What Is Satisfactory Academic Progress? Why is it important?
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NOTE: Each institution has control over the exact standards. Ask your financial aid office or college advisor for help on understanding your school’s policy.
When I was in college, I focused on one class at a time. That’s what most students do. But you can’t forget about the bigger picture.
If you’re using any type of federal financial aid, you need to understand what Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) is.
You may be wondering what the standards are and why it’s important to understand them. Fortunately, I’ve got all the information you need to know in order to understand what SAP measures and how to achieve it.
What is satisfactory academic progress?
Satisfactory Academic Progress (or SAP) is a term used to describe the minimum requirements a student needs to achieve in order to continue using federal financial aid. If you fail to meet SAP requirements, you will lose your financial aid eligibility. This can happen after any semester or once a year, depending on your specific school’s policy.
What are the satisfactory academic progress standards?
There are three benchmarks you must meet to be in good academic standing.
Maximum Timeframe for Completion
Most schools will allow you 150% of the total credits it requires to graduate. Here’s a simple example.
Example
Program credit requirements to graduate: 60
Number of credits you can attempt and still be eligible for aid: 90
90/60 = 1.5 or 150%

If you exceed whatever number of credits your institution allows, you will need to appeal to receive more aid, and you will be placed on Financial Aid Probation. You can continue to take classes, but unless you successfully appeal for financial aid, you will not be eligible to receive it.
Cumulative Grade Point Average (cGPA)
Your cumulative GPA (cGPA) will be calculated at specific points in the year – usually after each semester or once a year. If you don’t know which classes will be used to calculate this, I implore you to ask either your college advisor or the financial aid office. Remedial coursework may or may not count towards this calculation. Make sure you are clear on that point.
Institutions have the flexibility to determine what cGPA you need to meet at different parts of your college career. Make sure you understand the policy!
Completion Percentage
There is a certain percentage you will need to maintain for successfully completed classes. This may or may not include remedial courses. The federal’s requirement is a 67% completion rate, but schools are permitted to make stricter requirements.
Examples
- You attempt to pass 18 credits your first semester, but you withdrew from 3 credits.
- successfully completed/attempted = 15/18 = .83 = 83%
- You attempt to pass 15 credits your first semester, but you fail 3 credits and withdraw from 3 credits.
- 9/15 = .60 = 60%
- Your school does not include remedial courses in the completion percentage. You take 9 credits of standard credit courses and 3 credits of remedial coursework. You withdraw from one of your standard credit courses.
- 6/9 = 0.6666 = 66.66% – Will your school round up? I don’t know.
Financial Aid Warning vs. Financial Aid Probation
Financial Aid Warning
Not all schools use this term/designation. If yours does not, you’ll want to keep a close eye on your cGPA, completion percentage, and how many credits you’ve attempted. You want to make sure you stay ahead of the requirements so that you don’t get a letter in the mail that you weren’t expecting.
For schools that do utilize the term – Financial Aid Warning is used as… a warning. It alerts students, “Hey! You need to clean up your cGPA and/or completion percentage so you can continue receiving financial aid!”
You will have one term to meet SAP standards. If you fail to meet them, you will need to submit a SAP appeal. See your advisor for details on how to do that.
Financial Aid Probation
This is the term used for students who failed to meet SAP after being placed on Warning AND successfully appealed to have their financial aid reinstated. You will be placed on an academic plan at this point. If you fail to meet the requirements of your academic plan, you’re supposed to have to appeal again. (I’m not sure how many institutions require this – but they’re supposed to!)
Reasons you may not meet SAP requirements
There are so many different scenarios that can lead to not being able to fulfill Satisfactory Academic Progress requirements. Each institution has been given a decent amount of flexibility on how they calculate SAP, so this list is not comprehensive by any measure. These are the most common scenarios I’ve seen in my career.
Some of these reasons may surprise you.
What happens if you don’t meet the SAP requirements?
- You will be placed on Financial Aid Warning for one term. You are given the chance to increase your GPA and/or completion percentage.
- If you don’t meet the SAP requirements after that term, you will need to successfully appeal in order to receive financial aid, and you will be put on Financial Aid Probation.
- Part of the appeals process usually consists of an academic plan, which gives you requirements to meet. If you do not meet the requirements of your academic plan at the end of the next term, you are supposed to be required to appeal again.
Satisfactory Academic Progress Appeals
I’ll write a more detailed explanation about SAP appeals in the future, but keep in mind one thing:
The federal government allows a student to appeal more than once, but that doesn’t mean your school does. Schools aren’t even required to permit appeals. Your school has given you a second chance. Don’t squander it.
Final Thoughts
You made it! Confusing, isn’t it?! SAP requirements can be pretty complex, but everything should be outlined in your school’s Satisfactory Academic Progress policy. If you can’t find it, be sure to talk to the financial aid office so you understand the specifics.