Standards of Satisfactory Academic Progress for Financial Aid Eligibility

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Standards of Academic Progress (SAP) Requirements

All degree/certificate-seeking students who have completed the college admission requirements and have been granted admission to the College of Western Idaho must meet the following standards in order to establish and maintain eligibility for federal financial aid. The Standards of Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) are monitored and reviewed each semester.  

  1. GPA Requirement
    Students must maintain a minimum institutional grade point average (GPA) of 2.00 (see “Terms and Definitions”).
  2. Pace of Completion Requirement
    Students must make progress toward completion of their declared degree/certificate while maintaining a minimum 67% completion rate. The completion rate is calculated by dividing the cumulative number of credit hours a student has successfully completed by the cumulative number of credit hours a student has attempted (see “Terms and Definitions”).
  3. Maximum Time Frame Requirement
    Students must be able to complete their declared degree/certificate program within 150% of the published number of credit hours required to complete the program. For example, if the published length of an Associate of Arts degree is 60 credit hours, students must be able to complete their degree within 90 attempted credit hours. The maximum time frame is calculated as follows:
    • ALL credit hours attempted at CWI (including repeated credits) and ALL credit hours transferred from other colleges/universities 
    • ALL remedial credit hours attempted (course numbers lower than 100) are then subtracted
    • TOTAL number of credit hours is then used to determine current progress toward degree/certificate

If a SAP review identifies that a student cannot mathematically complete their declared degree/certificate program or the student cannot raise their institutional GPA to the minimum 2.00 within the maximum time frame, the student is placed on Suspension and is no longer eligible for federal financial aid at CWI.

SAP Standings

The Standards of Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) are evaluated, and students are notified by email of their current SAP standing at the conclusion of each period of enrollment. Possible SAP standings include: Good Standing, Warning, Suspension, Probation, and Academic Plan.

Good Standing

  • Students who are meeting all of the Standards of SAP and are not in a period of Warning, Suspension, Probation, or Academic Plan are in Good Standing; there are no additional education plan requirements.

Warning

  • Students who have not met one or more of the Standards of SAP will be placed on Warning if they were previously in Good Standing. Students are strongly encouraged to meet with their advisor to develop a plan for academic success.
  • Warning status does not prevent a student from receiving federal financial aid. The Warning status is intended to alert the student to a current deficiency in their academic progress. Continued lack of progress will lead to Suspension. 

Suspension

  • Students may be placed on Suspension for any of the following reasons:
    • not meeting one or more of the Standards of SAP while on Warning
    • cannot mathematically complete their declared degree/certificate within the maximum time frame
    • cannot raise their graduation GPA to the minimum 2.0 within the maximum time frame
  • Students who have been placed on Suspension may appeal. Without an approved appeal, students who have been placed on Suspension are no longer eligible for federal financial aid.

Academic Plan/Probation

  • Students with a Suspension status may submit an appeal. Upon approval of an appeal, the student is placed on an Academic Plan. If the student is able to attain Good Standing status within one period of enrollment, students may be placed on Probation.
  • The Academic Plan will ensure that the student meets all standards of SAP according to the timeline specified in the plan. 
    • Students must complete all courses each semester and meet the GPA requirement outlined by the plan.
    • Students on an Academic Plan may be enrolled in only one degree or certificate program at a time and must remain in that program for the duration of the Academic Plan. 
  • Progress in an Academic Plan is measured at the end of each semester. Students who fail to meet all the requirements of the Academic Plan will be placed on Suspension.
  • Students who begin meeting all Standards of SAP while on Academic Plan or in Probation status will be moved to Good Standing status.
  • Students are eligible for federal financial aid while on an Academic Plan or Probation.

IMPORTANT: Students will be required to submit a new appeal if they fail to enroll and attend courses within three semesters of an approved Academic Plan.

Appeals—Regaining Eligibility for Aid

Students who are placed on Suspension may appeal if there are extenuating circumstances that led to academic difficulties. The SAP Appeal Form is available online or from any CWI One Stop Student Services location. The deadline to submit an appeal within a semester is the last day to withdraw each semester. Submitting an appeal does not guarantee approval.

