Satisfactory Academic Progress for Financial Aid

Undergraduate

Students who receive financial aid at DigiPen Institute Of Technology must be making Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP). Financial aid applicants are required to meet the standards for all terms of attendance at DigiPen, including terms when no aid is received. For further clarification, please see the section under Satisfactory Academic Progress in the current catalog.

Probation

Students will be placed on Financial Aid Probation for the following semester if they are not meeting SAP. Students on Financial Aid Probation remain eligible to receive aid, but will be notified in writing and by DigiPen email that improved academic performance is expected.

Suspension

If a student does not meet SAP after one semester of probation, the student will be placed on financial aid suspension at DigiPen and will have their financial aid cancelled until he or she has attained SAP.

Appeals

A student on suspension may appeal by indicating in writing to the Financial Aid Office (a) reasons why he or she did not achieve academic standards and (b) reasons why his or her aid eligibility should not be terminated or should be reinstated. Please include appropriate documentation (letters from physicians or instructors, etc.) to support the statements in your appeal. Each appeal will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Individual cases will not be considered as precedent. Financial aid cannot be reinstated for a prior semester. Your appeal should be submitted within 21 days of the beginning of the semester you want aid reinstated. The Financial Aid Director will review the appeal and, if necessary, have the Financial Aid Appeals Committee review the appeal within two weeks of its receipt to determine whether the financial aid disqualification or suspension is justified. The student will be advised in writing of the decision. The committee's decision is final, and you cannot appeal at a higher level. If your appeal is approved, reinstatement of aid is dependent on availability of funds.

Reinstatement

Suspended students can re-establish their financial aid eligibility after successfully completing - without receiving financial aid - at least 12 credit hours with the required G.P.A. Students can complete these hours at DigiPen or another accredited institution.

Satisfactory Academic Progress for Washington State Need Grant

To be eligible for financial aid, federal regulations require students to make satisfactory progress in an eligible degree or certificate program. Students must be in good academic standing with DigiPen Institute Of Technology and the policy applies to all semesters of enrollment regardless if financial aid was received or not. All credits attempted at DigiPen Institute Of Technology will be considered when determining Academic Progress.

If students do not meet the requirements, they will be placed on financial aid probation or suspended from financial aid. If placed on probation, students must make satisfactory progress in their next semester of enrollment or their financial aid eligibility will be terminated. Eligibility can be reinstated using one of the options in this policy.

General Policy Requirements

• Achieve and maintain the required grade point average
• Complete the minimum required credits
• Complete a degree or within the maximum time frame

Satisfactory Academic Progress Requirements

Milestone Minimum GPA Requirement

• Up to 50% of program (76 attempted credits 1.8 or better cumulative GPA for B.S.; 39 attempted credits for A.A.A.; 72 attempted credits for B.F.A.)
• Over 50% of program (77-153 attempted credits 2.0 or better cumulative GPA for B.S.; 40-79 attempted credits for A.A.A.; 73-143 attempted credits for B.F.A.)
• 100% of program (154 attempted credits for B.S.; 80 2.0 or better cumulative GPA attempted credits for A.A.A.; 144 attempted credits for B.F.A.)

Minimum Credits Completed

To establish and maintain eligibility for financial aid, students must pass a minimum number of credits each semester and a minimum number of credits for the academic year, whether or not they receive aid. Generally, students must pass half-time credits for each semester and the equivalent credits related to enrollment/financial aid status by the end of the academic year.

Completion of Credits

	You must complete:	Probation status if you only complete:	Cancel status if you complete less than:
Full-time (12+ credits)	12 credits/semester	6-11 credits/semester	6 credits/semester
3/4 time (9-11 credits)	9 credits/semester	6-8 credits/semester	6 credits/semester
1/2 time (6-8 credits)	6 credits/semester	No probation available	6 credits/semester
Less than 6 credits	All credits registered	No probation available	All credits registered

Grades of I (incomplete), AU (audit), W (withdrawal), F (failure), FN (failure for never attending), FS (Failure for stopping attendance) do not count as completed credits.

a) Semester: Students are expected to complete the credits for which they enroll. Credit completion progress will be reviewed each semester and status will be determined according to the chart above. (Two consecutive probationary semesters will result in termination of aid.)

b) Annual: The annual requirement is based on the student’s enrollment and aid received. Generally, a student who attempts full-time enrollment all two semesters must pass at least 24 credits by the end of spring semester. Students who receive aid as full-time students for three semesters (fall through summer) increase their annual credit requirement by one-third.

