MINIMUM STANDARDS OF SATISFACTORY ACADEMIC PROGRESS
I. Program Completion
The maximum time frame allowed to complete a program of study without financial aid penalty cannot exceed 1.5 times the published length of a specific program. For example, a student in General Studies, which is 64 semester hours in length, may attempt a maximum of 96 hours. The lifetime limit for Pell grant funding is 12 full-time semesters.
II. Required Credit Hours
The student must successfully complete a specific percentage of all classes attempted. Be sure to review the chart below for your individual situation. For example, if a student attempts 33 credit hours, he/she must successfully complete at least 23 of the 33 hours. NOTICE: All hours attempted (including those from which the student withdrew, received in-completes, transferred in credit, and/or were paid by sources outside of financial aid) will be included in this calculation.
III. Required Grade Point Average (GPA) and completion rate
A student enrolled in a degree program (AA, AS, or AAS) must achieve the following:
1.5 GPA and 58% completion rate after attempting 1-21 credit hours
1.75 GPA and 62% completion rate after attempting 22-32 credit hours
2.0 GPA and 67% completion rate after attempting 33 credit hours
Students enrolled in short-certificate programs must achieve the following:
1.50 GPA and 58% completion rate after attempting 1-12 credit hours
2.00 GPA and 67% completion rate after attempting 12 or more credit hours
IV. Financial Aid Warning
If a student fails to achieve the required cumulative GPA or does not successfully complete the required percentage of overall hours, he/she will be placed on financial aid warning. Students on warning will be allowed to receive aid and will be notified of their warning status within the myShelton account. Warning will be lifted in the subsequent term if the student attains the required cumulative GPA and/or successfully completes the required percentage of hours at the end of the warning semester.
V. Financial Aid Suspension
If a student does not have the required GPA and completion rate after his/her warning semester or if the student fails to follow the Plan of Resolution he/she will be suspended from federal financial aid. If placed on academic suspension, a student is NOT eligible to receive financial aid for the duration of suspension, even if he/she is readmitted to the College upon academic appeal. The student may regain eligibility for financial aid when the overall satisfactory academic progress requirements are obtained.
VI. Appeal Process
The student may file one appeal at Shelton State by submitting a Financial Aid Appeal to the Financial Aid Office. The student must complete the Financial Aid Appeal Packet and submit it to the Enrollment Services Office. Decisions of the Appeal review are final. An appeal will not be approved without documentation of mitigating circumstances.
A student may appeal financial aid suspension if he or she meets one the following conditions:
Mitigating circumstances such as:
- illness;
- hospitalization;
- death in immediate family; or(Immediate family includes spouse, parents, siblings, step parents, grandparents, children, stepchildren, grandchildren, mother in law and father in law, brothers in law and sisters in law, and daughters in law and sons in law)
- accident that limited your ability to be successful at Shelton State.
VIII. Monitoring Progress
Academic progress will be monitored at the end each term.
IX. Repeating Courses
A student receiving a Federal Pell Grant may repeat courses not successfully completed; however, all hours will be included in the satisfactory academic progress calculations. Students may repeat successfully completed courses one additional time.
X. Developmental Courses
A student may receive financial aid for up to 30 attempted developmental credit hours. If this number is exceeded, financial aid cannot cover any additional developmental classes. If the student enrolls in the same developmental course more than three times, financial aid will not apply for any subsequent enrollment(s) in this course. Developmental courses count the in completion rate calculation for academic progress.
XI. Audit Courses
Audited courses are not considered credits attempted or earned and students cannot receive financial aid for these courses.
Students’ Rights and Responsibilities
Students have the responsibility of knowing the requirements for applying for financial aid, college refund and repayment policies, procedures relative to guidelines affecting a financial aid award, and procedures relative to disbursement of financial aid. Students should contact the financial aid office with any questions.
Financial Aid Overpayment Policy
In accordance with federal regulations (CFR 668-61), any financial aid overpayment made to a student must be repaid.
