Standards of Satisfactory Academic Progress

Elements of SAP

Application of SAP Policy

For required courses, a passing grade is a ‘C’ or better. For elective courses, and for courses selected from a “choose one/two from the following” category, a passing grade is a 'D-' or better. Credits attempted are defined as those credits for which students are enrolled at the end of the Add/Drop or Course Adjustment Period.

If there is grade change (including resolution of an incomplete), SAP is calculated after the change to determine whether the student is in good standing with the university. Students enrolled in all educational levels at Neumont are subject to all elements of SAP standards. No student on Financial Aid Warning or Financial Aid Probation status is allowed to graduate. Every Neumont graduate must have a cGPA of 2.0 or higher.

Cumulative Grade Point Average

To meet SAP requirements, students must meet specific cumulative Grade Point Average (cGPA) requirements during their enrollment.

For information on cGPA requirements, refer to the SAP tables included in this section. cGPA is measured at the end of each quarter. An academic year is defined as three quarters. Students with a cGPA of 1.99 or lower at the end of the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, etc., academic years will be dismissed. Note that students in this situation are not eligible for Financial Aid Warning status. However, in the case of a successful mitigating circumstances appeal, these students may be eligible for Financial Aid Probation or they may apply for Extended Enrollment status. For more information, see the Appeal and Extended Enrollment sections of the Course Catalog.

Pace

The University specifies the pace at which a student must progress through his or her educational program to ensure that all students will complete the program within the maximum time frame. Neumont calculates the pace at which the student is progressing by dividing the cumulative number of credit hours the student has successfully completed by the cumulative number of credit hours the student has attempted. A student must complete all of the requirements for graduation without exceeding 150% of the required quarter credit hours for the program in which they are enrolled; this limitation is known as maximum time frame.

Undergraduate students may attempt a maximum of 270 credits (150% of 180 credits). Graduate students may attempt a maximum of 81 credits (150% of 54 credits). (For illustrative purposes: If a student had attempted 84 credits and earned 76 credits, their pace would equal 90.4%.) Thus, in addition to the cGPA requirements, a student must successfully complete a certain percentage of the credits attempted. The pace requirements per quarter are noted in the undergraduate and graduate SAP tables.

Pace Requirements Review

Pace is reviewed at the end of each quarter, once grades have been posted, to determine if the student is progressing satisfactorily toward graduation. If it becomes mathematically impossible to complete the program within the maximum time frame, a student may be immediately dismissed.

The student may appeal their dismissal or continue as a Non-Degree Seeking student at the regular tuition rate until they have completed the maximum allowable credits.

Financial Aid Warning

The University evaluates SAP at the end of every quarter. If a student does not meet SAP requirements he or she is notified by the Office of the Registrar using his or her official Neumont student e-mail account.

For a student who did not meet the cGPA and/or Pace requirements at the end of a quarter, the University will, for the following quarter, place the student on Financial Aid Warning status. To meet SAP standards and return to good standing, the student must—at the end of their Financial Aid Warning quarter— meet the cGPA and pace requirements outlined in the SAP table. (“Good standing” is defined as meeting or exceeding all SAP criteria for that evaluation point.) The University will disburse Title IV/HEA program funds to the student while on Financial Aid Warning status.

A student may appeal the loss of financial aid and termination following a term of Financial Aid Warning by submitting a successful appeal.

Financial Aid Probation

The University evaluates SAP at the end of every quarter. If a student does not meet SAP requirements he or she is notified by the Office of the Registrar using his or her official Neumont student e-mail account.

For a student who did not meet the SAP requirements at the end of their quarter of Financial Aid Warning, the student will lose eligibility for Title IV/HEA program funds.  To re-gain eligibility for Title IV/HEA program funds, the student must submit an appeal (in writing). A successful appeal will be based on the documentation of mitigating circumstances and a determination that the student's situation has changed such that another period of Financial Aid Probation is warranted.  The determination will indicate that the student should meet the minimum standards of satisfactory academic progress by the end of the next quarter of Financial Aid Probation or after meeting the requirements of an Academic Plan. (See Dismissal Appeal section of the Course Catalog).  If successful, the student will be placed on Financial Aid Probation for one quarter and:

• The University determines that the student should be able to meet SAP standards by the end of the subsequent quarter; or,
• The student agrees to a University- and student-sanctioned academic plan—which may include requirements such as taking a reduced course load, enrolling in specific courses, or other requirements—that, if followed, will ensure that student is able to meet the University’s SAP standards by a specific point in time.

To meet SAP standards and return to good standing, the student must—at the end of their Financial Aid Probation quarter— meet the cGPA and pace requirements outlined in the SAP table. (“Good standing” is defined as meeting or exceeding all SAP criteria for that evaluation point. See the SAP table.)  The student may be placed on Financial Aid Probation once per appeal.  The University will disburse Title IV/HEA program funds to the student while on Financial Aid Probation status.

Dismissal

A student who does not meet SAP at the end of their Financial Aid Warning or Financial Aid Probation quarter may be dismissed from the University. Dismissal will occur unless the student has a successful mitigating circumstances appeal and is then granted a quarter of Financial Aid Probation (and, hence, the ability to continue their enrollment). A dismissed student is not eligible for Title IV/HEA funds.

