Satisfactory Academic Progress

Satisfactory Academic Progress: 

All programs of financial aid funded or controlled by federal or state agencies require that students make satisfactory academic progress to qualify for continued receipt of financial aid.  For federal and state aid purposes, there are three components involved in the determination of satisfactory academic progress: 

1. A student has a maximum of six years (12 full-time equivalent semesters) to complete a degree. 

2. A student must demonstrate successful completion of the following number of hours at the end of each academic year: first year, 18 hours; second year, 36 hours; third year, 57 hours; fourth year, 79 hours; firth year, 103 hours; sixth year, 128 hours; and

3. All students receiving Federal Financial Aid, Institutional Financial Aid, or an Endowed Scholarship must have and maintain a minimum institutional cumulative grade point average 2.00 in order to receive financial aid.  Eligibility for aid programs will be evaluated as part of the initial application process and again at the end of each academic semester. 

APPEALS: A student who has failed to satisfy the above standard may appeal to receive Financial Aid on a probationary status by writing a letter of appeal to the Director of Financial Aid, which in turn is reviewed by an Appeals Committee.  The student is notified in writing of the final decision.  THE UNIVERSITY’S ACADEMIC STANDARDS ARE THE QUALITATIVE STANDARDS FOR THIS POLICY. 

All students, whether undergraduate, graduate, transfer, full-time, or part-time are required to make satisfactory academic progress.  In addition, Federal Law requires that students who have earned 64 or more semester hours (junior and seniors) maintain the minimum cumulative GPA required by the University for graduation.   

A recipient of Alabama Student Grant Program funds becomes ineligible to receive Alabama State Grant Program funds once the total number of hours that he or she has attempted exceeds by more than twenty-five percent, (or five years for a four-year program) the number of hours for his or her course of study.