Financial Aid & Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy
1.00 Purpose
The purpose of this policy is to provide students the information they need to ensure they maintain eligibility for state and federal financial aid and to proactively manage and assess their degree progress. This policy is intended to reflect the University’s commitment to the principles, goals, and ideals described in the CSU Monterey Bay Vision Statement, and to adhere to state and federal regulations related to satisfactory academic progress.
2.00 Definitions
For the purpose of this policy, the following definitions apply. Students should be aware that other University policies may define one or more of these terms differently.
Completed Grades: include letter grades of A, B, C, D (all inclusive of +/-), and CR.
Credit Hour Progression: ratio of attempted hours to earned hours. Credit Hour Progression is one of three criteria used to determine Satisfactory Academic Progress.
Cumulative Grade Point Average: inclusive of all letter-graded coursework attempted at any university during a student’s Undergraduate or Post-baccalaureate or Graduate academic careers. Cumulative GPA is one of the criteria used to determine Satisfactory Academic Progress.
Maximum Timeframe: the sum of all attempted units in an academic career, including applicable transfer units, whether or not the student received financial aid or successfully completed the coursework. Maximum Timeframe is one of three criteria used to determine Satisfactory Academic Progress.
Post-Baccalaureate Program: includes any program that requires a baccalaureate degree as part of the admission criteria. Not all post-baccalaureate programs are eligible for financial aid; students should consult the Financial Aid Office for more information.
Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP): defines the timely and successful completion of General Education, Major, and other University Requirements as described in the Catalog of record. Students who meet the SAP criteria are eligible for federal and state financial aid. Students who do not meet SAP criteria are placed on probation, making them ineligible to receive financial aid.
Semester Grade Point Average: inclusive of all letter-graded coursework taken at CSUMB in one specific semester. Semester GPA is on of the criteria used to determine Satisfactory Academic Progress.
University Grade Point Average: inclusive of all letter-graded coursework taken at CSUMB.
3.00 Progress to Degree
Students shall consult with academic advisors, review official transcripts, and revise and update academic plans in a continuous effort to manage and self-assess progress to degree.
4.00 Academic Progress
Federal regulations require the Office of Financial Aid to monitor the progress of each student toward the completion of his/her degree or academic program.
4.10 Cumulative GPA
Undergraduate and Credential-seeking Students must maintain a cumulative grade point average of 2.0 (equivalent to a C average) in all baccalaureate and/or credential college work attempted. Completed grades are A, B, C, D, (inclusive of +/-) and CR.
- Grades of D- and above count positively toward progress to degree for financial aid purposes.
- Grades of D+, D, and D- count as units earned for the purposes of financial aid, but may not meet academic program requirements.
- Grades of F, I, W, WU, NC, RP, RD, and AU are not considered passing and may affect a student’s eligibility for financial aid [1].
Graduate and Post-baccalaureate Students must maintain a University and cumulative grade point average of 3.0 (equivalent to a B average) in all graduate and/or post-baccalaureate college work attempted. Completed grades are A, B, C, D, (inclusive of +/-) and CR.
- Grades of B- and above count positively toward progress to degree.
- Grades of C+, C, C-, D+, D, and D- count as units earned for the purposes of financial aid, but may not meet academic program requirements.
- Grades of F, I, W, WU, NC, RP, RD, and AU are not considered passing and may affect a student’s eligibility for financial aid.
4.20 Credit Hour Progression
Students must complete at least 67 percent of the credit hours attempted each term to meet eligibility requirements.
4.30 Maximum Timeframe
The maximum allowable timeframe for receiving financial aid is equal to 150% of the length of a student’s academic program. For example, a student pursuing a major that requires 120 units for graduation would reach the Maximum Timeframe at 180 units attempted.
Undergraduate students who exceed hours above 150% of their required degree program at any institution of higher education will be denied financial aid; accepted transfer coursework, withdrawals, repeated courses [2], audited courses or never completed hours are counted as “units attempted” and thus are counted in the Maximum Timeframe.
Required remedial coursework will not be counted in the maximum time to degree (up to 30 units).
5.00 Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)
The Financial Aid Office measures SAP at the end of each academic term (i.e., Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer). Students who meet the SAP criteria identified in section 4.00 of this policy are eligible to receive state and federal student aid funds [3] in the following term of enrollment, assuming all relevant application deadlines are met. Students must contact the Financial Aid Office regarding continuing eligibility criteria for private student loans and other private sources of funding that are dependent on lender/donor requirements.
