Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)
In accordance with the U.S. Department of Education, the Office of Financial Aid at Hood College monitors graduate students after the spring semester each academic year for successful completion of satisfactory academic progress (SAP) standards. For financial aid eligibility, terms are defined as fall, winter, spring and summer. All students are measured on qualitative (grade-based) and quantitative (time-based) standards. Students who fail to meet SAP standards are not eligible for any financial aid unless an appeal is approved. Students are not limited to one appeal.
Graduate programs range from 30 to 60 credits with most master's programs at the 36-credit level, and a 3.00 cumulative average is required to complete the degree. Students are considered to be making satisfactory progress toward degree completion for financial aid purposes by adhering to the Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Policy outlined below.
Students who are not meeting the SAP standards at the end of the spring semester are notified in writing via email to their Hood College email address.
Cumulative GPA
The qualitative standard measures a student's quality of performance in terms of GPA. Graduate students must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 at the end of the spring semester in each academic year in order to meet this requirement. If a student fails to meet this requirement, ,the student will be suspended from financial aid but will have the opportunity to submit an appeal.
Cumulative Completion Rate (Also referred to as pace)
In order to maintain financial aid eligibility, the U.S. Department of Education requires a student to successfully complete 67 percent of the credits for which he/she attempted as shown in the example below:
Hood College Office of Financial Aid calculates the pace at which a student is progressing by dividing the cumulative number of credits successfully completed by the cumulative number of credits attempted. All periods of enrollment count when assessing quantitative standards, even periods in which the student did not receive aid.
Pace=Cumulative number of credits successfully completed/Cumulative number of credits attempted
Maximum Timeframe
The maximum timeframe in which a graduate student is expected to complete their degree is 150 percent of the published length of the program measured in years. Students will become ineligible for any type of financial aid if the maximum timeframe for completion is not met. For example, if a published length of a graduate academic program is 2 years, the maximum period must not exceed 3 years. The maximum timeframe in which a student is expected to complete their additional or dual degree is 150 percent of the published length of the program measured in years.
The maximum timeframe for Hood College programs is as follows:
- Certificate programs: - 2 years
- Master’s degree - 3 years
- Doctorate degree- 6 years.
(Note: the SAP policy is separate from the time-to-completion Graduate School policy which allows up to seven years to complete a degree program.)
Students who fail to meet the maximum timeframe requirement towards completion of their degree will have their financial aid canceled. Students may appeal this suspension.
Treatment of W, INC, AU, F, S and U Grades and Repeated Coursework
- Course withdrawals (W or WX) after the drop/add period are not included in the GPA calculation but are considered a non-completion of attempted coursework.
- Incomplete (INC) grades are not included in the GPA calculation but are considered a non-completion of attempted coursework until the incomplete grade is replaced with a permanent grade and academic progress can be reevaluated.
- An audit (AU) grade is not considered attempted coursework. It is not included in the GPA calculation or completion rate determination.
- A satisfactory (S) grade is treated as attempted credits earned, but it is not included in the GPA calculation.
- An unsatisfactory (U) grade is treated as attempted credits that are not earned, but it is not included in the GPA calculation.
- A failing grade (F) is treated as attempted credits not earned; it will be included in the calculation of the GPA and the minimum completion rate.
- All grades earned for a repeated course will be recorded on the transcript and the highest grade received will be included in the GPA calculation; however, every repeated attempt will be included in the completion rate determination.
- Transfer credits and/or credits for prior learning given at the time of enrollment will be counted in the total number of credits attempted and the maximum timeframe standard.
Students can only receive financial aid for a repeated, previously passed course one additional time. If the student registers for a previously passed course the third time, the course is ineligible for financial aid.
Students may only receive financial aid for courses which are required for their program of study.
Due to flexibility provided through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), attempted courses will be excluded from the qualitative component if the credits not completed was a result of the COVID-19 national emergency.