New Policy, taking effect Summer 2009

Note: if your petition during 2009-2010 can be approved under the old policy but not the new policy, we will make exceptions on an individual basis. 

You must meet the requirements outlined in this Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy to receive federal/state financial aid at Oregon State University. If you do not meet the requirements for satisfactory progress you will be either put on probation or denied further financial aid.

To receive financial aid, you:

• Must meet a required Grade Point Average (GPA)
  • Undergraduate & Post-Baccalaureate students:  2.00 GPA
  • Graduate Students:  3.00 GPA

• Must make adequate progress toward your degree
  • You must complete at least 67% of all credits attempted for your current degree or certificate.
  • Both OSU and accepted transfer credits will be counted as attempted credits. 
  • Repeating Classes:  Credits for each class you repeat will be added to your cumulative credits, but only credits from one of the repeated classes can count toward your total completed credits. Certain exceptions apply: if the Course Catalog states that a class is repeatable, you may receive financial aid for it until you reach the stated maximum number of credits.

• Cannot exceed a maximum number of attempted credits
  • The maximum attempted credits allowed will be no more than 150% of the credits needed to complete the degree/certificate objective. All terms attended count, whether or not you received financial aid, including transfer credits that were accepted by OSU.
    • First Bachelor's Degree:  270
    • 2nd or 3rd Bachelor's Degree:  135
    • Education Double Degree Program:  318
    • Pharm D and Vet Med:  331
    • Master's Degree:  127
    • Doctoral Degree:  210

Reinstatement of Financial Aid

If you are denied financial aid, you may regain eligibility in one of the following ways:

• Attend without financial aid and complete enough credits to meet the 67% completion rate and achieve the required grade point average. (This option is not available if you have reached the maximum number of attempted credits).
• Complete and submit the Satisfactory Academic Progress Appeal form to the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships. You will be outlining what unusual circumstances prevented you from meeting the satisfactory academic progress requirements and how you have resolved these circumstances.

Appeal Process

To submit an appeal, we must have your completed FAFSA on file, and you must be eligible to enroll as a regular student. 

Probation Appeal

You must:

• Submit the appeal form provided by the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships
• Submit a statement explaining your situation and how you will be successful in the future
• You may be required to submit additional information or meet with an academic advisor before receiving aid

The first appeal is considered a probation appeal and will be approved if you submit the required documents. If you have reached the maximum credits attempted limit, the appeal will be treated as a second appeal.

Second Appeal

You must:

• Submit the appeal form provided by the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships
• Submit a statement explaining your situation and how you will be successful in the future
• Submit any supporting documentation of extenuating/mitigating circumstances
• Meet with your academic advisor to obtain an advisor approved course schedule
• For maximum credit attempted appeals, an advisor approved degree plan will also be required

If an appeal is denied through this initial review, you will be given an opportunity to have a personal interview with the Financial Aid Appeal Committee.

Third Appeal

You must:

• Submit the appeal form provided by the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships
• Submit a statement explaining your situation and how you will be successful in the future
• Submit any supporting documentation of extenuating/mitigating circumstances
• Meet with your academic advisor to obtain an advisor approved course schedule AND an advisor approved degree plan
• Schedule a meeting with the Financial Aid and Scholarship Appeal Committee

Third appeals will be approved or denied by the Appeal Committee. The decision of the committee is final.

Additional Appeals

Students asking for reconsideration by the committee must be able to provide new or additional information which was not considered by the committee during the first interview. The student must first meet with the Director or an Associate Director of Financial Aid to present the information. If a new appeal meeting is considered to be appropriate, the student will be scheduled for a second interview.

Appeal Deadline

To receive financial aid for the current term, you must appeal by Friday of week 8. During Summer Session you must appeal by Friday of week 5. Once the appeal deadline has passed, you can only appeal to have financial aid reinstated for future terms. This deadline may be extended on a case by case basis for unusual circumstances.

Prior Policy, in effect through Spring 2009

Financial aid recipients are expected to make satisfactory academic progress towards their degree or educational objective. Financial aid standards for satisfactory academic progress are not the same as academic departments and/or university standards. Permission to enroll does not equal financial aid satisfactory academic progress. The Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships has established guidelines for evaluating your progress while taking into consideration three different components:

1. Credit Hours Completed
   Students are expected to complete the number of credit hours each term for which they were paid financial aid funds. Most aid programs require full-time enrollment: 12 credit hours per term for undergraduates/36 credits for the academic year; and 9 credit hours per term for graduate students/27 credits for the year. Part-time students are evaluated on the basis of their part-time enrollment and are expected to complete credit hours accordingly.

   Letter grades of F, U, N, and I do not apply toward satisfactory academic progress completion. Withdrawal and repeated courses do not count toward earned hours for any term.

2. Maximum Time Frame
   Students must complete their educational program within 150% of the published length of the educational program. All terms that the student has attended will count toward their educational program, whether or not the student received financial aid during that time. Once the student reaches maximum time frame, the student's eligibility for financial aid is terminated.

3. Grade Point Average (GPA)
   Student's GPA is monitored by University Academic Regulations for graduation. General guidelines require students to maintain a 2.0 GPA to be considered in good standing for University standards. However, financial aid standards of satisfactory academic progress are not the same as academic department or university standards. Permission to enroll does not equal satisfactory academic progress.

Academic progress is monitored throughout the year. Students failing to meet the minimum credit hour requirements in a term will be sent a warning letter informing them of their status. At the end of the year, students who fail to meet the minimum yearly credit hour requirements will be sent a letter terminating future aid eligibility at Oregon State.

Students who feel their OSU records do not accurately reflect their academic progress due to extenuating or unusual circumstances may appeal in writing. Phone appeals will not be accepted. On the basis of the petition statement, supporting documents, and past academic progress history, a financial aid advisor will determine if an exception will be made to allow aid to continue. Appeals must be approved within the term of enrollment for which the student is requesting aid. Denial of aid by a financial aid advisor may be appealed first to the Financial Aid Director, the financial aid committee and then to the Vice Provost of Academic Affairs.