Howard Community College

118 SATISFACTORY ACADEMIC PROGRESS STANDARDS Students who receive financial aid must not only demonstrate financial need, but must also make satisfactory academic progress (SAP) as determined by Howard Community College in accordance with federal regulations. Financial aid recipients are required to be in good academic standing and to maintain satisfactory academic progress toward their degree/certificate requirements for each semester in which they are enrolled. Satisfactory academic progress is evaluated at the end of every semester: fall, winter/spring, and summer. Failure to maintain satisfactory academic progress standards will result in the cancellation of financial aid awards. Federal regulations require HCC to evaluate all students for satisfactory academic progress each semester regardless of whether or not they receive financial aid. Satisfactory academic progress is evaluated based on the student's cumulative academic record, from the date of entry to the college. Per federal regulations, financial aid SAP calculations do not consider academic amnesty. Therefore, your college cumulative GPA may be different than your financial aid cumulative GPA. Students must meet the following requirements: Cumulative Completion Rate Attempted Minimum Required Credits Completion Rate 0–24 50% 25–47 57% 48 and above 67% For example, a student who has attempted 24 credits must have a cumulative completion rate of at least 50% (credits completed divided by credits attempted). For students enrolled in certificate programs less than two years in length, quantitative progress is defined as a 67% completion rate at all times. Cumulative GPA Attempted Minimum Cumulative Credits Required GPA 0–15 1.00 16-30 1.50 31-40 1.75 41 or higher 2.00 For example, a student who has attempted 16 credits must have a cumulative GPA of 1.50. Maximum Timeframe Students must complete an educational program within a timeframe no longer than 150% of the published length of the educational program (for example, complete a program after attempting a maximum of 90 credits for a 60 credit program). Required developmental courses are calculated into the GPA and are counted as regular coursework. Up to 30 required developmental course credits will be added to the program length when determining compliance with the maximum timeframe requirement. Students who exceed their maximum timeframe will bypass the Financial Aid Warning status and are immediately placed on Financial Aid Restriction. Aid eligibility may be limited or terminated for excessive program changes. TRANSFER STUDENTS—Transfer students will be treated as first time students for their first semester. Accepted credits from another institution will be considered as both attempted and completed credits in the evaluation of the

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