Financial Aid Student Responsibilities
Process Overview and Responsibilities
Students applying for or awarded financial aid are required to make Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) in an eligible program of study and meet maximum timeframe requirements. Students may only receive financial aid for classes which meet the requirements for their degree or certificate program at Seattle Central College. All quarters and all credits attempted are considered, regardless of whether financial aid was received, when evaluating SAP.
The following information outlines the financial aid satisfactory academic progress requirements for financial aid recipients. Satisfactory academic progress is evaluated quarterly.
Definitions of Financial Aid Status
- Meets – Students are meeting the minimum requirements of the college’s SAP policy and are eligible to receive financial aid in the following quarter.
- Warning – one or more of the qualitative or quantitative measures have not been met. Students placed on warning must successfully complete all the credits for which they enroll the quarter following the warning status and achieve a 2.0 quarterly GPA or higher to continue receiving aid.
- Probation – students on probation have had a “SAP Appeal” or “Appeal for Reinstatement of Aid” approved and are expected to be eligible at the end of the term. At minimum, students must complete 100% of their attempted credits, earn a 2.0 or better quarterly GPA, and maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or better during the conditional probation quarter(s).
- Conditional Probation – students on conditional probation have had a “SAP Appeal” or “Appeal for Reinstatement of Aid” approved and are required to follow specified conditions of their reinstatement. Students are notified of their additional requirements. Failure to meet these conditions during the probationary period will result in becoming ineligible for financial aid for future quarters. At minimum, students must complete 100% of their attempted credits, earn a 2.0 or better quarterly GPA, and maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or better during the conditional probation quarter(s).
- Suspension / Ineligible – the student is not eligible to receive financial aid as they have not met all SAP minimum requirements. For reinstatement options, see the “Right to Appeal” section.
- Pace of Progression - ability to complete a program of study within the maximum allowed time frame.
- Maximum Timeframe WARNING – the student is nearly out of time to complete their degree with financial aid funding. Students with this status are still eligible to receive financial aid funding until they reach 150% of their degree’s credit requirements or reach lifetime limits on aid. An educational plan from your academic advisor may be required. See maximum timeframe requirements under the Maximum Timeframe section below.
- Maximum Timeframe – The student has reached the maximum number of credits they may receive for their degree with financial aid funding, and this may not be appealed.
SAP is reviewed prior to offering any financial aid, in addition to the review at the end of each quarter that some type of financial aid is received. Grades of 1.0 - 4.0, S and Y (where appropriate) will count toward completed credits. Grades less than a 1.0, I (Incomplete), NC (Non-Credit), N (Audit),"*" (Missing Grade) and W (Withdrawal) do not count toward completed credits.
To fulfill your SAP requirements:
- Students must be enrolled in classes required for their declared program of study at one of the Seattle Colleges campuses.
- Funding is allowed for the pursuit of one program of study at a time. Request for program changes are allowed after approval from the Financial Aid Office.
- Students must meet all qualitative measures, quantitative measures, and maximum timeframe requirements listed below.
Qualitative Measures – Grade Point Average (GPA)
A student must earn a quarterly GPA of 1.0 and a cumulative GPA of 2.0 at the end of each quarter. Failure to maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.0 will result in a "Warning" status. Two consecutive quarters of warning status will result in suspension status. A quarterly GPA below 1.0 will result in a suspension of financial aid eligibility.
Quantitative Measures
Pace of Progression / Program Completion Rate - Students are required to keep a minimum pace of progression (completion rate) of 67% or higher. This is based on the cumulative number of credits completed divided by the cumulative number of credits attempted. Students who drop below 67% will be placed in cancelled/ineligible status.
Quarterly Course Completion Rates - Students are expected to successfully complete all the credits for which they enroll in each quarter. Students must earn a minimum of 50 percent of their attempted credits at the end of each term, or their financial aid will be cancelled. To maintain a status of “Meets”, students must complete the appropriate number of credits based on their enrollment status as follows:
| Enrollment Level | You must complete at least: |
|---|---|
| Full–time (12 or more credits) | 12 credits per quarter |
| Three–quarters–time (9–11 credits) | 9 credits per quarter |
| Half–time (6–8 credits) | 6 credits per quarter |
| Less than half–time (1–5 credits) | 3 credits per quarter |
Maximum Timeframe
- Maximum Timeframe is evaluated against all attempted credits and any transferred-in credits. Up to a maximum of 45 credits may be added to the allowable credits attempted for required remedial or developmental coursework as identified by a college placement test or program requirements. This includes Math 080-099 and English 080-099. No other classes below level 100 are counted as part of the 45 credits allowed and are not covered by financial aid funds.
- Maximum Timeframe Federal Aid - Students must be able to complete their program of study (certificate or degree) within 150% of the published length of the program. Students who cannot mathematically complete their program in the maximum timeframe for their program of study are not eligible to receive federal financial aid.
- Maximum Timeframe State Aid - State financial aid recipients have a maximum usage limit of five full-time years of eligibility for the Washington College Grant and a maximum usage limit of four full-time years of eligibility for the College Bound Scholarship (after enrolling within one year of high school graduation).
The academic progress for every financial aid applicant will be reviewed after each quarter. All of a student’s academic coursework is considered in the review process, whether the student received aid during the term or not.
The assessment will include both the qualitative and quantitative standards and is based on the student’s entire academic record, including all transfer credit hours accepted which apply to the student’s specific program of study.
A student is placed on financial aid warning when one or more of the qualitative or quantitative measures have not been met.
Incomplete courses are not counted as completed for SAP calculations. The instructor notifies the financial aid office when the class is completed. Students are allowed one repeated course.
For remedial courses, 45 credits are allowable, and ESL is not counted as part of the 45 credits.
A student who has completed all the coursework for his or her degree or certificate but has not yet received the degree or certificate cannot receive further financial aid for that program.
Right to Appeal
Financial aid recipients who do not meet the satisfactory academic standards as written may appeal their SAP status to be placed on one of the Probation statuses and receive financial aid in the following quarter. All funding reinstatement is subject to availability of funds. Students may appeal by submitting a Financial Aid Appeal form which is sent directly to Financial Aid staff upon completion.
In addition to a personal statement, students are encouraged to provide documentation and an approved education plan. Documentation examples include but are not limited to the following: court document, police reports, letter from a public assistance agency, letter from a member of the clergy. Generally, students may not appeal for the same reason more than once.
Education plans (academic plans) are included in the SAP appeal process. Education Plans must be created with a campus academic advisor.
If a student’s appeal is approved, they will be placed into Probation status and given new terms and conditions to follow to maintain eligibility to receive financial aid. Students will remain on Probation status until they meet the terms listed on their Probation Approved Letter or meet the minimum Satisfactory Academic Progress requirements.
Students on probation have had an “SAP Appeal” approved and are expected to be eligible at the end of the term.