Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Policy

Students on a leave of absence have their SAP eligibility reviewed when they notify the Registrar’s Office of their intent to return from leave.

Students who take a leave of absence for a semester are not monitored for SAP for the semester on leave, as long as the student never enrolled for that semester. Students who begin the semester, but withdraw before the end of the semester, will have SAP monitored at the end of the semester. 

The Office of Financial Aid cannot disburse funds to Student Accounts until SAP eligibility is reviewed. We make every attempt to notify students with SAP issues in a timely manner. However, because the period between the end of the fall semester and the start of the spring semester is brief, SAP notices may be delayed. This may delay disbursing aid for students who are not meeting SAP or who require additional information to complete our SAP evaluation.

Students who do not meet the GPA or Pace of Progression requirement to remain in SAP compliance are issued a one-time, one-semester financial aid warning that allows them to recoup any GPA or credit deficits by the end of the subsequent semester. CMC will disburse aid for the subsequent semester for these students without requiring an SAP appeal or a financial aid contract. Students who regain compliance with SAP at the conclusion of their one-time, one semester warning are removed from warning. Students may receive a financial aid warning only once during their pursuit of their CMC degree, though students who are removed from warning due to a grade correction will retain access to one warning period in the future. Students are responsible for informing the OFA of any grade corrections as soon as they are recorded.

Students who have received an SAP warning and do not return to SAP compliance in the following semester must file an SAP appeal to be considered for further aid. If approved, the student will be on probation and subject to a financial aid contract in order to have future aid disbursed. Financial aid will not be disbursed, under any circumstances, for students participating in the SAP appeal process until they acknowledge the terms of their financial aid contract for the subsequent semester and through graduation. Without exception, students on financial aid warning, those filing SAP appeals, and those on a financial aid contract must have all grades finalized for the previous semester before aid can be disbursed for a subsequent semester.

Please note:  posting “anticipated aid” or “expected aid” to Student Accounts is not an indication of meeting SAP.

Students who have been placed on a Financial Aid SAP Warning due to insufficient GPA or Pace of Progression can be reinstated by a grade change or by successfully completing sufficient units or bringing up their GPA to meet the accepted standards by the end of their warning period. The student must notify the Office of Financial Aid in writing once the requirements have been met. If you were placed in an SAP Warning Period but regain eligibility as result of a grade change, you will retain access to one SAP Warning Period in the future.

Students who need additional time to complete their degrees must meet with the Office of the Registrar to complete a SAP Appeal Form. Students must also update their expected graduation date with the Registrar’s Office. The Office of Financial Aid may increase the maximum time frame for federal student aid only, for students who have changed majors, are adding a major, or have experienced a one-time extenuating circumstance such as illness or injury that has since been resolved. However, the Office of Financial Aid will not approve any appeal when the additional time required for completing the degree objective(s) extends beyond 150 percent of one undergraduate degree (48 courses over 12 semesters maximum). In addition, the Office of Financial Aid will make no adjustments for declared minors or extension due to a second major. CMC College Grants are generally not extended after eight full-time semesters. 

Students may also appeal the determination that they are not meeting Satisfactory Academic Progress GPA and Pace of Progression requirements. The following can be considered: extended illness; one-time extenuating circumstances that have since been resolved; and enrollment limitations due to academic advisement.

Students who fail to remove themselves from financial aid warning after one semester, who fall out of SAP compliance two or more times, or who have reached the maximum time-frame allowance will be ineligible for further financial aid unless they file an SAP appeal and have a financial aid contract approved. SAP appeals must be filed at least ten business days prior to the start of a semester. If students are enrolled while an appeal is pending and the appeal is ultimately denied, they will be responsible for all charges incurred during that semester without the benefit of any financial aid. Financial aid cannot be reinstated for a previous semester.

This policy applies equally to currently enrolled students and students seeking to re-enroll at CMC after a period of time away. Appeals from re-enrolling students will be evaluated only after re-enrollment decisions have been confirmed and any account holds are lifted. Note that re-enrollment decisions are independent from financial aid funding decisions.

SAP appeals must include the following components and should be emailed to the OFA:

A written statement that describes why the student has failed to maintain SAP and details the corrective action the student has taken (or will take) to return to SAP, and

A formal academic/degree plan developed in conjunction with the Office of the Registrar that outlines how the student will return to SAP and satisfy all outstanding degree requirements.