Step One: Extenuating Circumstances Letter  

  • The student will submit a letter explaining the circumstances that prevented them from meeting SAP standards, along with their plan to become academically successful.
    • If applicable, the student will attach documentation to provide evidence for the circumstances outlined in the letter.
  • Once submitted, the Financial Aid Office will review the letter and documentation.
    • If the extenuating circumstances are determined to be valid, the SAP appeal will be provisionally approved. The student must then complete the Academic Plan Form with their Academic Advisor.
    • If the extenuating circumstances do not meet federal requirements, the SAP appeal will be denied. 

Step Two: Academic Plan Form

  • The student must meet with their Academic Advisor to complete an Academic Plan form.
    • An Academic Plan must be established for one degree or certificate. Enrollment in more than one degree or certificate within a semester will result in a denied appeal.
  • The completed plan will be reviewed by Financial Aid staff to determine if the student is able to meet SAP standards within the established timeline. 
    • If approved, the required criteria will be communicated to the student, and the student will be eligible for federal financial aid as long as the criteria is met each semester.
    • If denied, the student will not be eligible for federal financial aid until their SAP status is brought up to Good Standing

Additional Credit Considerations 

  • In a review of the appeal, transfer credit hours that do not fulfill graduation requirements in the student’s current program may be excluded from the maximum time frame calculation.
  • In a review of an appeal for a student seeking an additional degree/certificate, all attempted credit hours from a prior degree/certificate that can fill graduation requirements (including elective credit hours) in the additional degree/certificate must be counted. All other attempted credits that do not fulfill graduation requirements (including elective credits) in the additional degree/certificate program are excluded from the maximum time frame calculation.
 

Terms and Definitions

Grading Symbols

  • The following grades represent credits successfully completed for SAP purposes: A, B, C, D, and P.
    • IMPORTANT: While considered successfully completed for SAP purposes, a grade of D may not be passing in all courses and may not fulfill specific program and/or graduation requirements.
  • The following are NOT credits successfully completed: F = Unacceptable Performance, NC = No Credit Granted, NP = No Pass, I = Incomplete, W = Withdrawal, WIP = Course In Progress, and X = Fail (stopped attending).

Institutional GPA

“Institutional GPA” is defined in the college catalog and includes all coursework receiving a letter grade of A, B, C, D, F, or X (including developmental/remedial coursework) taken while at CWI. The Institutional GPA also appears on the transcript as “Inst GPA”. The Institutional GPA includes developmental/remedial coursework (classes with course numbers below 100), but does not include transfer coursework.

Repeat, Incomplete, and Audit Courses

  • Repeats are subject to the College's academic policies; see the “Repeating Courses” section in the catalog.
    • A course previously assigned a grade considered not successfully completed may be repeated with the assistance of federal financial aid.
    • A course previously assigned a grade considered to be a successful completion may be repeated one time with the assistance of federal financial aid.
  • Incompletes ("I") must be arranged with instructors and must be completed as indicated by the instructor in accordance with the policy listed in the college catalog. Courses extended beyond the published end of the period of enrollment in which they were originally scheduled are NOT considered credit hours successfully completed.
  • Audits (“AU”) must be arranged in advance with the instructor and declared by the due date published in the catalog. They are not counted either as attempted or completed credits and are not eligible for federal financial aid.

Noncredit and Developmental/Remedial Courses

  • Noncredit classes such as Community Education, Workforce Development, Adult Education, and English as a Second Language (ESL) courses that do not satisfy graduation requirements in the student’s declared degree/certificate program are not counted either as attempted or completed credits.
  • Developmental/Remedial courses (credit-bearing classes with course numbers below 100) are included in the Institutional GPA calculation and are counted as both attempted and completed credits in the pace of completion calculation, but are excluded from the maximum time frame calculation.
  • Federal financial aid recipients may receive federal aid for a maximum of 30 remedial credit hours.