Costs & Financial Aid Undergraduate Costs & Financial Aid How to Apply Satisfactory Academic Progress
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UH WILL BEGIN MONITORING SATISFACTORY ACADEMIC PROGRESS AT THE END OF EACH TERM
The Department of Education's release of final rules aims to strengthen the integrity of the Title IV programs including rule changes to the way Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) is measured. These changes affect students for the first time for Fall 2011 and thereafter. These regulations governing student financial assistance require that an institution develop standards to measure academic progress toward a degree. Students applying for financial aid will be monitored for satisfactory academic progress whether or not financial aid was applied for or received during any academic period in which the student was previously enrolled. A student will not be eligible for financial assistance if he/she does not meet the academic progress requirements. Minimum standards, including qualitative and quantitative measures of progress, must be achieved by the end of any given enrolment period at UH.
| Undergraduate Level | Cumulative GPA Required | Cumulative Completion Ration Required | Cumulative Hours Allowed |
|---|---|---|---|
| All levels | At least 2.0 | 75% | 180 |
| Graduate Level | Cumulative GPA Required | Cumulative Completion Ration Required | Cumulative Hours Allowed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Masters | At least 3.0 | 75% | 54 |
| Doctoral | At least 3.0 | 75% | 100 |
| Optometry Master of Science in Physiological Optics/Vision | At least 2.0 | 75% | 45 |
| Doctor of Optometry | At least 2.0 | 75% | 265 |
| Doctor of Philosophy in Physiological Optics/Vision Science | At least 2.0 | 75% | 90 |
| Doctor of Pharmacy | At least 2.0 | 75% | 210 |
| Doctor of Philosophy in Pharmaceutics and Pharmacology | At least 2.0 | 75% | 123 |
| Doctor of Pharmacy Administration | At least 2.0 | 75% | 105 |
| Master of Science in Pharmacy Administration | At least 2.0 | 75% | 54 |
| Law J.D. | At least 2.0 | 75% | 135 |
| Law LLM | At least 2.0 | 75% | 36 |
| Law J.D./MBA | At least 2.0 | 75% | 166 |
| Master of Architecture level I | At least 2.0 | 75% | 145 |
| Master of Architecture level II | At least 2.0 | 75% | 90 |
| Master of Science in Architecture | At least 2.0 | 75% | 45 |
| Master of Architectural Studies | At least 2.0 | 75% | 45 |
| Master of Space Architecture | At least 2.0 | 75% | 45 |
Qualitative Requirements of Satisfactory Academic Progress
Grade Point Average (GPA) – Undergraduate, Law, Optometry or Architecture students must maintain a 2.0 cumulative GPA. Graduate students must maintain a 3.0 cumulative GPA.
Quantitative Requirements of Satisfactory Academic Progress
Percentage of attempted cumulative hours completed – Complete and pass a minimum of 75% of the hours attempted at the University of Houston.
Maximum Hour Limit
Federal regulations require that a student complete his program of study within 150% (length of program x 1.5) of the time allotted for the program. For example, if an undergraduate degree is 120 credit hours in length, a student with this major must complete the program within 180 (120 x 1.5) credit hours. All credit hours attempted at the University of Houston, including repeated courses with a grade of “F”, “W”, “I”, or “IP” and all transfer hours to be used toward a degree at the University of Houston that were pursued at a previous institution will be counted in the determination of hours attempted. After attempting 180 credit hours, the student‘s financial aid eligibility will be terminated for this program.
Students Who Receive All Failing Grades
If a student does not receive a passing grade in any class (earning any combination of "F"s, "W"s and "U"s), or stops attending classes without notifying the University during a semester in which he/she received financial aid, the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid (SFA) must return all or a portion of aid that was disbursed. Official documentation proving that the student participated in an academically related event during the semester will be requested in order to show that the student earned Title IV aid. A calculation of earned aid will be processed based on acceptable documentation. If no acceptable documentation is provided, 100% of aid will be returned. Any return of funds will result in the student owing a balance to the University. In addition, any student receiving all “W”s (totally withdrawn), “I”, “IP” or all “F”s within one semester will automatically be placed on financial aid suspension. These students may file an appeal.
Possible Categories Assigned after SAP is calculated:
Meets SAP
A status assigned to a student who has met minimum SAP requirements.
