Maintaining Eligibility for Financial Aid

Front Page
Financial Aid
Maintaining Eligibility for Financial Aid

Satisfactory Academic Progress

Federal law requires students receiving federal student aid to maintain satisfactory academic progress (SAP) as defined by the institution. For HCC, federal student aid includes the Federal Pell Grant, Federal Supplemental Education Opportunity Grant, Federal Work Study, the William D. Ford Direct Lending Program, the North Carolina Education Lottery Scholarship, and the North Carolina Community College Grant. According to federal regulations concerning satisfactory academic progress, the school’s Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy must include both (1) a qualitative measure (the use of a cumulative grade point average) and (2) a quantitative measure (the maximum time frame for completion).

HCC Institutional Policy

The FAO evaluates student academic progress at the end of each semester. Students are evaluated on the basis of grade point average (G.P.A.), credit hour completion, and maximum time frame limitation.

Qualitative Measure

Any student who has a cumulative GPA (Grade Point Average) of less than 2.0 and/or a completion rate of less than 67% shall be placed on financial aid warning status. Students will receive a letter from the Financial Aid Office notifying them of this warning status. Students receiving financial aid benefits must be aware that a 2.0 GPA in their academic program is necessary for graduation.

Students enrolled in any semester on financial aid warning status will be required to earn a minimum GPA of 2.0 and complete all classes during the warning period semester.

If the student does not earn a 2.0 GPA and complete all classes during the warning period semester, then all financial aid will be suspended. This suspension may be appealed. Please see the appeal section below for more information.

If the appeal of the suspension is approved, the student will receive one semester of financial aid on a probationary basis. If the student, at the end of the probationary semester, meets the SAP requirement, the student’s aid will be reinstated. If the student is not meeting the SAP requirement at the end of the probationary period, the student will be suspended until such time the student 1) enrolls in one full-time semester at the expense of the student, AND completes all classes with a grade of “C” or better; 3) appeals the decision, receives the appeal, and follows an Academic Plan determined by the Financial Aid Director and the student’s Academic Advisor. During the period the student is on SAP Probation under the Academic Plan, the student cannot withdraw from any classes, cannot fail any classes, and must not be reported as a No-Show for any classes.

If the student fails to meet the requirements while on the Probationary/Academic Plan period, the student’s financial aid will be suspended until the student is making SAP. No further appeals will be considered at this point.

Qualitative standards are cumulative and include all periods of enrollment including those for which the student did not receive funds from Title IV programs.

Quantitative Measure

Students receiving financial aid have a maximum time frame in which they are expected to complete a program. At HCC the time frame is 150 percent of the established length of the program for full-time students.

This time frame will be measured in terms of credit hours attempted.

Example 1: If your program requires 75 credit hours to complete: 75 x 1.50 = 112 credit hours attempted to receive financial aid

Example 2: If your program requires 36 credit hours to complete: 36 x 1.50 = 54 credit hours attempted to receive financial aid

In order to complete a program in the 150 percent time frame as stated by federal regulations, the student must have earned 67% of the credit hours attempted at the end of the designated increment during the academic year. The designated increment is at the end of spring semester.

Example: Fall semester 14 credit hours attempted & Spring semester 12 credit hours attempted: 26 x .67 = 18 credit hours must be earned

Only grades of A, B, C, D, CE or P will be considered as earned hours. Grades of F, I, W, WF, and CT will not be counted as hours earned, but will be counted as hours attempted.

Repeats - Courses which students are repeating are calculated as hours attempted.

Quantitative standards are cumulative and include all periods of enrollment including those for which the student did not receive funds from Title IV programs.

Appeal Procedure

To appeal financial aid suspension, a student must be able to demonstrate mitigating circumstances¹. The procedure for appeal is as follows:

A student must indicate complete the Request for SAP Appeal form that includes writing reasons why he/she did not make satisfactory academic progress and why financial aid should not be suspended. The appeal must be returned to the Financial Aid Director accompanied by appropriate documentation and received within two weeks of being notified of suspension.
The Financial Aid Director will review the appeal to determine, on a case-by-case basis, whether or not the appeal is justified. The student will be notified by the Financial Aid Director of the appeal decision. If the appeal is approved, the terms of the probationary reinstatement of aid will be stated.
A student who wishes to appeal the decision of the Financial Aid Director, may do so in writing, to the Student Financial Aid Committee, in care of the Financial Aid Office. Additional appeals may be made to the Vice-President of Student Services, and then to the HCC President, if deemed necessary by the student.

1 Mitigating circumstances are defined as illness of the student or immediate family member, death of immediate family member, and serious traumatic and/or life-altering events that affected the student’s ability to complete the required classes for the semester.

Consequences of Denial

Students who do not maintain satisfactory academic progress standards loose eligibility for aid until the satisfactory academic progress standard is met.

Other Information Regarding SAP

Remedial Course Work: Students who have been accepted into a degree seeking program and required to take remedial course work as determined by placement testing are limited to 30 semester hours of remedial coursework which is calculated as hours attempted and extends the 150% time frame by the number of credit hours earned in each remedial course.

Transfer Students : Students transferring from a school other than HCC will be considered making satisfactory academic progress at the time of their enrollment. Any hours accepted as transfer hours into the students program will be used in calculating SAP.

HCC Returning Students: Returning students will have their cumulative GPA carried forward and hours attempted carried forward. This is in accordance with regulations stating that satisfactory academic progress standards must cover all periods of the student’s enrollment, including those periods for which the student did not receive aid from Title IV funds.

Early Registration: Students on Financial Aid Probation who choose to register early for classes may not use Federal Student Aid until grades have been posted for the current term. The student will be responsible for payment of tuition, fees, and any other expenses until eligibility is determined.

Changing Majors: Changing majors may affect your Satisfactory Academic Progress and your eligibility for financial aid. Students changing majors will assume the new time limit for the major. The hours attempted in any previous major(s) that are not completed will count toward the number of hours attempted in the new major.

Students changing from an associate degree program to a diploma program and have exceeded or nearly exceeded the maximum time frame may appeal to the Financial Aid Director to have the maximum time frame extended.

HCC Graduates: If a student graduates from an associate or diploma program at HCC and desires to return to pursue another degree, the student will assume the new maximum time. Any hours from completed programs accepted as credit for the new program will be calculated as hours attempted and earned. Also, these hours will count toward the 150% maximum time frame.

Haywood Community College

'Top Links:'