Graduate Students

12 successfully completed hours/18 attempted hours=0.6667 Pace of Completion. This student is making SAP because they have successfully completed two thirds of the hours they attempted.

Maximum Total Attempted Hours:

Graduate and Professional students are not considered to be making SAP once their Total Attempted Hours reach the maximum number permitted for their degree program, or it is apparent they will be unable to complete their degree before reaching the Maximum Total Attempted Hours permitted for the program.

Master’s or Specialist Degree Programs:

The maximum number of Total Attempted Hours permitted for students pursuing a master’s or specialist degree is 102 (the Master of Science in Business Analytics is allowed 49 instead of 102), and

Students with Maximum Total Attempted Hours between 90-101 must be graduating at the end of the next semester of enrollment in order to be making SAP during that semester.

Doctoral and Professional Degree Programs:

The maximum number of Total Attempted Hours permitted for students pursuing the following programs are:

• Doctoral: 280.5
• Law J.D.: 132
• Law LL.M.: 39
• Law M.S.L.: 45
• Pharm.D.: 327
• D.V.M.: 265.5

In addition, should it become apparent a student will be unable to complete his or her degree before reaching the applicable maximum number of Total Attempted Hours, the student will no longer be considered to be making SAP.

Measurement of Quality:

Minimum Grade Point Average (GPA)

Students must maintain a cumulative GPA equal to or above the following minimum GPA on all coursework applicable to their degree level, and taken during their degree program.

All graduate and professional programs other than those listed below must maintain a minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA:

• Law J.D., LL.M. and M.S.L.: minimum 2.0 cumulative GPA
• Pharmacy Pharm.D: minimum 2.0 cumulative GPA
• D.V.M: 2.5 minimum cumulative GPA

Student Dismissal:

Students dismissed from a graduate or professional program are not considered to be making SAP.

Dual / Joint Graduate/ Professional Degrees:

All requirements for the degrees, including the thesis / dissertation and final oral / written examination, must be completed within the maximum timeframe permitted for the degree program comprised of the greater number of credit hours.

Repeated Coursework:

All hours attempted and all grades received for courses taken more than once count in the student’s Satisfactory Academic Progress calculations.

Additional Professional and Graduate Degrees:

Students who have graduated with a masters, doctoral or professional degree who wish to pursue another degree at the same level are still limited to the number of Maximum Total Attempted Hours applicable to a single degree at the same level.

Example A: Student had 71 Total Attempted Hours when she earns her MBA. She is now pursuing a Master in the Study of Law (M.S.L.). Since her Total Attempted Hours already exceed the 45 Total Attempted Hours permitted for the M.S.L., she is not considered to be making SAP. She needs to review the SAP Appeal Policy & Procedures. The measurement of the student’s Minimum 67% Pace of Completion and Measurement of Quality continue to be based on her Total Attempted Hours.

Example B: A student who previously pursued a doctoral degree now wishes to pursue either a different doctoral or a professional degree. The student attempted 74 doctoral level hours pursuing the previous degree, so he has accrued 74 Total Attempted Hours at the doctoral level.  The maximum number of Total Attempted Hours permitted students pursuing a doctoral degree is 280.5; therefore, the student has 206.5 (280.5 minus 74) doctoral or professional level hours he can attempt before reaching his Maximum Total Attempted Hours (150%). The 74 hours will also be included in calculating the student’s Minimum 67% Pace of Completion and overall cumulative GPA.

Study Abroad / Student Exchange / Consortium Courses:

Hours based on enrollment in Study Abroad, Student Exchange or approved consortium courses are counted toward Total Attempted Hours.

These courses will not count as Successfully Completed Hours until the applicable academic transcript reflecting successful completion is received by the appropriate graduate school and grades are entered into Athena.

Students should contact the UGA Office of Student Financial Aid (OSFA) once Study Abroad, Student Exchange or Consortium grades are entered so OSFA can determine if the student now meets the Minimum 67% Pace of Completion.

Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Evaluation Process:

SAP is evaluated at the end of every semester. After grades are posted, OSFA e-mails all financial aid recipients informing them of the need to review their SAP status on Athena, which either informs them they are maintaining SAP or provides the reason(s) for their failure to maintain SAP.  Those students not maintaining SAP are informed of the specific SAP standard(s) not being met and provided a link to the SAP Appeals Policy & Procedures.

Financial Aid Warning:

Financial Aid Warning status is defined by federal regulation and cannot be altered or modified.

Financial aid applicants and recipients who were previously maintaining SAP but are identified as failing to maintain either the Minimum 67% Pace of Completion or the Measurement of Quality will be automatically placed on Financial Aid Warning status for one semester of enrollment.

NOTE: EMBA, PMBA, and online MBA students are not eligible for Financial Aid Warning status as they are only checked for SAP once per academic year prior to fall semester.

Although students placed on Financial Aid Warning status are no longer making SAP, they are still eligible to receive any federal or state financial aid for which they are otherwise eligible during their one semester on Financial Aid Warning.

All financial aid awarded for any semesters subsequent to the Financial Aid Warning semester will be cancelled.

