Satisfactory Academic Progress

The Higher Education Amendment Act of 1965, as amended, mandates institutions of higher education to establish a minimum standard of “Satisfactory Academic Progress” (SAP) for students receiving financial aid. UTSA makes its standard applicable to all federal, state and institutional financial assistance programs for the purpose of maintaining a consistent policy for all students receiving financial aid.

Please use the following links for more information about Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP):

What are the academic guidelines for SAP?
When do you check if I'm making SAP?
What happens if I'm not meeting SAP?
Is there an appeal process and what is the deadline to appeal?
SAP Tutorial/Tools

To make SAP, students must meet all three of the following standards:

Academic Standards
Maximum Time Frames
Completion Rate

1. Academic Standards

Students must maintain a cumulative grade point average minimum requirement as determined at the end of each Spring Semester for all credit hours attempted at UTSA.

Undergraduate students must have a 2.0 cumulative grade point average.
Graduate students must have a 3.0 cumulative grade point average.

If the cumulative grade point average drops below the minimum requirement, the student will no longer be eligible for financial aid.

2. Maximum Time Frames

The number of semester credit hours a student attempts may not exceed 150 percent of the number of semester credit hours required for graduation in his or her program of study, as published in the University catalogs. For example, if the published number of semester credit hours required for graduation is 120, a student may not attempt more than 180 semester credit hours (120 x 1.5 = 180) and continue to receive financial aid. All periods of enrollment must be considered, even those for which the student did not receive financial aid as well as hours transferred from another school. If the number of attempted hours reaches 150 percent of the hours required for graduation, the student will no longer be eligible for financial aid.

Attempted hours include all registered hours per semester whether or not the student earns a grade or receives credit. The following are considered hours attempted, but not completed:

“F” grades for undergraduate students
“D+,” “D,” “D-” or “F” grades for graduate students
“W” or withdrawal from courses
“IN” or incomplete
all transfer hours

Completed hours include all semester hours for which the student earns a grade:

“A+” through “D-” grades for undergraduate students
“A+” through “C-” grades for graduate students
all transfer hours accepted for credit

3. Completion Rate

A student must successfully complete a minimum of 67 percent of all attempted coursework. The student’s academic progress will be reviewed at the end of each Spring Semester. If the number of completed hours drops below 67 percent of attempted hours, the student will no longer be eligible for financial aid.

Examples:

a. If a student attempts (registers for) 30 semester credit hours in an academic year, he or she must complete a mimimum of 21 semester credit hours (67% x 30= 20.10) in order to make SAP for the year.

b. If a student attempts 36 semester credit hours, he or she must complete a minimum of 25 semester credit hours (67% x 36 = 24.12) in order to make SAP for the year. Note: All partial credit hours will be rounded up to the nearest hour.

c. If, at the end of the second year, a student has attempted 60 semester credit hours, he or she must have completed a minimum of 41 semester credit hours (67% x 60 = 40.20) in order to make SAP for the year.
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Review Policy

After grades are posted for the Spring Semester, the Office of Student Financial Aid and Enrollment Services will review the SAP progress of every enrolled student, regardless of whether or not they received financial aid. Students’ academic progress will be reviewed to ensure that they are meeting the following criteria:

Cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher (undergraduate students) or
Cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher (graduate students)
Successful completion of at least 67% of all attempted course work for all periods of enrollment (cumulative), even those for which the student did not receive financial aid.
Total attempted hours does not exceed 150% of the published length of the program of study.

Financial Aid Termination

Students whose eligibility for financial aid has been terminated may appeal the decision, in writing, to the Office of Student Financial Aid and Enrollment Services (SFAES) if they believe that they had extenuating circumstances that led to their unsatisfactory progress. SFAES will notify students of the appeal outcome via the preferred e-mail account the student designated in the Automated Student Access Program (ASAP). For more information regarding the appeal process, please visit our SAP Appeal webpage.
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SAP Tutorial/Tools

The following tutorials are an interactive way for students to learn more about SAP and provide tools for determining GPA, Completetion Rate and Maximum Time Frames:
SAP Tutorial
SAP Worksheet
GPA Forecaster
Completion Rate Forecaster

*The preferred internet browser to print the SAP tutorial/worksheet is Internet Explorer.

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For questions about your Satisfactory Academic Progress Appeal please email financialaid@utsa.edu