For the OFA to consider an appeal, the Office of the Registrar must confirm that the student’s formal degree plan will lead to graduation within eight total full-time semesters (for institutional aid) or within 150% of the standard time expected for degree completion (for federal aid). Once filed, the OFA will review the appeal and develop a financial aid contract to which the student would be subject if the appeal is approved. The Office of Financial Aid may approve appeals on its own authority when the appeal includes all required elements and a reasonable plan for returning to SAP. If the OFA cannot approve the appeal because a required element is missing or the plan presented is not reasonable, it will be remanded back to the student for revision and resubmission within five business days. If the OFA determines that the re-submitted appeal still lacks all required elements and/or a reasonable plan for returning to SAP, the student’s appeal will be denied.

While institutional aid is generally approved only for 8 total semesters, students may file a 9th Semester of Aid appeal to request an additional semester of institutional aid if their progress has been delayed by a documented circumstance beyond their control. In such cases, students must submit an Additional Semester of Aid Appeal Form explaining the reason and supplement their appeals with documentation of the circumstance at issue. The appeal form also requires students to meet with the Office of the Registrar to create an academic plan towards graduation. Appeals for an additional semester of institutional aid is reviewed by the Office of Financial Aid, and if approved, CMC may increase the maximum time frame criterion as part of the student’s financial aid contract. CMC will make no adjustments for students seeking additional academic credentials beyond those required to complete the Bachelor of Arts degree, and no appeals will be approved for federal aid beyond 150 percent of the standard 8 semesters expected for degree completion.

All appeal decisions are final. Students whose appeals are approved receive a financial aid contract and remain bound to its terms until they return to SAP. Students whose appeals are denied remain ineligible for financial aid. All appeal decisions are issued to students in writing, typically via CMC email. Students whose aid eligibility is reinstated through an appeal must be aware that aid is awarded on a funds-available basis for institutional aid.

Not all courses and grades are measured equally for the purposes of SAP. Below is a breakdown of how most courses are counted.

• Grades A, B, C, D: Passing grades of A, B, C and D count as attempted and earned courses. Grades A, B, C and D count toward the GPA.
• Grades F: Grades of F are not passing grades. Grades of F count as attempted, but not earned courses. Grades of F count toward the GPA.
• Courses dropped between Last Day to Add and Last Day to Drop a Class (course dropped without record; no W grade): These courses are not assigned a W and do not appear on the academic transcript. However, these courses count as attempted but not earned and count toward the maximum timeframe.
• Courses dropped after the Last Day to Drop a Class (grades of W assigned): Grades of W count as attempted but not earned courses and count toward the maximum timeframe. W grades do not count toward the GPA.
• Incompletes: Courses that receive an incomplete count as attempted courses, but not earned. Once a letter grade (A, B, C, D, F, W) is posted by the Registrar, courses with a passing grade count as earned.
• Audited Courses: Students do not earn any academic credit for audited courses. Audited courses do not count as attempted or earned courses.
• Repeated Courses: CMC’s academic policy states that students who do not receive a passing grade for a course, can repeat the course for credit. Repeating an elective course does not remove the original course from the academic transcript. Both the grade for the original elective course and the repeated elective course are posted and calculated into the GPA. However, if students retake a course in the major which they had previously failed, the original grade of F will not be counted in the calculation of the major GPA. The original grade of F will be counted in the calculation of the cumulative GPA, and, if appropriate, the GPA in the senior year. All courses taken, both the original course and the repeated course, count as attempted courses in the calculation of SAP. Courses with a passing grade count as earned.
• Pass/Fail Courses: Courses taken on a pass/fail basis count as attempted courses. Courses with a “pass” grade count as earned.
• Transfer Credit: Transfer credits from another institution accepted by CMC count when measuring the maximum timeframe to complete a degree. CMC does not give credit for any transfer grades lower than a C (2.0).
• AP/IB Courses: At CMC, credit and/or placement for AP and IB examinations is evaluated on a subject-by-subject basis by the appropriate departments and is subject to final approval by the faculty. In some subjects, students will receive credit for AP scores of 4 or 5, and IB higher level (HL) exam scores of 6 or 7. In other subjects, they may receive placement and no credit. The maximum amount of credit students may receive for any combination of AP or IB examinations is the equivalent of four (4) CMC courses. Students cannot receive credit for more than one course or examination covering the same subject matter and students lose credit for an AP or IB course if they repeat the same or a lower-level course. CMC does not grant credit for exams in subjects not offered at the College. For CMC’s credit and placement policies, see Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate Credit and Placement.