The federal government requires that institutions approved to offer Title IV aid, monitor the academic progress of all students receiving Title IV aid. This is done to ensure that students receiving financial aid are making what is called Satisfactory Academic Progress. To remain eligible for federal financial aid, students must meet all of Meridian’s Satisfactory Academic Progress standards established for their specific enrollment status. These standards are separate from the academic standing policies set by the institution.
Students registered for at least one course (4 credits) a quarter are considered enrolled at least full-time for Title IV purposes and classified as ‘in Coursework’. All degree programs offered by Meridian University are eligible for Title IV aid. For Coursework students receiving Title IV aid, evaluation of Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) occurs on an annual basis, once grades have been posted from the summer quarter. SAP is also evaluated any time a student applies for Federal Student Aid.
Satisfactory Academic Progress for coursework students has three standards - quantitative, qualitative, and maximum timeframe.
Meridian University does not use the traditional GPA (grade point average) as a method of evaluation. Rather, the ratio of successfully completed credits to total attempted credits is examined for both qualitative and quantitative purposes, on a cumulative basis.
To remain eligible for financial aid, a minimum 67% of attempted units must be successfully completed. Transfer credit (“TU”) will be considered as both attempted and completed credits. The grades of Incomplete (“INC”), No Credit (“NC”), Withdrawn (“W”), and multi-quarter courses in progress with grades pending (“MQC”) will be counted as attempted credits - and excluded from completed credits- until successful grades are posted to the transcript. Any repeated courses will also be counted as attempted credits – and excluded from completed credits – until successful grades are posted to the transcript. Credits for any given course may only be counted for one successful iteration and included in the completed credit count only once. Course repetition may be considered a qualitative hindrance during the Quarterly Academic Review, in which all students’ progress toward degree completion is assessed, and academic status reevaluated. The 67% benchmark and academic status determination serve as both a qualitative assessment of academic standing relative to institutional expectations as well as a quantitative assessment of progress towards completion.
The percentage of completed credits is calculated by dividing the number of successfully completed credits by the number of attempted credits, rounded up to the nearest integer. For example, if the student attempts 8 credits in the spring quarter but only successfully completes a total of 5 credits, the student has completed only 63% of attempted units and so is not maintaining SAP.
Students who do not make satisfactory academic progress will lose their financial aid eligibility until they again make SAP. For students who have lost aid, SAP will be checked quarterly to determine eligibility. If a student who has lost their aid is determined to be eligible again, they will receive any pending disbursements.
Example: The Quantitative and Qualitative Standards in Practice
Courses and Grades | SAP Implications | |
---|---|---|
First Year - Fall Quarter | Sarah takes four courses, each worth 3 quarter credits. Therefore she is attemptinga total of 12 quarter credits. She passes three courses, but does not submit her final paper for the fourth course and therefore receives an “Incomplete” grade. | Sarah has completed 9 of the 12 quarter credits she attempted. Therefore she has completed 75% of attempted credits and is successfully “making SAP.” |
First Year - Winter Quarter | Sarah takes three courses, each worth 3 quarter credits. Therefore she is attempting a total of 9 quarter credits. She passes one course, but gets a “No Credit” for the second course because she did not meet the attendance requirement. She gets an “Incomplete” for the third course because she did not submit the final paper. | Sarah has now attempted a total of 21 quarter credits and completed 12. Therefore she has completed 58% of attempted credits and is not making SAP. She has until the end of the spring quarter to resolve her incompletes and until the end of the summer quarter to be back to “making SAP.” |
First Year - Spring Quarter | Sarah attempts two courses, each worth 3 quarter credits. She passes both. During the spring quarter, she also goes through the late paper submission process for the winter quarter course in which she received an “incomplete.” Her grade for that course is changed to a “pass.” | Sarah has now attempted a total of 27 quarter credits and completed 21 quarter credits. Therefore she has completed 78% of attempted credits and is successfully making SAP again. |
First Year - Summer Quarter | Sarah attempts two courses, each worth 3 quarter credits. She passes both. | Sarah has now attempted a total of 33 quarter credits and completed 27. Therefore she has completed 82% of attempted credits and is successfully “making SAP.” The Annual SAP check, which takes place for all students at the end of the summer quarter, shows Sarah as successfully “making SAP. ” This means that Sarah can proceed with the FSA process for the next academic year. |
Students utilizing Title IV aid who fail to successfully complete a minimum of 67% of attempted credits each year will lose eligibility for Federal Direct Unsubsidized and Grad Plus Loans. These students will be notified in writing if/when their eligibility for federal aid is suspended.
For students who have lost aid, SAP will be checked quarterly to determine the possibility of the student having regained their eligibility for financial aid. As such, a student who loses their aid due to not making SAP may have their financial aid reinstated the following quarter if they are once again making SAP.
A student who is no longer eligible for Federal Student Aid due to failure to meet Meridian’s SAP standards may appeal to have their financial aid reinstated for one quarter if extenuating circumstances have hindered academic performance. Appeals must be in writing and describe the basis for the appeal such as the death of a relative, an injury or illness of the student, or other special circumstance. The appeal should include an explanation as to what has now changed that would allow the student to demonstrate SAP by the end of the next quarter, as well as a proposed Learning Agreement that provides a detailed explanation of how and when deficiencies will be resolved. The outcome of this appeal will depend on the nature of the circumstances, the quality of the documentation provided, and how well the student has demonstrated the ability to progress towards degree completion within a reasonable time period.
