Satisfactory Academic Progress Info

Students must maintain a cumulative GPA minimum requirement at the end of each academic year for all credit hours attempted. If the cumulative GPA drops below the minimum requirement, the student will no longer be eligible for financial aid.
Undergraduate Students: Maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.0
Graduate Students: Maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0

Calculate Your GPA

Students receiving financial aid must successfully complete a cumulative minimum of 75% of all attempted coursework, including hours transferred in from another school and accepted towards the current degree program. If the number of cumulative completed hours drops below 75% of attempted hours, the student will no longer be eligible for aid.

Examples:

i)   If a student attempts (registers for) 30 hours, the student must complete a minimum of 22 hours (75% x 30 = 22.5) in order to make SAP. All partial credit hours will be rounded down to the nearest hour.

ii)   If a student attempts 36 hours, the student must complete a minimum of 27 hours (75% x 36 = 27) to make SAP.

iii)   If at the end of the second year a student has attempted 60 hours, the student must have completed a cumulative minimum of 45 hours (75% x 60 = 45) to be making SAP.

The number of credit hours a student attempts may not exceed 150% of the number of hours required for graduation, as published in the University Catalog. If the published number of hours required is 120, a student may not attempt more than 180 hours (120 x 1.50 = 180) and continue to receive financial aid. If the number of attempted hours reaches 150% of the hours required for graduation, the student will no longer be eligible for financial aid.

Attempted hours include all credit hours you have transferred from another institution as well as all credit hours you registered to take at UIW, whether or not you earn a grade, receive credit, or receive financial aid.

At the end of every spring semester, our office will review the progress of every financial aid recipient to determine their eligibility for financial aid for the upcoming aid year.

Dropping coursework affects your cumulative completion percentage; that is, the percentage of hours you have earned versus those you have attempted. The cumulative percentage includes any coursework attempted/earned at any previous college/university.

Dropping can cause you to lose eligibility for current or future aid due to renewal requirements for specific aid funds, or the federal  Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) requirement. If you are already on SAP probation, you may lose all future eligibility for aid, unless you submit a new appeal and it is approved.

Any time you withdraw or drop below half-time enrollment, we are required to report the change in enrollment to your student loan servicers. This may trigger you to go into your grace period (typically 6 months) and subsequently into repayment on your student loans.

You should always contact the  Office of Financial Assistance before you withdraw to find out what kind of financial impact this will have on your aid. When you withdraw from a semester (or a mini-term), the Dept. of Education requires that we calculate how much of the time you were  scheduled to attend (i.e. registered) versus the time you  actually attended. This results in a percentage that may require us to return part of your aid. This is required even if you completed a previous mini-term in the same semester AND even if you receive a 100% refund of tuition/fees. Withdrawals also cause a reduction in your cumulative completion percentage, since they are hours attempted that you have not earned. This can cause you to lose eligibility for future aid (pending an appeal) due to the federal  Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) requirements.

Students on financial aid who do not finish all courses in a semester or who stop attendance, are subject to having their paid financial aid returned in part to the government. This is known as Return of Title IV funds. In addition, students who cease a minimum of half-time enrollment will enter their grace period for their loans and can incur a balance to the University due to funds pulling back.

If it is determined that you do not meet the minimum SAP requirements, you will be automatically placed on  financial aid suspension. Students on financial aid suspension are not allowed to receive any additional financial aid until the progress suspension is cleared.

Students whose eligibility for financial aid has been terminated may appeal the decision if they believe that they had extenuating circumstances leading to their unsatisfactory progress. Circumstances which warrant an appeal include: death in family, injury/illness of the student or family, or other circumstances beyond the student’s control. In order to appeal, the student must complete the SAP Recovery Packet, which must include a formal written statement signed and dated by the student. The statement needs to provide a full explanation, along with detailed documentation, verifying the circumstances that led to the inability to meet SAP. This explanation must also provide steps taken to overcome these obstacles and how they will not interfere with progression.

The completed packet must be returned to the Office of Financial Assistance and will be submitted to the SAP Review Board. The SAP Review Board will make a determination based on the information provided and will inform the student in writing within approximately three weeks of the decision.  The SAP Appeal Form and SAP Academic Plan are due to the UIW Office of Financial Assistance by August 1 ^st.

If a SAP appeal is approved, the student will be placed on probation for the following semester and their academic progress will be monitored to ensure they meet the conditions of their academic plan. Once the Office of Financial Assistance determines that SAP was met for the probationary time period, then the student will be in good standing and will no longer be monitored each semester.

If a SAP appeal is denied, the student is no longer eligible to receive federal, state or institutional financial aid until they are able to meet SAP guidelines. A denial from the SAP committee is final; there is no appeal process for this judgment. Students who submit appeals after the allowable time frame will not be considered. Please contact the Office of Financial Assistance with any questions by email at finaid@uiwtx.edu.

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• Talk to your academic advisor and faculty mentor.
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  The financial aid office is a great resource not only for understanding your financial aid package, but also for financial literacy resources. While the idea of money management may seem difficult, it’s really not! Just like anything else, you just need to learn how to do it. Managing your money correctly will allow you to focus your efforts on your academics.
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  • Sign up for iGrad - What is iGrad?
    UIW believes that all of our students, families and alumni should have access to the most information possible to help them make wise decisions about financing and repaying their education. So, we've partnered with iGrad to provide financial wellness resources to students, alumni, and families.

    No two students are exactly alike, so when you sign up for iGrad, you'll build a personalized profile and plan to improve your money management, career, and student loan skills. We'll provide recommended video tips, quick financial lessons, personalized job search and more.

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