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Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy

2011-2012  (Effective July 1, 2011)     PDF VERSION

Federal regulations require that all students who receive federal and state financial aid maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) towards the completion of their eligible program.  A student’s entire academic history is evaluated at least once a school year to determine his/her financial aid academic progress, even if the student was not a prior financial aid recipient.  PLEASE NOTE:  Financial Aid calculations for academic progress may differ from the calculations done by Admissions and Records. 

Folsom Lake College students are evaluated against the following standards:

1. Maintain a minimum of a 2.0 FLC Cumulative Grade Point Average (GPA)
2. Maintain Progress - Successfully Complete at least 75% of units enrolled:
   Progress %=(Total Units With "F", "NC", "NP" "W", "I", "IP", and "RD")=25% or less
                                                     (Total Units Attempted)
3. Total Units (Maximum Time Period) - Students may attempt up to 72 units or a maximum of 150% of the program length toward the completion of a degree or certificate program. Students who have completed a degree (including a foreign degree) or attempted 72 or more units will be denied financial aid. Students who have attempted more than 150% of the units required for a certificate program will be denied financial aid.  Units completed at other college or taken without the assistance of financial aid are calculated into the total number of units attempted. Up to 30 earned units of remedial coursework at FLC may be deducted from the total units accumulated.  ESL classes are counted towards the total number of units attempted.  Students who enroll in ESL or excessive remedial cours­es that don’t apply to their degree or certificate may exhaust their financial aid eligibility prior to completing their program. 

Course Repetition: To determine the student's GPA, the most recent grade for a repeated course will be used. All units (both current and prior) from repeated courses are counted toward the maximum number (72) of units a student is permitted to attempt.  Students are not eligible to receive aid for more than one repetition of a course that has been previously passed. 

Appeal Eligibility: Under certain conditions, students who are denied aid due to unsatisfactory academic progress may be offered the opportunity to appeal the denial. Students who want to appeal must meet the Appeal Eligibilty Criteria and complete an Appeal Form with all supporting documentation and submit it to the Financial Aid Office prior to the posted deadlines for each semester. 

If the appeal is approved, the student will be placed on probation during that term.  At the end of that term, academic progress will be reviewed to determine continued financial aid eligibility for the following term. 

Prior approval of an appeal does not mean that the deficiency will not be counted if lack of satisfactory academic progress continues.  Please refer to the Appeal Eligibility Policy for details.

WITHDRAWALS AND REPAYMENT OF FINANCIAL AID FUNDS  

If a student receives federal student aid funds and withdraws from all their classes or does not successfully complete any of their classes, they may OWE money back to the U.S. Department of Education. This includes money you received in grants.  In addition, SAP will be reviewed and student must complete a Reinstatement of Financial Aid form in order to have future financial aid eligibility determined.  Students denied reinstatement may be eligible to submit an appeal.   

The Financial Aid Office is required to calculate the amount of federal aid a student has earned based on their enrollment status at the time of complete withdrawal or the last day of reported school activity for the semester.  Based on this calculation, students will be billed for any unearned Title IV funding and any institutional portion that Folsom Lake College is required to refund the Department of Education for the financial aid assistance they received.  Until the institutional portion is paid in full, a hold will be placed on the student’s Los Rios School record, which prevents them from registering for classes and obtaining academic transcripts.  In addition, students will be ineligible to receive any Title IV finding. 

If the calculation results in the student earning 60% or more of their financial aid funds, no repayment will be required. 

If the results determine the student withdrew before 60% of the semester, the student will be billed for an additional student portion of the financial aid funds received. The student will be given 45 days to repay the funds in full to the Financial Aid Office.  If the student fails to repay the funds within 45 days, they will be reported to the U.S. Department of Education. 

In addition to the calculation above, the Financial Aid Office will recalculate your Pell grant eligibility each semester on the dates noted under "RECALCULATION DATES FOR REDETERMINATION OF FINANCIAL AID ELIGIBILITY” on your award letter and on the FLC website at www.flc.losrios.edu Quick Links: Financial Aid, then click on Financial Aid Deadlines on the left menu bar.  Students who failed to maintain enrollment in the number of units they were paid for on the dates noted will be required to repay the difference in their Pell grant eligibility. 

If you are thinking of withdrawing, please work with the Financial Aid Office to learn how much you could owe or how you can continue your financial aid eligibility.  Most importantly, find out how to stay in school and not owe a repayment.

OVERAWARD OF FINANCIAL AID FUNDS

Federal and state regulations do not allow students to receive aid that exceeds their financial eligibility. 

An overaward may occur in the following situations:

• unreported aid from outside resources (scholarships, grants, stipends, etc.)
• an increase in family contribution as a result of corrections made to the Student Aid Report (SAR)
• changes in enrollment status
• human error in calculation or data entry of an award(s)

In all instances, students are required to repay all assistance for which they are determined to be ineligible.