SATISFACTORY ACADEMIC PROGRESS (SAP)
for Financial Aid Recipients

Effective: January 17, 2008

Title IV regulations require that each student receiving federal aid maintain satisfactory academic progress. Satisfactory progress is measured by both a qualitative and a quantitative standard. The MCC SAP is outlined below and measures only courses taken in a student’s current field of study.

	Your Current Progress
Increment 1: Measured at the end of the semester in which the student exceeds 15 credit hours attempted in their field of study.
Completion rate required: 50% cumulative	____________________________________
Required GPA: 2.0	____________________________________
Increment 2: Measured at the end of the semester in which the student exceeds 30 credit hours attempted in their field of study.
Completion rate required: 60% cumulative	____________________________________
Required GPA: 2.0	____________________________________
Increment 3: Measured at the end of the semester in which the student exceeds 45 credit hours attempted in their field of study.
Completion rate required: 67% cumulative	____________________________________
Required GPA: 2.0	____________________________________
Increment 4: Measured at the end of each semester term after 45 credit hours.
Completion rate required: 67% cumulative	____________________________________
Required GPA: 2.0	____________________________________

All aid is suspended once a student has attempted more than 150% of the required number of hours in their program of study. For example, if the degree requires 70 hours to complete, the 150% maximum timeframe would be 105 attempted hours. For diploma students, if the diploma requires 40 hours to complete, the maximum timeframe would be 60 attempted semester hours.

Limits on Financial Aid Eligibility: A student may NOT change curriculums or programs of study more than three times and still receive financial aid. A student must earn a diploma or degree in one of the three attempted programs before she/he may receive aid for another course of study. Once a student has reached financial aid suspension status, they must meet with the Director of Counseling Services for counseling and to complete an interest inventory prior to changing majors.

In addition, a student may receive aid for up to two (2) one-year diplomas or two (2) associate degrees. After a student has completed two degrees, two diplomas, or one degree and one diploma they are no longer eligible to receive financial aid at MCC.

WITHDRAWAL: All courses attempted in the field of study are used in calculating the SAP. Withdrawals and grades of “F” or “AU” count as hours attempted. If a student changes curriculums, all the courses attempted previously that apply toward the new major transfer and are used in determining SAP.

PROBATION: There is NO PROBATIONARY TERM for students who fail to meet the SAP standards. As MCC allows students to change courses of study and provides a graduated completion scale, students must meet the standards in order to continue receiving aid.

APPEAL: All students are eligible to appeal their financial aid suspension status in writing to the Financial Aid Department. Appeals are granted only in documented cases of serious illness, death of an immediate family member, natural disaster, or other traumatic episode.

REMEDIAL CLASSES: Remedial classes do not apply toward the SAP calculation. Students may receive aid for 30 remedial credit hours only.

REPEATING COURSES: Repeating a course is allowed when the student fails to earn a grade of “C” or better. However, repeating a course counts as another attempt: the attempted hours count each time the course is taken; the completed hours count once. Repeating courses may be detrimental to a student’s SAP.

ADDING A MINOR: Students may declare a minor. However, while the hours attempted in both programs count toward determining the SAP (completion rate and GPA), the student must be able to complete their primary course of study within the maximum timeframe. If at any point it becomes clear that the student cannot complete their primary course of study within the 150% maximum timeframe, they become ineligible for aid. Adding a minor does not increase the maximum timeframe. The maximum timeframe is 150% of the primary course of study.

Clarification on having a minor: While MCC’s SAP policy only calculates courses that apply toward a student’s listed program(s) of study and allows a student to change curriculums up to three times, students may NOT drop a minor for the intended purpose of lowering their attempted number of credit hours. For example, a student who has been attempting courses concurrently in two programs of study (Criminal Justice and EMS) is informed that they are no longer eligible for aid because they cannot complete their primary degree of Criminal Justice within the 150% timeframe. CJ requires 66 hours to complete: 150% limit is 99 hours (SAP requires a student to be able to graduate by 150% limit). The student has attempted 50 hours in CJ and 25 in EMS for a total of 75 attempted hours. Of those 50 attempted in CJ, the student has completed 40, leaving 26 more hours to complete before being eligible for a degree in CJ (66 - 40=26). As the student is within 24 hours of the 150% cap, they are NOT eligible for aid.

To change this determination and regain eligibility, the student tries to drop EMS minor in order to reduce the number of hours they have attempted to 50 (75 - 25= 50). This attempt to alter the SAP standing is NOT permissible. If a student has clearly attempted two programs of study concurrently, then for the purposes of financial aid these programs are linked and the hours attempted in each are collectively used to calculate the SAP.

SUSPENSION / REGAINING ELIGIBILITY FOR AID: Students who fail to meet the standards outlined above are ineligible for aid. Excepting an approved appeal request, the only manner by which a student may regain eligibility is by completing classes at their own expense and achieving the minimum SAP requirements.

COURSES OUTSIDE THE CURRICULUM: It is the student’s responsibility to register for courses in their program(s) of study. An award may be reduced after the first day of classes for credit hours not relevant to the curriculum. In such cases, the business office will charge the student for the tuition cost for such credit hours.

NOTICE: RESPONSIBILITY FOR REGISTERING FOR CLASSES IN ONE’S PROGRAM OF STUDY, MONITORING ONE’S PROGRESSION TOWARD GRADUATION, AND AVOIDING SAP INELIGIBILITY LIES WITH THE STUDENT. When a student enrolls at MCC, they choose their course of study and they have complete and easy access to the course requirements necessary to complete that chosen degree. While MCC provides advisement and counseling for students in an effort to facilitate a student’s educational interests and goals, this SAP policy is mandated by the federal government and may not be altered, ignored, or regulated on the grounds of improper or misinterpreted advisement.