Appealing a Dismissal

An appeal is a process by which a student who has not met the university’s SAP standards petitions the institution for reconsideration of their eligibility for Title IV/HEA program assistance and for continued school enrollment. Students that have been notified that they did not meet SAP standards at the end of a Financial Aid Warning or Financial Aid Probation quarter and will therefore be dismissed from the university, or who did not have a cGPA of 2.0 or higher at the end of their second or subsequent academic year, will have the opportunity to appeal the determination for mitigating circumstances.

Grounds for a mitigating circumstances appeal are:

• Death or serious illness of a family member
• The student missed a substantial amount of class due to an illness or injury
• The student met the requirements specified by the institution in the student’s academic plan
• Quarter grade point average and pace requirements as outlined in the FINANCIAL AID WARNING and FINANCIAL AID PROBATION sections
• The student has demonstrated the ability to succeed going forward, despite not meeting SAP requirements
• A successful appeal following a quarter of Financial Aid Probation must demonstrate that a student's situation has changed such that another period of Financial Aid Probation is warranted
• Other special circumstances

Additional appeal requirements:

• In the appeal, the student must submit information regarding why they failed to make SAP and what has changed in their situation that will allow them to meet SAP standards at their next evaluation point.
• The student must submit the SAP Dismissal Appeal form and all required information to the Registrar than no later than 4:00 p.m. on the Friday prior to the start of the next quarter.
• A student may appeal at the end of each Financial Aid Warning and Financial Aid Probation quarter.

The appeal committee may consider an appealing student's academic record and other indicators of success and deny an appeal, even when the student has demonstrated a qualifying mitigating circumstance, solely on the basis of a determination that a student is unlikely to succeed in future quarters at Neumont.

If the appeal is accepted, the student is allowed one additional quarter of Financial Aid Probation, during which they are eligible for Title IV/HEA funding. The outcome of the appeal and conditions for reinstatement are recorded by the Appeal Committee and are communicated to the student. If a student does not appeal or the appeal is denied, and the student declines or is not eligible for Extended Enrollment, the student is dismissed from the university. Dismissed students will lose their eligibility for Title IV/HEA funding. The lender is notified of the student status change within 30 days from the last date of attendance.

Extended Enrollment Status

Students who do not meet SAP and who have been notified that they are dismissed from the university may be eligible to continue in an Extended Enrollment status, but are subject to the following limitations:

• They may be in Extended Enrollment status for one quarter following a Financial Aid Warning or Financial Aid Probation quarter. A request for Extended Enrollment status will only be granted if the students can mathematically meet SAP at the end of the Extended Enrollment quarter.
• Students will not be eligible for Title IV/HEA funding and will be charged for courses at the current tuition rate.
• Credits attempted during the Extended Enrollment quarter will be counted toward cGPA and Pace.
• At the end of an Extended Enrollment quarter, students must meet SAP standards or they will be dismissed from the University; students may not appeal their dismissal.
• Students will not be eligible to graduate if they exceed 150 percent of the standard time frame, either as a regular student or in an Extended-Enrollment status. (See the Pace section.)
• Students must petition the Office of Student Affairs in writing for approval of Extended Enrollment status. If Extended Enrollment status is granted, the students must meet with a member of the Office of Student Affairs and agree to a written corrective action plan.
• At the end of the Extended Enrollment status period, if a student has met SAP requirements, they will—for the subsequent quarter—resume eligibility for federal financial aid and return to good academic standing with the University. If SAP is still not met, they will be dismissed from the university with no immediate appeal option. (For more information, see Re-Establishing Eligibility re-admission requirements in the Course Catalog.)

Re-Establishing Eligibility

A student is removed from Financial Aid Warning, Financial Aid Probation, or Extended Enrollment status — and (1) re-establishes eligibility for Title IV/HEA funds and (2) returns to good academic standing — only when they fully meet the standards of SAP for their evaluation point (see SAP table). (For illustrative purposes: a student who is on Financial Aid Warning status in their third quarter, due to having a cGPA that is below the 1.75 requirement for their second quarter, must have a cGPA of 1.85 at the end of their Financial Aid Warning/third quarter; this is because the student must meet SAP requirements for the end of the Financial Aid Warning/third quarter, and in this case that requirement is higher than the requirement in place at the previous evaluation point/second quarter.)

A student who has completed a Financial Aid Warning quarter and meets SAP will be eligible for Title IV/HEA funds and returns to good academic standing. A student who does not meet SAP must appeal and have that appeal granted (placed on Financial Aid Probation for the subsequent quarter), be approved for Extended Enrollment, or be dismissed from the University.

The University will notify a student who is on Financial Aid Warning, Financial Aid Probation, or Extended Enrollment status regarding whether or not they have met the standards of SAP and of their status for the following quarter.

Transferring to Another Neumont Program

For a student who transfers to a different Neumont degree program before completing the degree program in which the student was enrolled, the University will recalculate SAP based on the credits attempted, credits earned, and grades earned that count toward the student’s new program of study. (Upon approval of a program transfer, a student may enroll in the prospective program upon the start of the next academic quarter.) Upon completion of a program transfer, a student’s compliance with SAP will be reassessed. 

A transfer request may not be approved if the course(s) a student would need in their new program would not be available. Transferring to another degree may delay a student's graduation date.

Once a student completes his or her degree, the student is not able to transfer into another degree program at Neumont University.