Financial Aid Standards of Academic Progress

Regulations governing the distribution of State and Federal student financial assistance programs requires Morrison Institute of Technology to monitor academic progress for students pursuing a degree and receiving financial aid. Participation in the Student Financial Assistance Programs is based on the premise that the student, is taking the curriculum required for the students’ major field of study and is maintaining the satisfactory progress requirements listed below. The satisfactory progress requirement applies to all students (full-time and part-time) for all periods of attendance even terms when a student does not receive financial assistance. The policy applies to all coursework attempted at Morrison Institute of Technology as well as transfer credits applied to the students’ degree plan. The Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) policy contains a qualitative standard (GPA) and a quantitative standard (credit hours earned) along with a maximum timeframe.

Satisfactory Academic Progress Measurements:

Cumulative Grade Point Average Policy (Qualitative Standard)

A student’s cumulative GPA is based on all courses attempted at Morrison Institute of Technology. Grades of I or W earned are not included in the grade point average and therefore do no impact its calculation results. Grades associated with transfer credits are not used in calculating cumulative GPA at Morrison Institute of Technology. The following is the minimum cumulative grade point average (CGPA) required to receive financial aid:

Hours Attempted   Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA)

0 -17      1.50

18 – 36      1.75

37+      2.00

Credit Hours Earned (Quantitative Standard)

A student must complete 67% or more of the all credit hours attempted. A student’s completion rate is calculated by dividing the cumulative number of hours the student has earned by the cumulative number of hours the student has attempted. Attempted credits are defined as credits which a student receives a grade including A, B, C, D, F, I, or W. Credit hours attempted is defined as the number of credit hours enrolled in as of the Last Day for Adding Classes each term. For example, if a student is enrolled in 12 credits, to complete 67%, a minimum of 8 credit hours must be earned. Earned credits are defined as courses which a student receives a grade of A, B, C, or D. Hours attempted with grades of F, W, or I are not considered to be earned credits. A student who does not complete 67% of the attempted credits will not meeting the SAP requirements.

Maximum Time Frame

The maximum time frame for which a student may receive financial aid is 150% of the published length of the program’s credit hours. For example, if the length of an associate’s degree is 75 credits then up to 113 attempted credits to complete the program may be eligible for financial aid. If it is determined the student is unable to complete the degree program with the 150%-time frame, financial aid eligibility will be terminated.

Evaluation Period

Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) will be evaluated at the end of each semester for both the qualitative (CGPA) and quantitative (cumulative hours earned) standards. A student who does not meet the SAP standards will be notified in writing.

Financial Aid Warning

A student who does not achieve the required CGPA or not successful in completing the required cumulative hours will be placed on Financial Aid Warning for the following term. A student who is placed on Financial Aid Warning will be notified in writing. A student on financial aid warning may continue to receive financial assistance for one term without an appeal. A student on academic warning status will not be allowed to hold a class office, take part in extracurricular activities, or represent the college at any function. If during the financial aid warning term, the student raises the CGPA and/or reaches the minimum credit hours earned requirement, the status will return to good standing for the following semester. A student who does not meet the SAP requirements at the end of their financial aid warning term will lose their financial aid eligibility.

Financial Aid Probation

A student who fails to meet SAP after one term on financial aid warning will be dismissed from the College. The student is encouraged to appeal. Upon receipt of the appeal documents the Vice President of Academic Affairs will consult with former instructors, representatives of the Office of Financial Aid and the Office of the Registrar. Appeals are not automatically accepted; appeals may be denied for failure to meet SAP. The student will be notified by letter of the outcome. An appeal which is accepted will result in the student being place on financial aid probation and financial aid will be reinstated for one term. A student on probation will be required to meet with the Vice President of Academic Affairs, Financial Aid Director, and the Academic Advisor to discuss the financial aid consequences and develop an academic plan for student success. The student may be required to re-take course work to assist with meeting the SAP requirements. The student will be required to meet with their academic advisor weekly to review their education plan and discuss their academic progress. If the student on financial aid probation raises the CGPA and/or reaches the minimum credit hours earned requirement, the status will return to good standing for the following semester. A student who does not meet the SAP requirements at the end of the financial aid probation term will be dismissed from the College.

Financial Aid Probation-Plan

A student who has been dismissed from the College for failing to meet SAP will be notified in writing. Students have the right to appeal. Upon receipt of the appeal documents the Vice President of Academic Affairs will consult with former instructors, representatives of the Office of Financial Aid and the Office of the Registrar. Appeals are not automatically accepted; appeals may be denied for failure to meet SAP. The student will be notified by letter of the outcome. An appeal which is accepted will result in the student being place on financial aid probation with an academic plan and financial aid will be reinstated for one term. The student will be given a written plan from the Vice President of Academic Affairs outlining specific academic requirements to assist with meeting the SAP requirements. A student may be required to re-take course work to assist with meeting the SAP requirements. The student will be required to meet with their academic advisor weekly to review their education plan and discuss their academic progress. If the student on financial aid probation raises the CGPA and/or reaches the minimum credit hours earned requirement, the status will return to good standing for the following semester. A student who does not meet the SAP requirements at the end of their financial aid probation – plan term will be dismissed from the College.

