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 didn’t receive aid in past quarters. It is also checked at the end of every quarter aid is received. This policy outlines the requirements for financial aid satisfactory academic progress at Peninsula College.
Time Limit Policy
Associate Degrees
Students pursuing an associate’s degree can no longer receive financial aid after the number of credits they have attempted equals 125% of the credits required for their degree. Upon submission of an Academic Plan, students can receive financial aid (except state aid: WA College Grant/State Need Grant, College Bound, Passport, etc.) up to 150% of the credits required for their degree. Students can no longer receive aid after the number of credits they have attempted equals 150% of the credits required for their degree. Students pursuing a second degree can no longer receive aid after they have attempted 125% of the credits required for their second degree, and are ineligible to receive state aid if they are pursuing a second Associate degree within 5 years of receiving their first Associate degree.
Certificate Programs
Students enrolled in an eligible certificate program (a program that is 36 or more credits in length) can no longer receive financial aid after the number of credits they have attempted equals 125% of the credits required for the certificate. Upon submission of an Academic Plan, students can receive financial aid (except state aid: WA College Grant/State Need Grant, College Bound, Passport, etc.) up to 150% of the credits required for their certificate. Students can no longer receive aid after the number of credits they have attempted equals 150% of the credits required for their certificate, rounded down to the nearest whole credit. ***If you are completing a certificate program as part of the first year of your Associate degree, then you will be assigned the time limit for the Associate degree.
Bachelor of Applied Science (B.A.S.) in Applied Management
Students pursuing a Bachelors degree can no longer receive financial aid after the number of credits they have attempted equals 125% of the credits required for their degree, rounded down to the nearest whole credit. Upon submission of an Academic Plan, students can receive financial aid (except state aid: WA College Grant/State Need Grant, College Bound, Passport, etc.) up to 150% of the credits required for their degree. Students can no longer receive aid after the number of credits they have attempted equals 150% of the credits required for their degree, rounded down to the nearest whole credit.
Transfer Credits From Other Colleges
Credits transferred in from other institutions that apply towards your program of study will count toward your attempted credits.
The following courses do not count toward the time limit policy: Basic Skills (BASED), Family Life Education (FLE), high school completion, New Chance, non-credit courses, and up to 45 credits of developmental courses. Developmental courses are English, Math, and Human Development courses below 100 level. If you attempt more than 45 credits of developmental coursework, those credits will count towards your maximum time limit. Non-credit developmental courses are not counted towards the time limit requirement, nor are they counted towards cumulative GPA.
Receiving Aid for More Than One Program of Study
Students can pursue a maximum of two programs of study plus the Bachelor of Applied Science in Applied Management while on financial aid funding at Peninsula College. This means after completing one program, the student begins working towards a second program. Financial aid for the second program will not be awarded until the completion of the first degree appears on the student’s academic transcript. “Program of study” means either an Associate degree program or a certificate program that is 36 or more credits in length. A degree and a certificate earned in the same field (for example, an AAS degree in Criminal Justice and a certificate in Criminal Justice) count as one program for Satisfactory Academic Progress purposes.
Changing Your Program of Study
If you switch to a different program of study, your attempted credit count will not start over. All previously attempted credits will count toward the maximum allowed for your new program of study. It is therefore very important that you notify the Financial Aid Office in writing when you switch programs so we can send you a letter telling you how many attempted credits you have remaining.
Pace of Progression Requirement
We strongly recommend students only take classes that are required towards their program of study. Students must complete their program of study within a maximum time frame in order to receive financial aid. Students who do not complete at least 67% of the credits required towards their program of study within the time frame will be terminated from financial aid eligibility. Pace of progression is checked quarterly and at the beginning of each academic year.
Satisfactory Academic Progress - Quantitative Measure
Credit Completion Requirement
Students must complete the appropriate number of credits each quarter based on the enrollment level for which they are funded. Your funding level may be adjusted based on the Financial Aid Census Date (5th Day) policy.
Students who are currently in good standing (not on Financial Aid Warning or Probation) who do not earn a passing grade of 1.0 or above or a “P” grade by the end of the scheduled quarter for at least 50% of the required credits will be automatically terminated from future quarters of financial aid funding. Grades of “*”, “I”, “W”, “Y” , “N”, “VF”, “VP”, “V”, “Z” and “U” do not count as completed credits. Only credits completed by the end of the scheduled quarter will count as “completed” for Satisfactory Academic Progress. Grades posted late due to instructor error may cause problems and delays for students. It is up to the student and instructor to ensure that his/her grades are posted correctly and on-time at the end of each quarter.
