2024-25 Catalog

Satisfactory Academic Progress

All students receiving any form of financial aid must meet the standards of progress outlined below. The requirements for these standards are set by federal regulations (34CFR Section 668.19).

Satisfactory progress requirements are:

  • Complete 67% of all classes attempted, and
  • Maintain a Valencia Grade Point Average (GPA) of 2.0 or higher once you have attempted 24 hours at Valencia College, and maintain an overall Grade Point Average (GPA) of 2.0 or higher, and
  • Complete your degree within the 150% timeframe (i.e. an associate degree of 60 credit hours must be completed within 90 credit hours). Transfer credits are included.
  • Become familiar with Valencia College’s Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy by visiting: https://valenciacollege.edu/sap

If you attended other colleges, the courses you took that are accepted as transfer credit by Valencia College will be considered in the evaluation of your progress.

At Valencia College, for financial aid purposes, being enrolled in a course for credit beyond the official Drop/Refund Deadline counts as an attempt. All successfully completed transfer courses accepted and courses taken at Valencia College, including those taken as part of another program of study, will be included in determining your Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP).

For financial aid purposes, successful completion of a course means an earned grade of A, B, C, or D; however, a grade of D is “passing below average”. All other grades (F, I, W, WN, WW, WF, WP, and AR) are considered unsuccessful completions and will impact your progress determination.

The formula for calculating the completion ratio is: total hours earned divided by total hours attempted. The resulting percentage must be 67% or greater. Fractions of 0.5 and above will be rounded up (for example, 66.6% will be rounded to 67%).
Satisfactory Academic Progress will be evaluated at the end of each term.

If you do not meet the Standards of Satisfactory Academic Progress due to your GPA or completion ratio, you will be placed on Financial Aid Warning and will be given one additional semester of financial aid eligibility during which you must remedy your GPA and completion percentage.  If, after your semester on Financial Aid Warning, you have still not maintained the minimum GPA or completion percentage, you will be placed on Financial Aid Suspension and will not be eligible for further financial aid at Valencia College. If you have attempted 150% of the credit hours needed for your Valencia College degree program (for most students this is 90 credit hours), you no longer will be eligible for financial aid.

The chart demonstrates 150% for attempted hours in a certificate or degree program. The left hand column shows the required number of credit hours for the certificate or degree and the corresponding number in the right column is the number of credit hours that is the maximum allowed to maintain SAP.

Credit Hours Required for Certificate or Degree Maximum Credit Hours Allowed (150% of required hours)
24 36
27 40
33 49
35 52
42 62
60 90
62 92
63 94
64 96
68 102
72 108
73 109
76 114
77 115
88 132
128 192
130 195

You have the right to appeal a Financial Aid Suspension if you have special circumstances that affected your ability to meet the satisfactory academic progress requirements. Appeal forms are available online in Atlas and at valenciacollege.edu/finaid. Documentation of your special circumstances will be required.

SAP deadlines

SAP Priority Deadline: To be considered before the initial fee payment deadline, your SAP appeal must be received by:

  • August 2, 2024 for Fall Term 2024
  • January 3, 2025 for Spring Term 2025
  • May 1, 2025 for Summer Term 2025

If you are placed on Financial Aid Suspension, and you do not have special circumstances or your appeal is denied, you may regain your eligibility for financial aid by bringing your Valencia and overall GPAs up to a 2.0 or better and your cumulative completion ratio to at least 67%. You will need to pay for the courses you take while under suspension.

The chart demonstrates 67% for attempted credit hours in a term. The left hand column is the attempted hours and the corresponding number in the right column is the number of hours you must successfully complete with a 2.0 GPA to maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress. For example, if you register for 14 credit hours, you must complete 10 credit hours with a 2.0 GPA or higher to meet the SAP requirements for the term. Both the 2.0 GPA and the completion ratio of 67% applies to both the term and cumulative credit hours on your transcript.

Credit Hours Attempted Earned Hours Needed (Passed with GPA of 2.0 or greater)
19 13
18 12
17 12
16 11
15 10
14 10
13 9
12 8
11 8
10 7
9 6
8 6
7 5
6 4
5 4
4 3
3 3
2 2
1 1