Federal Satisfactory Academic Progress

Graduate students receiving federal financial aid awards (i.e. Direct Unsubsidized and/or Graduate PLUS Loans) must meet Federal Satisfactory Academic Progress requirements. These FedSAP requirements are part of the general eligibility requirements and are designed to insure that students are making satisfactory progress towards degree completion. 

• What are the FedSAP requirements?
  1. Graduate students must maintain a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.0.  (Effective Summer 2015)
  2. Graduate students must complete their program within the maximum timeframe as defined by their graduate school. Students should visit their graduate school or the school’s website to familiarize themselves with these maximum time frame requirements.
• What happens if I'm found to be not meeting FedSAP requirements?

  If a student is failing to meet the cumulative GPA, he/she will first receive a Warning.  A Warning status allows student to receive federal aid for the semester, and he/she should use this semester to return their academic record to within compliance.

  Students who are still not meeting SAP requirements after their Warning semester, or those who have exceeded the maximum time frame, will be notified that they are ineligible to receive federal financial aid.

  An appeal process is available for those who have notified that they are no longer eligible for federal financial aid. Click here for the SAP Appeal Form.  Students who successfully appeal will be placed on Probation without an Academic Plan (given one term to meet guidelines) or Probation with an Academic Plan. Students who are placed on Probation with an Academic Plan will be required to meet the terms of their academic plan in order to have their federal aid eligibility extended while they are still failing to meet minimum guidelines.  

  Students that choose not to appeal, or whose appeal has been denied, will have their financial aid eligibility restored in a future term once they meet all of the FedSAP guidelines.

• Federal SAP Appeal Process
  Students who are notified that they are ineligible will receive an email with their appeal form. Students will need to submit their appeal and supporting documentation by the deadline date listed. In limited circumstances, a student may receive an email with their appeal from after the deadline posted. In these limited cases, students will have two weeks from the date of the email communication to submit their appeal. 

  
  The appeal form submitted will need to include:

  • An explanation as to why the student failed to meet SAP requirements (students must establish that their failure to meet SAP guidelines were a result of external circumstances beyond their control)
  • An explanation as to what has changed that will allow the students to meet SAP requirements moving forward
  • An academic plan that will define how long it will take the student to restore their academic record to a point where they meet the SAP requirements 
• Outcome of Appeals
  If the appeal is granted, the student will be either be placed on Probation or on an Academic Plan:

  • Financial Aid Probation - Financial aid eligibility is reinstated for one term only and SAP requirements must be met at the end of the term or financial aid eligibility will be suspended
  • Academic Plan - Financial aid eligibility is reinstated and monitored on a term by term basis to ensure students are meeting the specific terms as outlined in the appeal submitted by the student. Note: In order to determine a student's SAP status each term, incomplete grades are considered credits that are not earned. Students placed on an academic plan who must earn all credits attempted will fail the conditions of their plan if an official grade is not posted by the add/drop deadline for the term.

  If the appeal is denied, the student remains ineligible to receive federal financial aid. Students may submit an additional appeal after they have completed at least one additional term of attendance at Stony Brook University and their academic record indicates that the student successfully completed and passed all classes for which they were enrolled. Without an approved appeal, students will remain ineligible to receive federal financial aid until they meet all of the FedSAP guidelines.
  
  Students are notified of the appeal determination at their Stony Brook email address. 

  Students whose petition was denied because they had exceeded the maximum allowable attempted credits cannot submit an additional appeal.

• Federal SAP & Summer Enrollment
  When is summer federal financial aid eligibility determined?

  Academic Standing and FedSAP are run after spring grades have been recorded in the system. Because the grades are generally not recorded prior to the start of summer session one, some "at risk" students may have to wait for these processes to run in order to find out if they will receive financial aid for the summer.

  What defines an "at risk" student?

  A student whose most current FedSAP status prior to the spring term is either:

  • Warning,
  • Probation,
  • Not Meet,
  • or if you previously received a notification from the financial aid office that you were approaching the maximum time frame limit.

  Will I be awarded financial aid for the summer?

  Students who are not "at risk" will be awarded summer financial aid soon after the May 1st summer award packaging date.

  Students who were "at risk" will be awarded summer financial aid mid-June if they are found to be eligible, based on their new FedSAP standing. Students found to be ineligible to receive federal financial aid will be notified by the financial aid office.

  How do my summer grades impact my financial aid eligibility moving forward?

  If you choose to enroll in summer courses the outcome for the term is an important factor in determining your financial aid eligibility for your next term of enrollment.

• Federal SAP FAQ's
  • When is Satisfactory Academic Progress (FedSAP) evaluated?
    Academic progress is evaluated prior to the start of each semester.
  • What happens if I fail to meet Satisfactory Academic Progress Standards?
    • If you currently fail to meet the standards but you met the standards the last time your record was evaluated, you will be placed on a status of Warning. The goal is to use this Warning semester to bring your academic record to within compliance.
    • If you are still not within compliance after the completion of your Warning semester, you will lose your eligibility to receive federal financial aid.
  • Can I appeal the loss of my federal financial aid?

    Yes; students who are determined to be ineligible for federal financial aid will be notified. The notification will provide instructions for submitting an appeal.

  • Do repeat courses impact my SAP eligibility?
     Yes; they will impact your pace, because the credits can only be earned once, yet each time you take the class it will count as attempted credits.  

    While the grade received in subsequent attempts will not replace the earlier grade, it will average in along with the earlier grade, thus impacting the cumulative GPA requirement.

  • How do incomplete grades ('I' grades) impact my SAP eligibility?
    They impact pace, as they count as attempted but not earned credits. Initially displaying as an I grade on your transcript, this course will not impact your cumulative GPA. Once the I grade is replaced with either an earned grade or an F, the grade will impact the cumulative GPA requirement as well.
  • Do withdrawals impact my SAP eligibility?
    Withdrawals from either specific classes or entire terms negatively impact your pace as they are calculated in the attempted credits, but not the earned credits.
  • If I am given permission to audit a class will this impact my SAP eligibility?

    No; audited classes have zero impact.

  • How will the use of the Pass/No Credit grade option for Spring 2020 affect federal financial aid?

    Courses with Pass grades will not count in your GPA calculation. If you had a requirement to improve your GPA for the Spring 2020 semester, you may want to consider how many Pass grades you take in order to maintain your eligibility.  If you are on financial aid warning or probation and need to improve your GPA, we encourage you reach out to the financial aid office with questions specific to your situation.