Academic Progress

What Is Satisfactory Academic Progress?

Satisfactory Progress is measured as follows:

• Measured in accordance with our grading policy, to meet satisfactory academic progress, a graduate student (master’s, certificate, and non-degree) must maintain a 3.0 cumulative GPA. Doctoral students (PhD and EdD) must maintain a 3.25 cumulative GPA. All periods of prior enrollment must be considered for an initial award, even if the student received no aid for previous periods.
• Graduate students (master’s, certificate, and non-degree) who earn a grade of F will be considered not making satisfactory progress. Doctoral students (PhD and EdD) who earn a grade of C+ or lower will be considered not making satisfactory progress.
• Quantitatively, graduate students are expected to maintain a cumulative completion rate of at least 67 percent. The completion percentage will be rounded to the nearest whole percentage using standard rounding rules (e.g., 66.5% will be rounded to 67%).
• Treatment of S, P, AU, and X grades
  • Satisfactory (S) grades and passing (P) grades are treated as attempted credits earned but are not included in the calculation of GPA.
  • Audited (AU) and non-credit courses (X) are not considered for degree completion or aid eligibility.
• In addition, graduate students must complete their certificate or degree program within a maximum timeframe of five calendar years.

How Do Course Withdrawals (“W”), Repeat Coursework, and Grades of Incomplete Affect Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)?

Each year the School of Education publishes its academic standards in the academic catalogs. However, financial aid recipients have additional standards that must be met. A grade of “I” (incomplete) is treated for SAP monitoring purposes as an “F” until a final grade is recorded. Courses with an “I” are treated as attempted credits and are included in the quantitative measure. Students are responsible for verifying that the Financial Aid Office receives all grade changes. Students who drop a course after the scheduled start date or withdraw “W” from a course are deemed NOT to have successfully completed that course. These drops and “W” grades are excluded from the GPA calculation but are included in the quantitative measure or course completion rate. Students contemplating dropping credits should contact the Financial Aid Office to determine how such action will affect their financial aid. The grade for the second attempt will be utilized in calculating the student’s GPA, but all attempts are included in the calculation of the course completion rate.

How Do Classes Taken at Another Institution and Transferred to SOE Affect a Student’s SAP?

All credits accepted for transfer as part of the Admissions process are treated as attempted and earned credits in evaluating progress. However, grades earned at other institutions are not counted when computing student GPA for academic progress purposes.

How Often Is a Student’s Progress Reviewed and How Are Students Notified?

Financial aid recipients are reviewed for progress at the end of each traditional semester of enrollment (Fall, Spring, Summer). At that time, the Financial Aid Office will notify students in writing who have not maintained satisfactory academic progress and are placed on either financial aid warning or suspension status.

What is a Financial Aid Warning, and when is it issued?

Students who fail to meet the requirements of satisfactory academic progress will be placed on Financial Aid Warning for the subsequent semester/period of enrollment. Students are still eligible for financial aid during the semester they are placed on warning. 

Students receiving financial aid for the first time will be placed on Financial Aid Warning if they did not meet the minimum grade point average or course completion standards as noted in this policy based on the previous period of enrollment prior to applying for financial aid.

Students are not eligible for TIV Financial Aid and are placed on Financial Aid Suspension status if they are applying for financial aid for the first time and, upon review, have not met the minimum Financial Aid SAP standards for the previous two consecutive periods of enrollment.

What is a Financial Aid Suspension and/or loss of Title IV Eligibility?

Students who, while on Financial Aid Warning, fail to maintain the minimum completion rate and/or fail to maintain the minimum cumulative GPA requirement will be placed on Financial Aid Suspension for subsequent semesters/periods of enrollment. No financial aid will be disbursed during subsequent semesters/periods of enrollment until the student regains financial aid eligibility.

Students applying for financial aid for the first time will not be eligible for financial aid and will be placed on Financial Aid Suspension if they did not meet the minimum grade point average or course completion standards as noted in this policy based on the two previous consecutive periods of enrollment prior to applying for financial aid.

