Satisfactory Academic Progress
for Financial Aid
Federal and state financial aid regulations require schools to set minimum
standards for satisfactory academic progress and to hold students accountable
for meeting the standards. Satisfactory Academic Progress is checked prior
to awarding aid, even if students did not receive financial aid in past
quarters. It is also checked at the end of every quarter aid is received.
This document outlines the requirements for financial aid satisfactory academic
progress at Cascadia Community College.
Credit Completion Requirement
Students must complete the appropriate minimum number of
credits each quarter based on their enrollment level |
| Received financial aid at the following enrollment level |
Minimum # of credits to complete |
| Full-time (12 or more credits) |
12 credits |
| Three-quarter time (9-11 credits) |
9 credits |
| Half-time (6-8 credits) |
6 credits |
| Less than 1/2-time (1-5 credits) |
all credits |
Enrollment level is based on the number
of credits enrolled in as of the end of the last day to add/drop classes
for the quarter. This date is published in the College's quarterly
schedule and can be found at: http://www.cascadia.edu/Schedules/
Grades of "I" (incomplete), "H" (course in progress),
"N" (audit), "V" (unofficial withdrawal), "W" (official withdrawal and
"Z" (hardship withdrawal) do not count as completed credits. Only
credits completed by the end of the scheduled quarter will count as
"completed" for Satisfactory Academic Progress.
* Running Start, high school completion, ESL,
Basic Skills, Audit, Tech Prep and Community Education credits to not
count towards the financial aid credit completion requirement. |
|
|
GPA Requirement
Students must have a 2.00 cumulative GPA at the end of each quarter.
Students without a calculated cumulative GPA due to the type(s) of
grade(s) received will be considered to have met the 2.00 cumulative GPA
requirements if they meet the credit completion requirements for their
most recent quarter of attendance.
|
|
Time Limit Requirement
Students must complete their program of study within
a maximum time frame in order to receive financial aid.
Associates Degrees
Students will no longer be considered for financial aid when the number
of credits they have attempted equals 125% of the credits required for
their degree, rounded down to the nearest whole credit. All
attempted courses are counted, including incompletes, withdrawals,
unofficial withdrawals, hardship withdrawals, failed courses, audit
classes, repeated courses, and transfer credits.
Please note: Washington State Need Grant will
not be awarded to any students who have attempted 125% or beyond of the
credits required for their program, regardless of whether a time limit
petition is approved.
Certificate ProgramsStudents will no longer be considered for financial aid when the
number of credits they have attempted equals 125% of the credits
required for their certificate, rounded down to the nearest whole
credit. All attempted courses are counted, including incompletes,
withdrawals, unofficial withdrawals, hardship withdrawals, failed
courses, audit classes, repeated courses, and transfer credits.
Please note: Washington State Need Grant will
not be awarded to any students who have attempted 125% or beyond of the
credits required for their program, regardless of whether a time limit
petition is approved.
***************************************
Transfer credits from other institutions or from one
completed program of study at Cascadia to another program of study count
toward the time limit requirement.
The following courses do not count toward the time
limit requirement:
Basic Skills, ESL, high school completion, non-credit courses, and
up to 45 credits of developmental courses (developmental courses are
for-credit English, Math and Human Development courses below the 100
level).
Time Limit Appeal forms are available in Kodiak Corner, or via
our website at: http://www.cascadia.edu/StudentFinancialServices/forms.asp |
Developmental Courses
A maximum of 45 for-credit
developmental credit will be excluded from the time-limit requirement.
For financial aid purposes, "for-credit developmental courses" are
English, Math, and Human Developmental courses which are below the 100
level.
Non-credit developmental courses are not counted toward the time limit
requirements, nor are they counted towards cumulative GPA.
|
|
Repeated Courses
Students can repeat courses for
which they received financial aid. Each time a class is repeated,
whether or not financial aid paid for the course, the credits are
counted toward the time limit requirement. Each time a for-credit
developmental course is repeated while a student is receiving aid, it
counts toward both the time limit requirement and the 45 credit limit on
the number of for-credit developmental courses which will be excluded
from the time limit requirement.
