Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy
To be eligible for Title IV aid, students must maintain a cumulative grade point average (GPA) based on their hours earned and academic level. This is referred to as satisfactory progress. The cumulative GPA includes all courses taken at Houston Christian University and does not include courses taken outside of HCU.
Minimum GPA Requirements by Credit Hours Earned
| Academic Level | Hours Earned | Cumulative GPA |
|---|---|---|
| Undergraduate Students | 1-28 | 1.6 |
| 29-47 | 1.75 | |
| 48-66 | 1.9 | |
| 67+ | 2.0 | |
| Graduate Students | 1-9 | 2.5 |
| 10-18 | 2.75 | |
| 19+ | 3.0 | |
| Post-Baccalaureate Students | 1+ | 2.0 |
| Doctoral Students | 1+ | 3.0 |
Federal regulations require students to be making satisfactory progress toward the completion of their degree in order to receive Title IV and state aid. Title IV programs include the Federal Pell Grant, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant, Teach Grant, Federal Work Study, Direct Student Loans, and the Direct PLUS for Undergraduate and Graduate students. The following is Houston Christian University’s policy:
- All students must attend class to be eligible for aid.
- All students must finish their degree program within 150% of the length of the program. For instance, if the length of the undergraduate program is 125 credit hours, the maximum time frame allowed to earn a degree will not exceed 188 attempted hours (125 hours x 1.5 = 188 hours).
- Undergraduate students must complete, by earning credit, the hours attempted according to the completion percentage listed below. Students who have attempted up to 63 hours must complete one-half of the hours. Students who have attempted 64 to 94 hours must complete 55% of the hours. Students who have attempted 95-109 hours must complete 60% of the hours and students attempting 110 hours and above must complete 67% of the hours. Graduate and Doctoral students must complete 67% of the hours.
Examples of Completion Percentage
| Hours attempted | Hours earned | Completion percentage |
|---|---|---|
| 31 | 15 | 50% |
| 63 | 32 | 50% |
| 64 | 35 | 55% |
| 95 | 57 | 60% |
| 110 | 73 | 67% |
| 188 | 125 | 67% |
- The number of hours attempted will be counted as of the day of record of each semester. Repeated hours count in attempted hours, but not earned hours. All periods of enrollment at HCU will be counted in the completion percentage. Transfer hours will be counted in the cumulative hours attempted and earned. Students who do not earn their degree within the specified time will not be eligible for federal aid.
- The completion percentage will be measured at the end of each semester. Students who do not complete the minimum required credit hours will be placed on financial aid warning and are eligible through the following semester of attendance without appeal. Aid recipients who do not earn the required completion percentage at the end of the warning semester will be required to submit an appeal to the Financial Aid Office and receive approval to be able to receive additional aid.
- All students must complete their degree in the specified time. All courses attempted for credit will be used to determine the student’s progress. Classes attempted where grades of “IS”, “IU”, “F”, “NR”, or “W” are received will be counted as attempted hours but will not be used in computing the earned hours.
- To be eligible for Title IV aid, the academic standards listed in the current bulletin must be maintained based upon the cumulative grade point average and academic level. The GPA accumulated in residence at the University will be the cumulative GPA. Any student whose name appears on the academic suspension list will not be eligible to receive Title IV financial aid. Academically suspended students must notify the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships when they are removed from the academic suspension list.
- The HCU academic history for undergraduate readmit students will be measured according to the required completion percentage. Transfer hours will count toward the cumulative hours attempted and earned.
- Students who have their Title IV aid awarded before grades are posted each semester will be re-evaluated for eligibility after the semester’s grades are finalized.
- A student who is enrolled in nine or more graduate hours in any semester is considered a full-time graduate student. To be eligible for Title IV aid, students must be enrolled at least half-time in graduate level courses.
Appeals Process
Students who do not meet the satisfactory academic progress requirements will be placed initially on Financial Aid Warning for one semester without appeal and may receive aid.
Students who do not meet satisfactory progress during the warning period and have extenuating circumstances may appeal for a one semester probation period in writing to the Appeals Committee in the Financial Aid Office.
- As part of the appeal, students will be required to submit information regarding their extenuating circumstances, why satisfactory progress was not met and what has changed in the student’s situation that would allow satisfactory academic progress to be demonstrated at the next evaluation period. Official documentation to back up what happened will be requested.
- Students who are requesting a probation period must submit and be approved to follow an academic plan.
- Students who have changed majors may appeal the completion percentage.
If the appeal is approved, aid may be received for one semester. Students who do not meet the criteria after following the academic plan for one semester will not be eligible for aid until the criteria for satisfactory progress has again been attained. For students who will not meet SAP, you may only be eligible to apply for Private Loans to cover your educational expenses.
To Submit an Appeal
- Go to HuskynetSSO.HC.edu and login to HuskyNet with the username and password.
- Click on the My Financial Aid.
- Select Home and under Student Requirements you can view all missing requirements
- Click on the link “HC.StudentForms.com.” If you have not logged into the HC.StudentForms portal before you will have to enter your initial validation information which is your information that you entered on your FAFSA including the email that you provided on the FAFSA.
- In HC.StudentForms, you will see a SAP tab that will include the items you need to submit and complete any other requirements outstanding. The Financial Aid Appeal Academic Plan can be found on the HCU website and will need to be uploaded along with the documentation of your extreme and unusual circumstances. If you find that you are unable to retrieve the required signature from your academic advisor, contact your Dean for assistance. Do not wait until the last day for this portion of the requirement because often students miss the deadline for this portion of the appeal.
Repeated Courses
Undergraduates will have any repeat courses tracked for enrollment purposes. For undergraduate students who have not passed a course and are repeating the same course, there is no impact on enrollment status. For undergraduates who have passed a course and are repeating the course, financial aid may only pay one repeat of the course. Any repeats after the first passed repeat must be extracted from the student’s enrollment hours for the term and may affect eligibility for financial aid.