Students who do not complete their program within the maximum timeframe lose eligibility for financial aid and are placed on Financial Aid Suspension.

What is Financial Aid Probation, and how is Reinstatement of Aid awarded after a Financial Aid Suspension?

Reinstatement of financial aid after a student is placed in Financial Aid Suspension is achieved in one of the following ways:

1. The student submits a written letter of appeal using the SAP Appeal Form available in SIS, and the Financial Aid Appeals Committee grants the appeal. The student is placed on Financial Aid Probation for the next semester/period of enrollment and is eligible for Title IV aid during their Financial Aid Probation. If the appeal is approved but the committee has determined that the student will not be able to meet the SAP standards within one semester/period of enrollment, then the student will be placed on Financial Aid Probation with an Academic Plan which, if followed, will ensure the student is able to meet the SAP standards by a specific point in time.
2. Students who are beyond the maximum timeframe to completion may only regain financial aid eligibility on a semester-by-semester basis through the appeal process.
3. The student registers for coursework while on Financial Aid Suspension and pays for tuition and fees without the help of federal financial aid and does well enough in the coursework to satisfy all the satisfactory academic progress standards at the end of the semester(s)/period(s) of enrollment.

Students who are suspended from the university based on poor academic performance and are readmitted the following year or later are not automatically eligible for Title IV financial aid.

• Students who upon review are determined to be ineligible for financial aid must submit a letter of appeal for reinstatement of aid. If the appeal is approved, they will be placed on probation for the following semester.

Is Financial Aid Probation the Same as Academic Probation?

No. Financial aid recipients must meet the minimum federal standards for academic progress, in addition to the Johns Hopkins School of Education’s academic standards for good standing for their program. Students should consult the Academic Standards policy for more information. Students on academic probation may not be eligible to receive financial aid.

What is the Appeal Process?

Students placed on Financial Aid Suspension who want to submit an appeal should submit it in writing using the SAP Appeal Form available in SIS. Appeals should include:

• The grounds for appeal – explanation of extenuating circumstances that affected the student’s ability to meet SAP standards;
• Demonstration that the student understands the reason behind failure to meet the SAP requirements and has taken steps to rectify the circumstances that contributed to failure to meet SAP standards;
• And specific plans to improve academic performance and meet SAP standards in the future.

What Circumstances Are Considered When Appeals Are Submitted for Review?

Federal regulations identify the circumstances that can be taken into consideration in an appeal. The schools will consider the following special circumstances under the terms of federal statute:

• Serious illness of or injury to a student.
• Death of student’s immediate family member.
• Other unusual circumstances that are documented by appropriate third parties.

The Financial Aid Appeals Committee will review the appeal and may consult with academic advisers and other involved parties as warranted. If it is determined that the student will not be able to meet the SAP standards by the end of the next semester/period, the Committee is in agreement that the student’s grounds for appeal are reasonable and the student has a reasonable chance to succeed and graduate, then the student will also be placed on an Academic Plan if the appeal is approved. Students will receive written notification of the decision. The committee will review the appeal and notify the student in writing of their decision within 14 working days after the committee makes its determination. All decisions on such appeals are final. Students who lose eligibility for financial aid due to not meeting the minimum SAP standards more than one time during their program may submit an appeal each time.

What’s the role of an Academic Plan in the appeals process?

Students who lose eligibility and submit an appeal may be placed on an academic plan if the appeal is approved. The purpose of an academic plan is to support the student in coming back into compliance with the financial aid SAP standards by a specific point in time in order to ensure that they will be able to successfully complete the degree or certificate program. The academic plan will be specifically tailored to the student and may include milestones and specific requirements such as a reduced course load, specific courses, or tutoring. Students on an academic plan are still responsible for meeting the SAP requirements in the subsequent semester/period of enrollment and will lose eligibility if the SAP standards are not met and need to go through the appeal process in order to regain eligibility. The student’s progress with the academic plan will be considered in any subsequent appeal process of financial aid eligibility.