Saint Anselm College Undergraduate SAP Policy

Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) is defined as the successful completion of coursework towards a student’s primary program of study (major, core and electives required to complete credit for the program a minimum of 128 credits or 150 credits for a BS in Accounting). Federal regulations require the Office of Financial Aid to monitor SAP for all students receiving Title IV financial aid. SAP is measured using three standards: qualitative measurement, quantitative measurement, and maximum timeframe.

SAP is evaluated independently from the Academic Standing Committee and it is possible for a student to be in good academic standing according to the Academic Dean’s Office and not make Satisfactory Academic Progress. Conversely, a student may be meeting Financial Aid SAP requirements, but not be in good academic standing with the Academic Dean’s Office.

Standards for SAP

Students must meet the following standards to demonstrate Satisfactory Academic Progress. These standards will be evaluated at the end of each academic term (including summer term, if applicable) and a student will be notified if the SAP evaluation affects his or her financial aid eligibility. Please note that the Winter session is combined with the Spring term for financial aid purposes. All SAP notifications will be sent to the student through Workday.

1. Qualitative Standard

Students in the Nursing major are required to have at least a 2.4 CGPA in the primary program of study at the time SAP is measured. Students in the BS in Accounting must earn a 2.7 CGPA. For all other majors, freshmen (those who have earned less than 32 credits) are required to maintain a minimum cumulative GPA of at least 1.8 in the primary program of study.  All other students in the non-specialized majors are required to maintain a CGPA of at least 2.0 in the primary program of study. Grades in courses not applying to the primary program of study will not be counted in the Grade Point Average standard. AP, dual enrollment, and transfer credits will not be counted in the Grade Point Average standard. HP, LP, NP, and P courses will not factor into a student’s GPA for SAP.

2. Quantitative Standard (Pace of Progression)

All undergraduate students are required to have successfully completed at least 67% of cumulative attempted credit hours at each point when SAP is measured. Completed credits are calculated by dividing the cumulative number of hours the student has earned by the cumulative number of hours the student has attempted. All credit hours attempted, regardless of program changes, will be considered when determining completion rates. The designations A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D+, D, D-, HP, LP, NP and P are counted as attempted earned credits. HP, P, and LP count as attempted and earned credits. NP courses will count as attempted, but not earned.

Under the SAP policy, a student is allowed to repeat a failed course one-time. In the event of a repeat, the highest grade earned will be counted in the Grade Point Average Standard and both the original course and the repeated course will be counted in the Pace of Progression. If the student fails the course on the original attempt and on the repeat, only one F will be factored into the CGPA. Both F’s will be counted in the pace of progression. A student is not eligible to receive Title IV aid for a repeat of a course that has previously been passed. Because of this, repeats of previously passed courses are excluded from the SAP calculation.

AP, dual enrollment, and Transfer credits count as both attempted and completed credits.

Military credits do not count in the SAP calculation.

3. Maximum Timeframe for Completion

All students have a maximum time frame for which they have financial aid eligibility in an academic program. A student will not be considered to be making SAP if his or her enrollment exceeds a timeframe equal to 150% of the published minimum credit requirement of the academic program. Refer to the academic catalog for specific program lengths. Saint Anselm College measures a student’s timeframe in attempted credits. Students who change majors are subject to the original 150% maximum time frame. Additional degree programs, however, will be evaluated independently.

Evaluation of Satisfactory Student Academic Performance

  • The Office of Financial Aid will review each student’s progress after each term and a student will be notified if the results of an evaluation impact his or her eligibility for financial aid.
     
  • All periods of enrollment at Saint Anselm College are considered when evaluating SAP. Periods in which the student did not receive financial aid funds will also be considered when determining SAP.
     
  • Only credit bearing courses which are part of the primary program of study will be considered attempted credits for purposes of SAP evaluation.
     
  • Credits dropped during the add/drop period are excluded from SAP evaluation.
     

Failure to Maintain SAP

Automatic Warning Semester

Students not meeting the minimum SAP requirements are placed on financial aid warning and will receive notification through Workday indicating they have not met SAP standards. Financial aid warning lasts for one academic term. During financial aid warning, federal financial aid will be offered and the student will be given one term to improve his/her academic standing and meet SAP requirements. No action is required of the student who is placed on warning status and no appeal of the decision to place a student on financial aid warning is permitted.

If at the close of the financial aid warning term the student has not met SAP standards, the student will be notified through Workday that he/she is ineligible for financial aid for future terms. Students should be aware this includes all federal, state, and some alternative loan aid programs.

Financial Aid Appeal Process

Students who fail to meet SAP requirements at the end of the warning semester may submit a SAP appeal through Workday to the Office of Financial Aid if extenuating circumstances (such as the death of a close relative, an injury or sickness of student, or other extenuating circumstance) existed which negatively impacted the student’s ability to make SAP. The student should meet with an Academic Dean to develop an Academic Plan.  The Academic Plan will be designed to ensure that the student is able to meet the SAP standards by a specific point in time.

A student’s appeal form must address why the student failed to make SAP and what has changed that will now allow the student to satisfy academic progress requirements at the end of the next academic term. Appeals should also include supporting documentation (i.e. hospital records, doctor’s note, etc). Both the SAP appeal form and a copy of the Academic Plan must be submitted through Workday within thirty days of the SAP denial notification in order for the appeal to be considered.

In evaluating a SAP appeal, the Office of Financial Aid considers both the extenuating circumstances that led to the failure to make SAP and whether the student will be able to meet SAP standards by (i) the end of the following academic term or (ii) a specific later date by adhering to an academic plan.

Once the student’s appeal is complete, it will be reviewed by the Director of Financial Aid who will decide whether or not the appeal will be granted. The student will be notified of a decision within three weeks of receipt of the appeal form and Academic Plan. A student may re-appeal only if circumstances have changed since the original appeal was submitted. If a student’s appeal is granted, the student is required to sign and return the Saint Anselm College Satisfactory Academic Progress Academic Plan Contractual Agreement Form. This form will be provided when the student is notified that the appeal was granted. A student’s financial aid will not be disbursed to their student account until this document is completed and returned to the Office of Financial Aid. The student will be placed on Financial Aid Probation for the term.

Effective Fall 2024