The disbursement of financial aid in the Fall will be delayed until summer grades are posted for any students dependent on summer grades to update their SAP status and their financial aid eligibility.
6.00 Failure to Make Satisfactory Academic Progress
Students who do not meet the SAP criteria will receive a Financial Aid Warning or Financial Aid Probation (see 6.10 and 6.20 below). Students may also be subject to Academic Probation or Academic Disqualification; see the Academic Standing Policyfor more information.
6.10 Financial Aid Warning
Any student receiving financial aid for the first time who fails to meet any one of the SAP criteria will enter Financial Aid Warning status for their subsequent term of enrollment. The student will be notified of this status via electronic communication (e.g., email and negative status indicator on OASIS) from the Financial Aid Office. The student will continue to be eligible to receive federal student aid funds while on Financial Aid Warning status; however, the student is required to attend a Satisfactory Academic Progress Workshop and complete a SAP quiz before the end of their term on Warning. Failure to complete any portion of this requirement by the established SAP deadline(s) will result in a cancellation of pending financial aid, regardless of enrollment and/or balance due.
Students who do not meet minimum standard requirements established during the Satisfactory Academic Progress Workshop at the end of their Warning term will be placed on Financial Aid Probation for the next term.
6.20 Financial Aid Probation
A student on Financial Aid Probation is ineligible to receive state and federal student aid funds unless a student submits an appeal that is approved.
Students on Financial Aid Probation are required to attend a Satisfactory Academic Progress Workshop, complete a SAP quiz, have an updated Individual Learning Plan/Two Year Plan and submit a Satisfactory Academic Progress Appeal by the established SAP deadline to the Financial Aid Office (see section 7.00 below). Failure to complete this requirement will result in cancellation of any pending financial aid, regardless of enrollment and/or balance due. If the SAP appeal is approved by the SAP Appeals Committee, students will receive their financial aid and will be reviewed at the end of the Appeal’s term to reassess financial aid SAP status.
Submitting an appeal does not guarantee approval. Students awaiting a response from the SAP Appeals Committee are responsible for paying their tuition fees by the payment deadline to register for classes and/or to avoid late fees.
Students who withdraw from all courses and/or who fail to successfully complete all courses in the last term attended will be automatically placed on Financial Aid Probation, regardless of prior financial aid status.
7.00 Appeal Process
Students can appeal their financial aid probationary status by completing a Satisfactory Academic Progress Appeal. The SAP Appeal is available on the Financial Aid website. Students should provide an explanation of any extenuating circumstances that prevented them from maintaining satisfactory academic progress throughout the term(s) in question and provide any supporting documentation.
All appeals are reviewed by a Financial Aid SAP committee and this committee's decision is final.
The review time for appeals may take 1 to 2 weeks. Students will be notified of the results by email. Students awaiting a response from the SAP Appeal Review Committee are responsible for paying their tuition fees by the payment deadline to register for classes and/or to avoid late fees.
8.00 Reinstatement
All students who were denied financial aid from a prior term, and who attended CSUMB or another regionally accredited university without financial aid for one academic year (completing minimum enrollment requirements) should contact the Financial Aid Office for specifics, as they may be eligible for reinstatement and may regain eligibility for financial aid.
Upon completing such units, students are required to submit a SAP Appeal to the Financial Aid Office and to provide in-depth details as to when and where the student completed the reinstatement requirements.
Any student who has been academically disqualified is ineligible for financial aid and can only regain financial aid eligibility through the appeal process.
Students who are reinstated are also required to attend a Satisfactory Academic Progress Workshop as part of the Financial Aid and Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy.
9.00 Continuous Renewal
This policy shall be reviewed ten years from its effective date to determine its utility and appropriateness. This policy may be reviewed before that time, as necessary.
s/ President Eduardo M. Ochoa
Effective Date: September 6, 2018
Certification of Process
Reviewed by: Matriculation Committee, Financial Aid Office, Center for Advising, Career, and Student Success, Enrollment Services and Student Affairs Leadership Team, Academic Leadership Team, Educational Policy and Planning Committee, Academic Senate, Associated Students, Policy Facilitation Team, and Provost.
Endnotes
[1] Students should consult the Enrollment and Registration Policy for definitions of these grading symbols.
[2] Please see the Academic Standing Policy for more information related to Course Repeats.
[3] Federal and state funds include, but may not be limited to: Federal Pell Grant, Supplemental Education Opportunity Grant (SEOG), Cal Grant, EOP Grant, State University Grant, Federal Work-Study, Direct Subsidized/Unsubsidized Loan, Direct PLUS Loans (Graduate or Parent).