All credits attempted including credits attempted before the student applied for or received financial aid, will be monitored at the end of each academic year, or before financial aid is awarded for the academic year.

Maximum Time Frame

Students can receive financial aid to complete their program of study, up to 125% of the published credits required to complete the program. All attempted courses are counted, including: incompletes, withdrawals, repeated courses, and transfer credits. When students have completed their program, or have attempted 125% of the credits in their program, they will be ineligible for financial aid. Students in programs with additional required courses to complete the degree or who have exceptional circumstances that prevented them from completing their degree within the time frame can submit an appeal.

In cases where students need to take required prerequisite credits courses needed to enter classes in their program an exception to the time frame can be made by submitting an appeal to the financial aid office. Please note that the financial aid office and registration office have separate policies and appeal procedures.

Unsatisfactory Academic Progress

Probation When students are on probation status for unsatisfactory academic progress, they must make satisfactory progress in their next semester of enrollment. Students must complete the credits for which they receive financial aid, a minimum of 12 credits with a 2.0 cumulative g.p.a. For example, if a student on probation receives financial aid for 12 or more credits, the student must complete at least 12 credits to be considered as making satisfactory progress. Students will be placed on financial aid probation for the following semester if they are not meeting S.A.P. Students on financial aid probation remain eligible to receive aid, but will be notified in writing that improved academic performance is expected.

Cancellation-Termination Students who have two consecutive probationary semesters, or who fail to complete the minimum number of credits for which they have registered (see chart on other side), will be cancelled from financial aid. Students who lose eligibility must reinstate their eligibility using one of the two options described below.

Reinstatement of Eligibility

When aid has been canceled due to unsatisfactory progress, students may use one of the following options to reinstate eligibility in their next semester of enrollment.

1. Suspended students can re-establish their financial aid eligibility after successfully completing without receiving financial aid- at least 12 credit hours with a required G.P.A of a 2.0 or higher. Students can complete these hours at DigiPen or another accredited institution; or
2. A student on suspension may appeal by indicating in writing to the Financial Aid Office (a) reasons why he or she did not achieve academic standards and (b) reasons why his or her aid eligibility should not be terminated or should be reinstated. Please include appropriate documentation (letters from physicians or instructors, etc.) to support the statements in your appeal. Each appeal will be considered as precedent. Financial aid cannot be reinstated for a prior semester. Your appeal must be submitted within 21 days of the beginning of the semester you want aid reinstated. The Financial Aid Director will review the appeal and, if necessary, have the Financial Aid Appeals Committee review the appeal within two weeks of its receipt to determine whether the financial aid disqualification or suspension is justified. The student will be advised in writing of the decision. The committee’s decision is final, and you cannot appeal at a higher level. If your appeal is approved, reinstatement of aid is dependent on availability of funds.

Reinstatement-125% Maximum Timeframe

Students who have attempted the maximum timeframe of 125% of the required credits but have not completed their program are considered to not be making satisfactory progress and they are ineligible for additional aid. Students with exceptional circumstances may submit an appeal for additional eligibility along with an Educational Plan from their academic advisor. The appeal must explain the exceptional circumstance that prevented them from completing the program within the maximum number of credits. An Educational Plan signed by the advisor and listing the remaining courses required to complete the degree is helpful in making a determination and in some cases may be required. Appeals will be considered only for the remaining required coursework.

Additional Information

Second Program Generally, students will receive financial aid for only one-degree program at DigiPen Institute Of Technology. To request funding for a second degree, a student will need to submit an appeal along with an Educational Plan including credit evaluation and transferability of credits from the first degree to the second degree. If the appeal is denied, a student is not eligible for financial aid, but may be able to apply for alternative loans.

Transfer Students Credits from prior schools that are accepted and applied towards a degree at DigiPen Institute Of Technology will be counted in the total maximum time frame limits of eligibility for aid at DigiPen Institute Of Technology. Until an official Transfer Credit Evaluation is completed by the Registrar, all prior credits will be assumed to be transferable.

Withdrawal/Unofficial Withdrawal

Students who withdraw from classes after receiving financial aid including student loans may be required to repay funds back to the financial aid program(s). Unpaid amounts due will be referred to our Business office for collection and to the appropriate agency including the U.S. Department of Education. Students are ineligible for financial aid until the aid is repaid.