The appeal and the Learning Agreement are submitted to:
Financial Services Team
Meridian University
47 Sixth Street,
Petaluma, CA 94952
Phone: (707) 765-1836
Email: financialservices@meridianuniversity.edu
These materials are to be submitted within two weeks of being notified of losing financial aid eligibility. The Student Development Committee will review each student’s appeal and proposed Learning Agreement to determine whether the SAP standards will be met and if eligibility for federal aid may be reinstated.
The following are examples of extenuating circumstances that can be considered for appeal, along with examples of documentation.
Circumstance | Examples of Appropriate Supporting Documentation |
---|---|
The death of a family member, relative, or significant person in the student’s life | Copy of an obituary or death certificate |
Significant injury or illness of the student | Physician's statement, police report, or hospital billing statement, and personal statement of the illness |
A significant injury or illness of a family member, relative, or other such close person in the student’s life | Physician's statement, police report, or hospital billing statement, and personal statement of the illness from the individual for whom the student provided care or support |
Family difficulties such as divorce or separation of the student or student’s parents | Court documentation or letter from the attorney in the case |
Significant interpersonal problems with friends, roommates, or significant other | Written statement from an attorney, professional advisor, or other individual describing circumstances and personal statement to this effect |
The Student Development Committee reviews appeals on a case-by-case basis to determine if the student qualifies for an extension. Reviews are completed within 15 working days from receiving all complete documentation from the student.
If this appeal is approved, the student will be eligible to receive financial aid for one quarter and will be placed on financial aid probation. Students will be notified via email of the outcome of their appeal.
If a student has been placed on academic probation by the Student Development Committee, the student must develop a learning agreement that has been approved by the committee. During this academic probation period, a student may remain eligible to receive financial aid.
Students who fail to meet the requirements of their learning agreement are required to meet with the Student Development Committee. The committee may extend the student’s academic probation (as opposed to administrative withdrawal) but during this academic probation period the student is not eligible to receive further financial aid.
Students enrolled in the dissertation period are considered enrolled at least half-time for Title IV purposes. All eligible financial aid recipients entering the dissertation phase of the PhD in Psychology or EdD in Organizational Leadership programs will be awarded financial aid on a borrower-based academic year. This means that from the time the eight-quarter dissertation period begins, financial aid will cover four consecutive quarters, twice.
Students who are completing their dissertation during the eight quarter dissertation period demonstrate SAP by submitting acceptable written work to their dissertation committee chair and advisor, as follows:
At the end of the eight quarters of the dissertation enrollment period, in order to make SAP, a student must at minimum have submitted the dissertation’s Chapter Four in order to receive aid during a third year of dissertation work.
Students who find that additional time beyond the eight quarters is necessary for completion of the dissertation must enroll in the extended four-quarter clock. In order to make SAP to remain eligible to receive aid during a third year of dissertation work, the student must at minimum have submitted an acceptable draft of the dissertation’s fourth chapter (the Learnings Chapter). The committee chair must confirm that such progress has occurred via the chair’s submission of the Learnings Chapter Submission form to the financial aid office.
Requirements for the dissertation’s fourth chapter are defined by each program and are included in the program’s Dissertation Handbook. It is the student’s responsibility to stay in contact with their committee and to follow-up on the progress of their chapter four approval.
Financial aid is not available beyond the third year of dissertation work.
Dissertation students completing the dissertation are considered to be in progress and will be counted as attempted credits; students will not receive completed credits until the student completes their dissertation.
All pending financial aid will be canceled once the final draft of the dissertation is approved.
Students enrolled in the clinical case study period are considered enrolled at least half-time for Title IV purposes. All eligible financial aid recipients entering the clinical case study phase of the PsyD in Clinical Psychology program will be awarded financial aid on a borrower-based academic year. This means that from the time the four-quarter clinical case study period begins, financial aid will cover four consecutive quarters.
Students who find that additional time beyond the four quarters is necessary for completion of the clinical case study must enroll in the extended four-quarter clock. In order to be making SAP to remain eligible to receive aid during a second year of clinical case study work, the student must at minimum have submitted an acceptable draft of the clinical case study’s first three chapters. The clinical case study advisor must confirm that such progress has occurred via the advisor’s submission of the Three Chapter Draft Submission form to the financial aid office.
Requirements for each of the clinical case study chapters are included in the program’s Clinical Case Study Handbook. It is the student’s responsibility to stay in contact with their advisor and to follow-up on the progress of their three chapter draft approval.
Financial aid is not available beyond the second year of clinical case study work. Students completing the clinical case study are considered to be in progress and will be counted as attempted credits; students will not receive completed credits until the student completes their clinical case study.
Please be aware that all pending financial aid will be canceled once the final draft of your clinical case study is approved.
The length of time that the student can remain eligible for Federal Student Aid is measured in terms of credits attempted. Students may not attempt more than 150% of a program’s length (e.g., for a 60 credit program, the student may not attempt more than 90 credits).
The following chart lists the maximum number of credits a student may attempt in the process of completing their degree:
DEGREE PROGRAM | Total Credits Required | Maximum Number of Attempted Credits Allowed |
---|---|---|
Ph.D. Psychology | 133 | 271.5 |
Ph.D. Psychology (Advanced Standing) | 117 | 225 |
Psy.D. Clinical Psychology | 133 | 249 |
Psy.D. Clinical Psychology (Advanced Standing) | 117 | 202.5 |
M.A. Counseling Psychology | 103 | 157.5 |
M.A. Psychology | 64 | 97.5 |
Ed.D. Organizational Leadership | 92 | 135 |
M.Ed. Educational Leadership | 64 | 90 |
MBA Creative Enterprise | 64 | 90 |
Interested in learning more about the programs at Meridian?
Contact An Advisor »Attend an Info Session »