How to Maintain Financial Aid Eligibility

The U.S. Department of Education requires every postsecondary institution receiving federal funds (Title IV) to have an academic progress policy that is used to determine eligibility for and continued receipt of federal funds. The Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) policy has two components. First, the students are required to maintain a specified cumulative GPA. Second, they must complete a specified percentage of all courses attempted. Bank Street College also uses this standard to renew/award all aid administered by the College.

Students must make satisfactory academic progress toward their degree in order to maintain eligibility for financial aid programs. In addition to meeting all standards of Satisfactory Academic Achievement, students must earn a minimum number of credits per year at a pace sufficient to complete all degree requirements within five years.

To make satisfactory academic progress for financial aid, students must:

• Achieve a GPA of at least 3.0 each term at the College and maintain academic standing consistent with the requirements for graduation.
• Earn credits towards their degree according to the following standards:

Because the year is measured from July 1 through June 30, a student who first takes a class as a matriculated student in either Spring or Summer 1 would be required to complete only one credit rather than four credits.

A student’s complete academic record will be reviewed annually, generally in July, to ensure that the student is meeting each of the above standards of progress. All courses that appear on a student’s permanent academic record count toward progress even if the student received no financial aid for those semesters.

Measuring Satisfactory Academic Progress

• Withdrawals recorded on the student’s permanent record will not count toward credits completed/earned and could adversely affect the student’s ability to meet the satisfactory progress standards. Changes to the student’s enrollment record caused by retroactive “non-punitive” administrative withdrawal activity can result in the student having to repay the financial aid that he or she received that semester/term.
• Incomplete Grades: The student’s cumulative record of credits includes any course in which the student receives an incomplete grade. An incomplete course cannot be counted in the student’s completed/earned credits until he or she has received a completion grade. An incomplete grade could keep a student from achieving SAP. The recording of a successful completion grade within a semester/term that brings the accumulated credits up to the satisfactory progress standard will restore eligibility for this and subsequent semesters/terms within the academic year.
• Repeated Courses: Successfully completed courses will be counted toward completed/earned credits.
• Waiving a Course Requirement: Courses waived due to sufficient formal academic study in an area are not counted as completed/earned credits.

Treatment of Nonstandard Situations

• Readmitted Students: Upon readmission after a period of non-enrollment, the student will be eligible for financial aid for terms in the academic year of readmission and will be measured for continued eligibility against the appropriate year’s satisfactory progress standards.
• Transfer Students: A transfer student will be treated like a new student for measuring satisfactory academic progress; transfer credits accepted toward the degree will be counted as credits completed/earned.
• Second Degree Students: A student enrolled for a second degree will be treated like a new student for measuring satisfactory academic progress; the credits accepted toward the second degree will be counted as credits completed/earned.
• Change of Major/Change of Degree: If the student changes majors/programs within the same degree or certificate program, or if the student changes his or her educational objective and begins pursuing a different degree without having earned the first degree, the student must complete the academic program within the maximum time frame allowed (five years), unless an exception is granted by the Satisfactory Academic Progress Committee.

Appeal/Probation

Students who fall beneath the standards required for their degree may appeal to the Satisfactory Academic Progress Committee (SAP Committee) to retain their good standing and eligibility to receive financial aid, if applicable. The appeal will be evaluated for mitigating circumstances resulting from events such as personal illness, injury, personal tragedy, or changes in academic program. Also assessed will be the students’ capability for improving their academic record to again meet the standards of progress. If a student is in poor academic standing because he or she is not completing sufficient credits to be making satisfactory progress toward the degree, the student must establish a “Plan of Study” with the advisor/program director for earning additional credits or completing the coursework that the student has attempted but not finished. The student may be ineligible to register for additional credits until the specified “Plan of Study” has been implemented successfully.

If the appeal is granted based on mitigating circumstances, the student will be given a one-year probationary period to improve his or her academic record to meet the standards of satisfactory progress. If the appeal is granted based on poor academic standing or not completing sufficient credits to be making satisfactory progress toward the degree, the student will be placed on Financial Aid Probation (if on financial aid) and must be making SAP each subsequent payment period or successfully following an academic “Plan of Study.” There is no limit on the number of times a student may follow this appeal procedure.

Reinstatement

If the student chooses not to appeal or if the appeal is denied, the student may regain eligibility for financial aid by taking an official Leave of Absence from Bank Street College for at least one year. Upon readmittance, the student may receive assistance for the terms of the academic year of readmittance and will be measured against the standards at the end of the annual review for continued eligibility.

Institutional Policies & Regulatory Compliance