Financial Aid Satisfactory Academic Progress and Program Progress Policy
To maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress for Financial Aid the students must meet the SAP required for all students who receive Federal Financial aid. All students will be evaluated each term. To maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP), a student must:
- Achieve and maintain a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.00 or better. GPA is calculated at the end of each semester
- Maintain adequate pace – Students will successfully complete 75% of scheduled and prescribed courses within a certificate.
- If a student receives an Incomplete (I) they must make up the work within the first 10 days of the next semester unless prior arrangements have been made with the instructor and coordinated with the Student Services Office. If a student completes the work for the course they receive the grade earned. If a student does not complete the work, the grade becomes an “F” and is used in calculating SAP. A student can appeal this decision for mitigating circumstances.
- Complete all course work for a certificate within 45 attempted credits. All transfer credits counted towards the completion of the certificate requirements will also be counted towards the maximum of 45 attempted credits. (Transfer Students)
- Technical College of the Rockies does not offer remedial classes therefore, remedial classes are not eligible for Title IV funding through TCR and are not counted towards Satisfactory Academic Progress.
- Students may withdraw from a class anytime through 80% of the course without penalty. The student will be assigned the grade of “W” and no academic credit is awarded and is not counted towards GPA. However, the course does count towards credits attempted. Courses dropped after the 80 % result in a grade of “F” for the course. A student can appeal this decision for mitigating circumstances.
- Maintain regular attendance, with absences being less than 10% for the grading period for the student’s certificate. Some certificates require a 100% attendance for clinical experience, skill classes (required by Peace Officer Standards and Training) and provide options to make up the time due to illness or unforeseen circumstances. (See specific guidelines in the Program’s Policy and Procedures manual).
- Repeated Courses- In certain circumstances a student may wish to repeat a previously passed course (A, B, C, D) to gain additional knowledge or to improve their past performance. Federal Guideline do allow a student to receive Federal Assistance while taking these classes but one must note that Federal assistance may only pay for a previously passed course one time. The repeated classes are considered replacement courses that replace the grade of the previous class and are counted towards SAP. However, if a student passed a class once, and fails the second time it counts as the second time and cannot be paid for by Title IV funds. (Repeated Classes)
- If a student chooses to complete a different certificate in another Program SAP is not used to determine eligibility for financial aid purposes. A student must meet the admission requirements for the program itself, i.e. appropriate TABES scores, immunizations, etc. Students should keep in mind that any Program(s) that they utilize Title IV funding in will count towards their Lifetime Eligibility Usage therefore; their eligibility for Pell grants and additional Student Loans may be limited.
- If a student desires a second certificate in a Program Area they must maintain SAP. For example, a student can take the General Drafting certificate and then specialize in an aspect of drafting such as the Civil Drafting Certificate. (Pursuit of a second certificate)
Satisfactory Academic Progress for all students may be identified with the following statuses. Financial aid restrictions apply only to those students receiving financial aid funding:
- Good standing – the student is meeting all SAP standards
- Alert – Student is in danger of not meeting SAP based on GPA or attendance. Student will be referred to an academic advisor and meet with the instructor to see if an academic plan is necessary for success.
- Warning – Student has not met SAP for the previous semester and an academic success plan will be developed to assist the student in obtaining their certificate.
- Academic Probation -If the student fails to meet the requirements at the end of a warning period they will be placed on academic probation. When there are mitigating circumstanced that occur such as; Death in the immediate family, prolonged illness, etc., the student may appeal in writing to the Student Services Office. The appeals committee (consisting of the Director of the college or his designee, the Program Coordinator, and the Student Services Coordinator) will review in a timely manner, and if approved, the student may return to complete their certificate program and if applicable have financial aid reinstated.
If a student does not meet SAP they will be classified as follows;
- Financial Aid Warning: if a student does not meet the above criteria for SAP they will be placed on Financial Aid Warning and will be notified in writing and have one additional semester to return to satisfactory standing. If the student has not returned to satisfactory standing after this additional semester, he/she will be terminated from further financial assistance until they regain SAP.
- Financial Aid Termination: If a student does not return to SAP after the warning semester or receives the grade of “F” or incomplete in all registered classes he/she will be immediately terminated from financial aid.
- To Regain Eligibility-Probation: As stated previously, a student with mitigating circumstances can appeal in writing to the Financial Aid Office. The appeals committee and the Financial Aid Director will convene in a timely manner and act on the appeal. If approved, the financial aid eligibility may be reinstated for one additional semester after which the student must have returned to SAP. The student will be eligible to receive financial aid for the probationary semester. If the appeal is successful the student will have weekly progress meeting with the instructor to discuss attendance and progress towards meeting the objectives of the course(s) and help the student with additional resources if needed. If mitigating circumstance do not apply or the appeal is denied the student may secure alternative funding until the satisfactory academic requirements have been met once again. (Academic plan)
A student may appeal a financial aid probation or ineligibility by submitting a written appeal to the Financial Aid Office within five school days of receipt of notification. Appeals for reinstatement will only be approved for circumstances beyond the student’s control.