Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Standards

Students must pass at least 67% of the cumulative institutional credit hours attempted at Miami to ensure the degree is earned within the maximum time frame allowed for the degree they are attempting.

Undergraduate students must always maintain a 2.00 cumulative GPA. Graduate students must always maintain a 3.00 cumulative GPA.

Students must meet the academic requirements necessary to remain at Miami as a student as outlined in the Miami Bulletin, General Edition (MiamiOH.edu/bulletin).

Federal regulations require Miami to establish a maximum time frame for a student to complete a degree. For undergraduate students, we define this as 150% of the length of an academic program. For graduate students, we define this as five years from the acceptance into a Master’s program and 10 years from the acceptance into a Doctoral program. As a federal aid recipient, degrees must be completed within this time frame.

The maximum time frame includes all prior terms of attendance at Miami, including part-time attendance and any other college or university, whether or not federal aid was received. The maximum time frame also includes all periods of attendance at Miami, whether or not a student received federal aid. Repeated coursework will count as additional attempted hours.

Please note: If an academic fresh start is received, all hours attempted prior to the fresh start are considered in the SAP calculation. Additionally, students pursuing a second degree are expected to maintain each standard of SAP, and progress will be monitored annually, per Miami’s academic progress review.

¹Miami’s Standards of SAP Policy is reviewed annually by members of management within the Office of Student Financial Assistance. The policy is reviewed by comparing it to the Miami Bulletin, as well as any federal updates related to SAP. After review of the policy, it is then posted on Miami’s website for prospective and current student access. 

A student’s change of major can be considered as part of a SAP Appeal if the student is appealing as part of the Maximum Time Frame requirement. A change of major is not an automatic appeal approval.

Credit/No Credit courses do not affect a student’s grade point average (GPA) and are not factored into the GPA component of the SAP calculation, but the courses do count toward the maximum time frame for completion of a degree program.

Incomplete grades (‘I,’ ‘IG,’ ‘IU,’ ‘IGY,’ ‘IUY,’ or ‘S’) count as attempted hours and will negatively impact academic progress. Notify the One Stop if a grade is changed. Eligibility for aid could be recalculated based on an increase in earned hours. This would include having a non-passing grade changed to a passing grade.

SAP does not affect eligibility for private loans or Miami scholarships.

Students may re-establish eligibility for federal student aid by taking classes to raise their cumulative GPA to 2.00 or higher and/or raising their completion rate to 67% or higher without the use of federal funds or through grade changes. Students should submit the SAP Appeal Form and a statement explaining that they have raised their GPA and/or completion rate to meet the SAP Standards and wish to have their federal aid reinstated.

If students are not able to re-establish eligibility by making up deficient hours, they may submit an SAP Appeal. Taking a semester off without enrollment or paying for coursework without aid for a semester will not be, in and of itself, sufficient for reinstatement of federal aid eligibility.

Students can receive federal financial aid for up to 30 credit hours of remedial coursework. Once 30 credit hours of remedial coursework is reached, federal aid will no longer be offered for additional remedial courses. Further, students can only retake remedial courses twice while receiving federal financial aid. Remedial courses and any repeated remedial courses will be included in the SAP calculation.

Repeat course hours will be included as additional attempted hours. In addition, students can only take a specific course and receive a passing grade twice and still receive federal aid.

When a student officially drops a course during the first 20% of the course, no grade or other designation will appear on the official transcript. If a course is officially dropped after the first 20% of the course, the grade report and transcript will show a grade of W. Grades of W or F (and other negative grade marks) can affect aid for future semesters or years, because those hours will count as hours attempted but not earned. See Miami’s Academic Calendar for official deadline dates.

When students receive aid from federal programs but officially withdraw during a semester, a percentage of aid may be used to pay the bill for the portion of the semester attended. Since the semester was not completed, 100% of federal aid may not have been earned. A federal calculation will be done to determine if any aid will be returned to the U.S. Department of Education. If aid is returned,the student will owe Miami for any unpaid charges. In addition, the student may jeopardize future federal financial aid. To understand the possible impact on federal financial aid, please consult with the Student Success Center at 513-529-0007 or studentsuccess@MiamiOH.edu before withdrawing from Miami.

For more information about withdrawing from Miami, please visit MiamiOH.edu/Withdrawal.

Students maintaining SAP but approaching financial aid suspension will receive written notification. The following guidelines are developed to notify students early of possible financial aid suspension:

Undergraduate Degree Program Guidelines for an “Advisory” notice:

• Completion percentage is between 67% and 75%
• The student has attempted 80 hours and has not completed an associate degree (if the student is seeking an associate degree)
• The student has attempted 160 hours and has not completed a bachelor’s degree (if the student is seeking a bachelor’s degree)
• The student has attended four years and has not completed a master’s degree
• The student has attended nine years and has not completed a doctorate degree

If the student’s progress is unsatisfactory but a SAP Appeal was approved, federal aid will be reinstated for one semester and reviewed each semester of attendance until progress is satisfactory. Students must complete at least 67% of the courses attempted and achieve the GPA required as part of the academic plan if the current cumulative GPA is less than 2.00. If SAP is not made during the probationary semester, federal aid eligibility will be suspended again.

A student’s pace, cumulative GPA, and whether the degree can be completed within the maximum time frame are reviewed annually by the Office of Student Financial Assistance with an automated process after official grades are posted. A notation is entered in the student’s electronic record to indicate that the student is meeting SAP standards.

If a student’s progress toward degree completion is unsatisfactory, federal aid eligibility will be suspended. The Office of Student Financial Assistance will send written notification of the suspension and information on appealing the suspension to the student. The notification includes an explanation of Miami’s policy on SAP Standards and the form for students to appeal their financial aid suspension.

Submitting an appeal is not a guarantee of aid reinstatement. If an appeal is not submitted, denied, or it is determined that a student will not be able to complete their degree within the maximum time frame allotted, the student must complete coursework at their own expense until they are once again meeting the Standards of SAP. Denied appeals may be reviewed by the Director for reinstatement before meeting SAP Standards. The student may complete coursework at Miami or at another institution, provided the credits can be transferred to Miami. Any credits earned and transferred to Miami must have been earned after the Miami term(s) in which federal aid was denied.

A student who is not meeting one or more of Miami’s SAP Standards as outlined may submit an SAP Appeal for reconsideration of eligibility for federal aid. Students that are not meeting SAP will receive instructions for completing an appeal as part of the notification of failure to maintain SAP standards.

While there is no limit to the number of times a student may appeal, the review for subsequent appeals will be less lenient. Appeals should include a statement from the student explaining the circumstances that prevented them from being able to maintain the SAP Standards, as well as any corrective action taken by the student to improve their progress. Documentation of the reason(s) for not meeting SAP should also be submitted as part of the appeal. Incomplete appeals will receive a notification explaining that they may appeal again with complete information.