Financial Aid Warning
A status assigned to a student who is failing to meet SAP upon their first infraction period. Students will be eligible for financial aid consideration during the period they are placed on warning. If a student’s GPA and/or completion rate does not meet the college’s cumulative minimum standards, the student may be granted an additional probationary period or may be placed on financial aid suspension. The probationary status will remain unless the grade that caused the probation was in error or submitted late.
- If a student successfully completes the warning period and the cumulative GPA and completion rate meet the college’s minimum standards, the student regains eligibility for financial aid.
- If a student does not successfully complete the warning period, the student will be placed on suspension.
Financial Aid Probation
Students will be eligible for financial aid consideration during the period they are placed on probation. If a student’s GPA and/or completion rate does not meet the cumulative SAP minimum standards, the student may be placed on a SAP Academic Plan Agreement or may be placed on financial aid suspension.
Not Meets
A status assigned to a student who was on Warning or Probation in the preceding semester(s) and is failing to meet SAP.
Appeal Process For Probation Status
An appeal must be submitted to the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid (SFA) before aid can be disbursed in future semesters. Appeals must be filled out by the student (no academic advisor signature is needed for an appeal). A student can email the appeal and mandatory additional documents to SAP@uh.edu (for Appeal and document submission only) or it may fax into our office at (713) 743-9098. Lastly a student may drop the appeal to our SFA counter in the Welcome Center. The appeal forms are also available in the Forms section of this website. Please follow the deadlines as listed on the SAP appeal form. If the student's appeal is denied, he/she will be responsible for covering the balance for that semester. The Offices of Scholarships and Financial Aid will provide a response to the student's appeal before the first day of classes if the student submits a complete appeal and all supporting documents by the priority deadline.
Tips for Submitting the SAP Form
1. Read your Financial Aid To Do list descriptions and the SAP form thoroughly. Please be sure to check off and sign where required. Incomplete forms will be denied.
2. Please put in effort towards answering the questions for your personal statement (Section II of the SAP form) and be sure to include documentation to support your statement. For example, if Adam performed poorly in Fall 2011 due to excessive work hours, Adam should discuss this situation in his personal statement, and include a copy of his work schedule from that time. If Adam has now prioritized his academics and made adjustments to reduce his work hours, Adam can also include a copy of his new work schedule to demonstrate the adjustment.
3. We encourage students to email their appeal to the SAP email box at SAP@uh.edu to save time waiting in line. Once you have completed your appeal and attached documents, please save it as a PDF or JPEG and submit it to us. Third party links will not be accepted.
Process For Those Who Have Already Been Denied
If a student fails to meet SAP standards and consequently loses financial aid eligibility, the student may submit a written appeal with supporting documentation for reinstatement of financial aid eligibility if mitigating circumstances exist.
Mitigating circumstances include:
• Serious injury of the student and/or the student's immediate family
• Serious extended illness of the student and/or the student's immediate family
• Death of student's relative
Appeal Process For Not Meets Status
Students who are placed on financial aid suspension may appeal to re-establish eligibility.
- Academic Suspension – Academic suspension is determined by the Registrar’s Office. Students may not appeal for financial aid until the academic suspension is lifted. An approval on an academic appeal does not automatically mean the student will be granted approval on a financial aid appeal.
- A student on suspension must submit a Financial Aid Appeal Form with supporting documentation to the financial aid office by the census date of each regular term in order to receive consideration for financial aid eligibility. Failure to provide supporting documentation will result in the denial of an appeal. Students appealing their suspension must pay their own expenses until the appeal is reviewed. After an appeal has been reviewed and has been denied, the student must continue to pay his/her own expenses.
- Students who submit their SAP appeal by the priority deadline as noted on the SAP form will receive a decision on their appeal before the first day of school. Students who submit their appeal between the priority deadline and the final deadline will have their appeal reviewed within eight weeks of its receipt and determine whether the financial aid suspension is justified. Students will be notified of appeal decision via the preferred email address, as noted in the myUH self-service center.
- Students are allowed one warning period and one probationary period, consecutively. A student may not appeal for two consecutive semesters of enrollment. A student appealing for more than one consecutive semester will be denied. A student who has restored themselves to satisfactory academic progress will be considered whole and will receive a new warning semester and may appeal subsequent infractions.
The Financial Aid Appeal Form is available on our SFA forms webpage. Appeals can be emailed to SAP@uh.edu, faxed to our office at (713) 743-9098 or dropped off to our SFA counter in the Welcome Center.
SAP Policy
For complete details of the SAP Policy at the University of Houston, please click here.