Students who have been placed on Financial Aid Warning due to their failure to meet the Minimum 67% Pace of Completion and/or the Measurement of Quality will retain their financial aid eligibility if, at the end of their Financial Aid Warning semester, they are again meeting both of these requirements. Previously cancelled aid for which they are otherwise eligible will be reinstated. See “How to Regain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) on Your Own”.

Students who have either exceeded their Maximum Total Attempted Hours or cannot regain SAP on their own during their Financial Aid Warning semester should skip the following section and read the SAP Appeal Policy and Procedures.

How to Regain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) on Your Own:

This option applies only to those students not maintaining the Minimum 67% Pace of Completion and/or the Measurement of Quality. This is not an option for students who are nearing or have reached their Maximum Allowable Total Attempted Hours.

SAP Appeal Policy & Procedures:

Federal student aid regulations permit (but do not require) colleges to establish a SAP Appeals Policy. Furthermore, if an institution chooses to implement a SAP policy which permits appeals, it is left solely to the institution to specify when and how such appeals will be permitted as well as how many times a student may appeal.

OSFA has established the following SAP Appeals Policy and Procedures to assist students who failed to maintain SAP due to mitigating circumstances.

Students may appeal to the Office of Student Financial Aid (OSFA) by:

• using the Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Appeal form to initiate an appeal setting forth their mitigating circumstances, and
• providing any supporting documentation which confirms the occurrence or circumstances, and
• explaining how the situation has been resolved or stabilized; thereby, enabling the student to now be academically successful, and
• providing any supporting documentation which confirms the situation has been resolved or stabilized.

The University of Georgia is committed to the well-being of all of our students. If the appeal you submit indicates you have experienced sexual or relationship violence, the Office of Student Financial Aid will refer it to the Equal Opportunity Office who may contact you with the resources that are available to you.

Academic Plan:

OSFA’s review of student SAP appeals will include consideration of and possible approval of, an individual student academic plan.

OSFA may work with students on a case-by-case basis to identify an academic plan designed to get the student back on track and become academically successful. This is the purpose of an academic plan.

Depending on the individual student situation, an academic plan may be as simple as a mathematical calculation by OSFA that specifies the percentage of coursework the student must now successfully complete, the minimum grade point average the student must earn each semester, or the maximum number of hours in which the student may enroll in a specified semester. Conversely, the academic plan may be as complicated as a course by course degree plan.  In these cases OSFA will instruct the student to meet with his or her UGA academic advisor to formulate a structured plan which clearly sets forth the courses in which the student must enroll, and the minimum GPA he or she must earn each term. The student will then provide a copy of the formal academic plan to OSFA for consideration.

Students for whom OSFA grants an appeal with an approved academic plan can receive the federal or state financial aid for which they are otherwise eligible as long as they strictly adhere to their approved plan. Students on an OSFA approved academic plan will be evaluated following each semester of enrollment and his or her failure to meet ALL the requirements of the academic plan will result in immediate loss of financial aid eligibility.

Financial Aid Probation:

Financial Aid Probation status is defined by regulation and cannot be altered or modified.

If OSFA finds that the student’s appeal circumstances were sufficiently mitigating, and if either

• it is mathematically possible for the student to re-attain SAP by the end of the semester of enrollment following the student’s Financial Aid Warning semester, or
• OSFA has approved a Financial Aid Academic Plan, the student will be placed on Financial Aid Probation for one semester. Students placed on Financial Aid Probation can still receive any federal or state financial aid for which they are otherwise eligible.

At the end of the semester on Financial Aid Probation, the student must again be meeting either all SAP criteria, or must be meeting all the requirements of his or her OSFA approved Academic Plan in order to continue to be eligible for financial aid.

Students whose appeals are approved will continue to be reviewed at the end of each semester to determine if they are meeting all SAP requirements, or are meeting all the requirements of their approved Academic Plan.

Student Financial Counseling:

Students who previously received Federal Direct Student Loans or previously failed to maintain SAP may also be required to complete additional financial counseling before eligibility for student financial aid can be re-established.

Effective Semester SAP Students Can Regain Financial Aid Eligibility:

If otherwise eligible, a student may be awarded Federal Student Aid and state of Georgia financial aid (HOPE Scholarship, Zell Miller Scholarship, etc.) for the semester in which the student is again meeting all the SAP standards, or for which an appeal was approved.

Appeal Denial Policy & Procedures:

When OSFA does not approve a student SAP appeal based on its determination the student did not have sufficient mitigating circumstances, the student may request further consideration by the University’s Satisfactory Academic Progress Appeals Committee. This Committee meets once a semester and is composed of University administrators.

To request further consideration by the University’s Satisfactory Academic Progress Appeals Committee, the student needs only to send OSFA a signed written request (or e-mail from their UGA Mail account). The decision of the University’s Satisfactory Academic Progress Appeals Committee is final.

It is important to note that all stipulations and requirements of an OSFA approved Academic Plan are final and are not subject to further consideration by the University’s Satisfactory Academic Progress Appeals Committee.