Satisfactory academic progress policy
Federal Register: 668.7 - Effective Date: 01/09/84
Approved by Board of Regents: 05/08/85
In order to receive federal Title IV student financial assistance (Federal Pell Grant, Federal Perkins Loan, Federal SEOG, Federal Stafford Student Loan, Federal Work Study, SSIG, or Federal PLUS Loans) and/or Concordia University institutional funds (grants, academic, athletic, talent or departmental scholarships), students must be making "satisfactory academic progress" toward a degree. (Federal Regulation: 668.7 Higher Education Act of 1965, Higher Education Amendments, 1986 and 1992).
This policy establishes guidelines to encourage students to successfully complete courses during semesters for which aid is received.
Successful completion means receiving a passing grade in the course.
Course incompletes, withdrawals, and repetitions do not count toward completion.
I. Undergraduates
To be considered full time, a student must be registered for and attending a minimum of 12 semester credit hours by the census date of each semester and must maintain a 2.0 cumulative grade point average (CGPA) or better for a maximum of 12 semesters of financial aid.
A student will be considered three-quarter time if he/she is registered for and attending 9-11 semester credit hours by the census date of each semester and must maintain a 2.0 CGPA or better for a maximum of 16 semester of financial aid.
A student will be considered half time if he/she is registered for and attending 6-8 semester credit hours by the census date of each semester and must maintain a 2.0 CGPA or better for a maximum of 24 semesters of financial aid.
| Satisfactory completion table for undergraduates | ||||||||||||
| Academic years: | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
| Full Time (minimum hours must be successfully completed): | 24 | 48 | 72 | 96 | 120 | 144 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Three-Quarter Time (minimum hours must be successfully completed): | 18 | 36 | 54 | 72 | 90 | 108 | 126 | 144 | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Half Time (minimum hours must be successfully completed): | 12 | 24 | 36 | 48 | 60 | 72 | 84 | 96 | 108 | 120 | 132 | 144 |
To receive the aid available for each group a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.0 must also be maintained.
II. Graduate/professional students
Graduate and professional students are eligible for federal student loans, subject to filing the certified need-analysis, for a maximum 4 or 5 semesters of full-time enrollment (12 to 15 semesters if half-time enrollment) and based on a total of 36 to 45 credit hours, depending on program identification. Satisfactory completion of 6 credit hours (or 3 credit hours if half-time) per semester and a 3.0 cumulative GPA is required to remain in good academic standing.
III. Failure to maintain minimum standards
Students who fail to maintain satisfactory academic progress, that is, do not successfully complete the minimum number of hours, or maintain the minimum CGPA, will be placed on "contingent eligibility" for one semester.
If, at the end of this semester, a student has not made up the deficiency, that is, is still not progressing satisfactorily, the student will be placed on "financial aid suspension" and would be ineligible for further federal or institutional aid until:
(1) the deficiency has been removed; or
(2) an appeal has been granted.
IV. Appeal Any student wishing to appeal the suspension of his/her financial aid eligibility, based on provisions in this "Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy," may appeal in writing to the Director of Financial Aid of Concordia University, Seward.
The appeal must include: (1) a letter from the student stating reasons why he/she did not achieve minimum academic requirements and why his/her aid should not be terminated; and (2) a supporting letter from an advisor or professor.
The student will be notified in writing of the final determination of the appeal.
If the financial aid suspension is successfully appealed, the student may receive aid for a maximum of one additional semester to correct the specific deficiency (number of credit hours successfully completed with a minimum of a 2.0 CGPA for undergraduates or a 3.0 for graduates).
V. Reestablishing eligibility for financial aid
Students who have been suspended from financial aid eligibility may use summer session enrollment to correct the deficiencies which caused the suspension. Transfer credit hours if earned while the student is a Concordia student and if accepted by the Concordia University registrar, may also be counted toward removal of the deficiency for the number of successfully completed hours, but do not change Concordia's CGPA other than the effect of removing a failing grade from the previous calculation. Your official CGPA is derived from courses taken at Concordia University.
Eligibility for federal and institutional aid will be reinstated when a student presents the Director of Financial Aid with an official transcript from the registrar verifying the satisfactory removal of the deficiency. All courses taken at Concordia University while a student is under financial aid suspension shall be at the student's own expense.
