Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy

 All Financial Aid recipients must maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) in order to receive federal, state, and institutional aid. Students must maintain SAP throughout the duration of their academic program.

SAP is assessed by qualitative and quantitative measures and is evaluated at the end of each completed academic year in the student’s program for all periods of enrollment, regardless of receipt of Federal Student Aid (FSA) funds. Qualitative measures are herein defined as a minimum Cumulative GPA average at the end of the student’s academic year. Quantitative measures are herein defined as the student earning a minimum of 67% of credit hours attempted at the College as well as credits/hours transferred from other colleges, and completion of coursework in designated timeframe. To calculate a student’s percentage earned, the number of hours attempted is divided by the number of hours completed. That number is then rounded to the nearest tenth (after the decimal).  A student’s Cumulative GPA is calculated using grades earned at the College or with approved Consortium Agreements and only GPAs transferred from other colleges that were earned prior to the beginning of the 2011-2012 Academic Year.  The quantitative measures (percentage completed) for students who attended in Spring 2020 were waived due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

To be in good academic standing, students must meet Albertus Magnus College’s Good Standing Policies as well as the following minimum requirements at the end of the academic year:

*Students enrolled in preparatory courses and post-baccalaureate certificate students will be reviewed according to fourth-year Undergraduate SAP policies and procedures.

**Post-graduate certificate students will be reviewed according to Graduate SAP policies and procedures.

Students who receive FSA funds can only have previously passed repeat coursework paid for once (the normal SAP policy still applies in such cases). If a student repeatedly fails or withdraws from a course, the course is still eligible to be paid by FSA funds (the normal SAP policy still applies in such cases). A student who receives an incomplete in a course in a prior term who is completing the coursework in the subsequent term to erase the prior incomplete, the student is not considered to be enrolled in the course for the subsequent term. Therefore, the hours in the course do not count toward the student’s enrollment status for the subsequent term, and the student may not receive FSA funds for retaking the course. However, if a student who received a non-punitive grade in a course in a prior term is retaking the entire course for credit in the subsequent term, the hours in the course count toward the student’s enrollment status, and the student may receive FSA funds for retaking the course.

For Withdrawals, the credits are counted in attempted and/or completed courses, but the student’s CGPA is not affected. These courses are reflected on the student’s final transcript. A grade of WA is recorded for administrative withdrawal. The grade of WA is not computed in the student’s grade point average and therefore involves no academic penalty. The Registrar must authorize the recording of this grade.

Students who stop attending a course for 14 consecutive calendar days, who have not been in contact with their course instructor, academic dean, academic advisor, and/or administrative officer and who fails to unofficially drop the course will be assigned a grade of “UF,” Unearned F. A UF grade is counted as a failure in the calculation of grade point average and academic standing. A student who is assigned a UF grade will not be allowed to return to the class for the current term/module. The issuance of a UF grade will activate re-evaluation of the student’s financial aid. Students who have been issued a UF grade can officially withdraw from the course by filling out a drop form and WP/WF form with the instructor’s signature and returning the documents to the Office of the Registrar. This will replace the UF grade with a WP or WF grade for the course(s) they are officially withdrawing from. To do this, students must meet the withdrawal deadlines posted on the appropriate academic calendar.

In addition to reviewing SAP annually for all students, the Financial Aid Office reviews SAP:

• Within a 12-month period for programs whose award year is longer than 12 months
• At the end of each payment period for programs of study one year or less
• At the end of an undergraduate student’s second calendar year of enrollment
• At the end of each payment period for students on probations and/or Financial Aid plans
• At the end of the summer term (Module 5)
• At the point a student re-enters and/or re-enrolls in a program
• At the point additional information is received that may impact SAP (i.e. a grade change)

All student files are documented accordingly upon SAP review.

However, once an undergraduate student has completed the equivalent of two academic years (i.e. four semesters, eight modules) regardless of enrollment status, he/she must be making a minimum 2.0 Cumulative GPA in accordance with Albertus Magnus College’s institutional graduation requirements to meet the qualitative measures.

Students who have declared a major must maintain a 2.0 CGPA in the courses belonging to the major in accordance with Albertus Magnus College’s institutional graduation requirements. Major GPAs will be reviewed at the end of every academic year.

For students participating in an approved study abroad program, all credits attempted/completed and all grades will be used in the next appropriate SAP review.

Full-time undergraduate students making SAP may receive financial aid for up to six years of full-time attendance, or until the student is certified for graduation by the College, whichever comes first. The Traditional Undergraduate Program academic year consists of two terms (Fall and Spring Semesters) and are offered as credit hours. Full-time students in the Traditional Undergraduate Program take 24 credits in 32 weeks per academic year, normally enrolling in 15 to 16 credits a semester. Each semester is considered a payment period. Students are not permitted to carry more than five courses a semester with the exception of CC 102 (formerly HU 101), PE 95, 96 and CC 260. Each student is provided an Advising Handbook that may be used as a guide in selecting course and credit loads in each semester. The Professional and Graduate Studies (PGS) Program undergraduate program academic years consist of two terms (Fall and Spring Semesters) and are offered as credit hours. Full-time PGS undergraduate students take 24 credits in 32 weeks per academic year. Full-time students in PGS typically enroll in 12-15 credits per semester over the course of the Fall and Spring Semesters.  Fall semester consists of Modules 1 and 2.  Spring Semester consists of Modules 3 and 4. Students are reviewed at the start of the payment period; students may not gain eligibility mid-payment period. Module 5 is an optional summer semester.  Semester-long courses are only assessed in the module the course begins.  Students are assigned an Academic Advisor to help with course selection and enrollment planning. Students are assigned an Academic Advisor to help with course selection and enrollment planning. Part-time undergraduate students making SAP may receive financial aid for up to 10 years of part-time attendance, or until the student is certified for graduation by the College, whichever comes first. The timeframe cannot exceed 150% of the published length of the program measured in credit hours attempted. Graduate students have seven years from the date of first enrollment to complete all required coursework with the exception of their thesis, regardless of enrollment level. Students who have multiple concentrations that go toward one degree will not receive an extension to the degree completion timeframe. A withdrawn student may submit a new application to the master’s program one additional time. If the student was academically dismissed or placed on academic review prior to withdrawal they must follow the guidelines outlined in those sections of the catalog. For readmission into the same master’s program, the student will have up to seven years to complete the program from their new first term of enrollment. Albertus Magnus College does not offer academic amnesty. Upon readmission, no adjustments will be made to the cumulative GPA calculation for any graduate-level courses previously taken. At the point the Financial Aid Office determines a student will not graduate within the maximum timeframe, financial aid eligibility is lost.

Students who fail to meet the minimum SAP requirements outlined above will have their Financial Aid terminated. Students who fail to meet SAP will receive written notification from the Financial Aid Office, and have the option to submit an appeal to the Financial Aid Office. For more information on appealing, please refer to the Appeal Policy.

For additional information, or to view the full SAP Policy, please contact the Financial Aid Office at (203) 773-8508 or at financial_aid@albertus.edu.