To be eligible to receive financial aid, students must have a 2.00
cumulative GPA at the end of each quarter. In some circumstances,
students who repeat a course and receive a higher grade the second time
can request that the original grade not be computed in their cumulative
GPA. To request that your cumulative GPA be adjusted as a result
of your performance in a repeated course contact the Enrollment Services
Office. |
Changing Your Program of Study
If you stop pursuing a program of
study and switch to another one, your attempted credit count will not
start over. All previously attempted credits will count toward the
maximum allowed for your new program of study. Therefore, it is
very important that you discuss your changes with Student Financial
Services so you can become informed about how many attempted credits you
have remaining. |
Consortium Agreements
Student who must take a required class at another college (the host
college) must complete a Consortium Agreement which is signed by the
host college's financial aid office. Consortiums are only allowed
once a student has met with an academic advisor and the advisor has
determined that this is the only option for the student to meet his/her
program requirements. The agreement and a copy of the registration
from the host college must be submitted to our office. At the end
of the quarter, grades from the host college must be submitted for our
evaluation before any future financial aid can be disbursed. |
| |
Concurrent Programs vs. Consecutive ProgramsConcurrent programs
means that a student is
pursuing two programs simultaneously. At Cascadia, students may
only pursue and receive financial aid for one program of study at a
time. "Program of study" means either an associate's degree
program or a certificate program that is 24 or more credits in length.
Consecutive programs means that after completing
one program, the student begins working towards a second program.
Financial aid for the second program will not be awarded until
completion of the first program appears on the student's academic
transcript. Students may only receive financial aid for one
Associates (AA) degree program, one Associates in Applied Science-T
(AAST) and one certificate program while at Cascadia. An
educational plan and degree audit are required and credits from the
first program of study must be evaluated by an academic advisor for
transferability to the second program. Financial aid will only
fund remaining credits to complete the second degree per the educational
plan. |
| |
Earning Reinstatement after Being Terminated
from Financial Aid Eligibility
If you are terminated from financial aid eligibility for reasons
other than having reached the time limit requirement, you can earn
reinstatement one of two ways:
- Earn Reinstatement on your own
Register for 6 or more credits at Cascadia Community College at your
own expense, complete the appropriate credits based on your
enrollment level (see information above in this document) and have a
2.00 or greater cumulative GPA at the end of the quarter. You
will not be automatically reinstated. Once your grades have
been posted for the quarter you must notify the Student Financial
Services office in writing, using an appeal form, stating that you
have earned reinstatement.
- Earn Reinstatement via the Appeal Process
Submit, and secure approve of, a written documented appeal
for reinstatement. The appeal should be based on unusual or
extraordinary circumstances beyond your control that can be
documented. Appeal forms are available in Kodiak
Corner/Student Financial Services or via the Cascadia website.
If you were terminated after being on probation, you can include in
your petition any unusual or extraordinary circumstances, if
applicable, that led to your being placed on probation. If you
submit an appeal and it is denied, you must earn reinstatement on
your own (option "a" above).
If you are terminated from financial aid eligibility because you
have attempted the maximum number of credits allowed, there is a
separate appeal process. Time Limit Appeal forms are available in
the Student Financial Services Office or on our website. |
Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Chart
Enrollment level
for which you received financial aid* |
To remain in,
or return to,
good standing,
you
must... |
You will be placed on Financial Aid
probation**
if you... |
You will be terminated from Financial eligibility if you... |
Full-time
(12 or more credits) and probation |
Meet all requirements |
Complete 6 - 11 credits and/or have a cumulative GPA of less than 2.00 |
Complete 5 or fewer credits |
| Three-quarter time (9-11 credits) and not currently on probation |
Meet all requirements |
Complete 5 - 8 credits and/or have a cumulative GPA of less than 2.00 |
Complete 4 or fewer credits |
| Half-time (6-8 credits) and not currently on probation |
Meet all requirements |
Complete 3 - 5 credits and/or have a cumulative GPA of less than 2.00 |
Complete 2 or fewer credits |
| Less than half-time (1-5 credits) and not currently on probation |
Meet all requirements |
Complete at least 1 credit (but less than 100% of your
credits), and/or have a cumulative GPA of less than 2.00 |
Complete 0 credits |
| Currently on probation, all enrollment levels |
Meet all SAP requirements |
N/A |
Do not meet all SAP requirements during your probationary quarter |
| All students, all enrollment levels |
|
|
Have attempted the maximum number of credits allowed for your degree or certificate |
* See explanation on the
front page of this document under "Credit completion requirements",
specifically enrollment level.
** Probation status is
considered a warning. Students on probation receive financial aid.
Students may be required to take a reduced course load while on
probation.
|