Minimum Credit Completion, Based on Funding Level:
- Full-time (12+ credits) you must complete 12
- ¾-time (9-11 credits) you must complete 9
- ½-time (6-8 credits) you must complete 6
- Less than ½-time (1-5 credits) you must complete all attempted credits
Courses Not Eligible for Financial Aid
Running Start, high school completion, basic studies (BASED), audit, Tech Prep, and Family Life Education (FLE) credits do not count towards the financial aid credit completion requirement for Satisfactory Academic Progress.
Repeated Courses
Students can repeat courses for which they receive 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 policy requirement. Each time a for-credit developmental course is repeated, it counts toward the 45 credit limit on for-credit developmental courses. Developmental courses (up to 45 credits) are excluded from the time limit calculation.
Federal regulations allow a student to repeat a previously passed course once and be eligible for federal-sponsored aid, such as Pell or Direct Loans. It is important for you to run a Degree Audit each time you register or update your schedule.
Satisfactory Academic Progress - Qualitative Measure
G.P.A. 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 Pirate Central.
Students without a calculated cumulative GPA due to the type(s) of grade(s) received (i.e. “P” or “S” grades) will be considered to have met the 2.00 cumulative GPA requirement if they meet the credit completion requirement for their most recent quarter of attendance.
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 in one quarter at Peninsula College at your own expense, complete the appropriate number of credits based on your enrollment level, and have a 2.00 or greater cumulative GPA at the end of the quarter. Once your grades have been posted for the quarter, you must notify the Financial Aid Office that you earned reinstatement by completing an appeal form.
- Earn Reinstatement Via the Appeal Process: Submit, and secure approval of, a written documented appeal for reinstatement due to a death in the family or one-time medical emergency for the student or member of his/her immediate family. Appeals must include official documentation and a written explanation as to how your circumstances are no longer a problem. Appeal forms are available at Pirate Central or in the Financial Aid Office. If you were terminated after being on Financial Aid Warning, you should also explain any mitigating circumstances that resulted in your being placed on Warning status. If you submit an appeal and it is denied, you must earn reinstatement on your own. If your appeal is approved you will be placed on Financial Aid Probation.
If you experienced circumstances not related to a death in the family or one-time medical emergency, you must submit a detailed explanation of your one-time unusual circumstances and include official documentation. Appeals without official documentation will not be reviewed.
Appeals
Students who have reached or exceeded the maximum time frame for their program of study, or who have not met the pace of progression requirements, must submit a Time Limit Appeal to the Financial Aid Office for consideration of future quarters of aid. Time Limit Appeals are not approved for students who enrolled in courses that were not required towards their program of study while they were receiving financial aid funding. Appeal forms are available at Pirate Central or the Financial Aid Office.
All appeals, including Appeals for Reinstatement, must include official documentation, a written statement signed by the student and the appropriate appeal form. Incomplete appeals will not be reviewed.
View the Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Chart.
Unusual Enrollment History
Beginning 2013-14, the Department of Education will institute an Unusual Enrollment History (UEH) flag which is defined as “students who have received Pell Grant funds from three or more institutions over four award years.” The current relevant academic years that require review are 2013-14, 2014-15, 2015-16, and 2016-17. The particular pattern of enrollment that the Department of Education is concerned about is whether the student attends an institution long enough to receive Title IV credit balance funds, leaves without completing the enrollment period or earning credit, and then enrolls at another institution, repeating the pattern.
If flagged by the Department of Education, students will be asked to provide copies of all academic transcripts for all schools where they received aid during the relevant academic years. Students will not be considered for any financial aid funding until all requested transcripts are provided. Students who did not complete any credits at one or more of the previous schools during the prior three-year period may be determined to be ineligible for financial aid funding. Ineligible students may earn reinstatement by enrolling in 6 or more credits at Peninsula College and meeting all Satisfactory Academic Progress requirements that quarter, or by obtaining an approved Appeal for Reinstatement. Reinstatement Appeals can be requested from the Financial Aid Office and must be based on unusual and extraordinary circumstances beyond your control; appeals must include official documentation that demonstrates why you were unable to complete any credits at the schools in question.