Impact of Course Incompletes, Repeats, Withdrawals, and Remedial:

Incompletes: A student with an incomplete grade at the end of the semester will have the course counted as attempted hours; however, the course will not count as credits earned until a grade is assigned. Incomplete grades not completed within the first two weeks of the following semester are then calculated as an “F” in the GPA. The conversion of incomplete grades to “F” can reduce the GPA, which may increase the possibility of being placed on warning or probation. Repeats: A student who repeats courses will have each course count as attempted credits for quantitative standard; only the highest grade is used for qualitative standard (CGPA). A student may be paid for repeating a failed course until the course is passed. A student may be paid for repeating a course with a passing grade only one time. COLLEGE CATALOG 2014 - 2016 23 Withdrawals: A student who withdraws from a course before the last day to drop deadline will receive a “W” grade. The credits will be considered credits attempted in evaluating the quantitative standard; however, the credits are not considered when calculating CGPA. Prior to withdrawing from a course(s), the student is advised to meet with the Registrar’s Office, Instructor, Vice President of Academics, and the Financial Aid Office.

Remedial Courses:

A student who is required to enroll in developmental courses (096 English, 092 Algebra) will not earn credit for the course and the course does not count in the attempted credit hours or CGPA.

Transfer Credits:

Transfer credits accepted and applied to a student’s degree plan are counted as both attempted and earned credits for quantitative standard; the transfer GPA does not count in the Morrison Institute of Technology CGPA.

Change of Programs:

A student who transfers from one program to another offered at Morrison Institute of Technology are required to meet both the CGPA and credit hours earned requirements of the SAP policy. All coursework taken in the previous program will be counted when evaluating SAP.

Dual Programs:

A student who enrolls in two programs offered at Morrison Institute of Technology are required to meet both the CGPA and credit hours earned requirements of the SAP policy.

Appeals:

A student may appeal the loss of financial aid by submitting the following documents to the Vice President of Academic Affairs: 1) Financial Aid Appeal Form, 2) written letter explaining why the student failed to make satisfactory academic progress (illness/death of family member, personal illness or injury, family crisis, or other special circumstance) and what has changed that will allow the student to demonstrate satisfactory academic progress at the end of the next term 3) documentation to support the circumstance. Appeals submitted without all three required components will not be reviewed and the loss of financial aid will remain. Appeals are not automatically accepted; appeals may be denied for failure to meet SAP.

Regaining Eligibility:

A student who has lost financial aid eligibility for failing to meet the SAP requirements may establish aid eligibility by one of the follow:

1. Getting back on track with SAP requirements.

2. Complete a semester of credits without financial aid, submit another appeal for the loss of financial aid and have the appeal accepted.

3. Sit out a semester, submit another appeal for the loss of financial aid and have the appeal accepted.

Return of Title IV Aid:

If you withdraw, either officially or unofficially, and you have received or were eligible to receive Title IV federal funds in the form of Federal Pell Grant, Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG), or any Direct Loans, the federal government requires that we review your eligibility for those funds. We are required to apply a formula to determine how much of those federal funds were earned in the length of your attendance. This review is called Return of Title IV Aid.

Attendance is recorded in our software by instructors. Contact is made either by the instructor, your academic advisor or V.P. of Academic Affairs. The last date of attendance will be determined after conferring with the student’s instructors. A student may be considered withdrawn if that student is not actively attending class or provide confirmation of future attendance.

The federal funds that were disbursed in excess of the earned amount must be returned to the government. This amount is calculated from the date you officially withdrew from classes or unofficial withdrawal when you cease to attend classes. When the college returns funds to the government, you will be billed for any balance due for any institutional charges that are unpaid as a result of the return of federal funds.

If you completely withdraw, drop, or stop attending before your financial aid is disbursed for the semester, you may be eligible to receive a Post-Withdrawal disbursement. A Post-Withdrawal disbursement is for students that were eligible to receive a disbursement, but the aid was unable to be disbursed before you stopped attending. 

The college will calculate the ratio of the days that you did attend to the days you were scheduled to attend in the semester. The result percentage is then used, along with your institutional costs and total federal funds that you received to determine the amount of aid that you are allowed to keep which will be applied to your semester. A return of Title IV calculation may take up to 45 days to complete. Once the Return of Title IV process is complete you will receive a letter from the college that explains the calculation and the balance due back to the college as a result of the Return of Title IV calculation.

Federal funds returned will be allocated in the following order:

Federal Unsubsidized Direct Loan

Federal Subsidized Direct Loan

Federal Direct Parent Loan

Federal Pell Grant

Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG)