recipients of financial aid programs created under Title IV regulations of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended.
How SAP is monitored
Following the final grade processing for the spring quarter or term, those students who are not meeting the SAP standards will be notified of their possible ineligibility to receive further financial aid for the following academic year. The below SAP standards for CLU graduate and ADEP financial aid eligibility must be met during the current academic year and the previous summer (if they attended) in order to receive federal, state, and university need-based financial aid for the following academic year. For SAP purposes only, summer acts as a header and starts the year to count SAP terms. However, for financial aid packaging purposes, summer is a trailer for all programs at CLU.
I. Grade Point Average Requirement
ADEP students must maintain a minimum 2.0 cumulative GPA to meet the SAP standards.
To maintain SAP, graduate and Teacher Preparation Program students must maintain a minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA. Students whose cumulative GPA falls below 3.0 will be placed on SAP probation. Students on SAP probation must bring their cumulative GPA up to 3.0 in the following semester. Students who fail to maintain a 3.0 cumulative GPA are subject to academic disqualification from the University and SAP suspension.II. Yearly Progress Requirement
To maintain satisfactory progress, Graduate and ADEP students must achieve a 67% completion rate of their coursework each academic year in order to remain eligible for financial aid. This is measured in terms of:
Units completed / Units attempted = % Completion rate
Units attempted will not include canceled courses or classes dropped within the prescribed add/drop periods. However, attempted units WILL include courses from which students have withdrawn or received a grade of incomplete.
View examples of this calculation...III. Maximum Time Allowance
Graduate students must complete their academic programs within 150 percent of the established program length. Students are not eligible for financial aid for the period in excess of 150 percent of the academic period normally required to complete their program of study. Graduate students enrolled in a single-degree program must complete their programs within 150% of the units required to graduate. For example, a student enrolled in the MPPA program is required to complete 39 units for completion of the program, which means that once they complete 58 units (39 x 150%), they will no longer be eligible to receive financial aid.
ADEP students enrolled in single-degree, four-year program requiring 124 units are eligible for financial aid for a maximum of 186 total attempted units.
Students Who Change Degree Programs
If a continuing CLU student changes from one degree program to another it will affect SAP; the student should notify the Financial Aid Office and we will review the request to increase the maximum time allowance.
Financial Aid Probation
Students who do not meet the yearly progress requirement outlined above will be placed on financial aid probation. Students may continue to receive financial aid while on SAP probation. Students who are placed on SAP probation are encouraged to review the SAP policy with their Financial Aid Counselor. In order to be removed from SAP probation, the student must meet all SAP requirements. If, at the end of the probationary period, the student does not meet the minimum requirements, he or she will no longer be considered to be making satisfactory academic progress and will become ineligible for financial aid (SAP suspension). Students will be allowed one probationary period during the course of their enrollment, subject to appeal.
Failure to Maintain SAP
Students who fail to meet the yearly progress requirement are placed on financial aid probation and are notified in writing by the Financial Aid Office. Students who have reached the maximum time allowance are ineligible for further financial aid. There is no probation period for students who reach the maximum time allowance. Also, students who are academically disqualified from the university are ineligible for further financial aid.
Regaining Financial Aid Eligibility
Students who have lost eligibility for financial aid due to lack of yearly progress can be reinstated by successfully completing sufficient units or increasing their GPA to meet the desired standards. The student must notify the Financial Aid Office once the units have been completed to have his/her file reviewed.
If placed on SAP probation or suspension, students may appeal in writing to the Financial Aid Office, the determination that they are not meeting SAP requirements. The following basis for appeals will be considered: extended illness, one-time extenuating circumstances which have since been resolved, or enrollment limitations due to academic advisement. The appeal will be evaluated, and the student will be notified of the decision.
Any student who is appealing his or her SAP status must meet all financial aid application deadlines and other eligibility requirements. As with any type of financial aid appeal, SAP appeals are funded on a funds-available basis.
Repeated Course Work
Repeated course work will not be included when determining a student's yearly progress unless it was not counted the first time the course was taken. This only occurs in classes in which a student has withdrawn or not received a passing grade. All repeated course work counts toward the student's maximum time allowance.
