Satisfactory Academic Progress

According to the United States Department of Education regulations, all students applying for federal and/or state financial assistance must maintain satisfactory progress in his/her course of study to receive these funds. These standards stipulate, but are not limited to, attending your classes, maintaining acceptable grades, completing a sufficient number of credit hours per semester, and completing their program of study within a reasonable time frame. A student who does not meet these standards is not eligible to receive federal and/or state funded financial aid. All semesters of attendance are considered for satisfactory progress regardless of whether the student received aid. Adherence to the following standards will be necessary for continued financial aid eligibility.

A student must be making academic progress regardless of whether the student had previously received aid. Before aid is disbursed, a student’s progress will be evaluated according to policy guidelines. Any student who has not previously received financial aid may not be notified of his/her status until he/she has applied for financial aid.

Satisfactory Academic Progress is determined by:

Qualitative Measurement (GPA)

The minimum cumulative grade point average (GPA) must be a 2.0 for all attempted hours

Quantitative Measurement (Credit Hours)

Students must complete attempted hours according to the following:

Completion of 67% of cumulative hours attempted (i.e., a student attempts 15 hours, he/she must complete a minimum of 11).

Course grades of “I”, “W”, “WI”, “U”, “NG”, and “F” are considered attempted and not completed. Dropped courses prior to 2007-08 are considered attempted hours for academic progress.

Once a student completes a class for which they received a grade of an “I” or “NG”, the financial aid status can be reviewed and updated if appropriate, upon the student’s request.

Maximum Time-Frame

Degree requirements must be completed within a specific time frame. The maximum time frame for a program of study at FVCC is 150% of the program requirements (i.e. an AS degree requires 60 credits for graduation so maximum time frame would be 90 attempted credits). Hours earned at FVCC, as well as hours transferred and accepted by FVCC are considered in this maximum time frame. Any student who has exceeded the maximum time frame and/or who mathematically cannot finish the program within this period will be considered ineligible for financial aid.

Flathead Valley Community College understands that students may change their educational goals and programs of study, and that additional education is often needed to enhance career opportunities. These students may provide a written appeal for reevaluation of their status.