Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid - Loyola University New Orleans

Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy

Graduate Students

Federal regulations require that schools monitor the academic progress of each applicant for federal financial assistance and that the school certify that the applicant is making satisfactory academic progress toward earning his/her degree. This determination of progress must be made after each term and before the financial aid office disburses any federal aid funds for the subsequent semester.

Students who are aware of learning or other disabilities should immediately contact the Office of Disability Services so that appropriate accomodations can be made. A student with a documented disability and functional limitations is still held to the same academic expectations as other students. If the student is registered with the Office of Disability Services and receiving appropriate accomodations, the student should be able to maintain satisfactory academic progress for financial aid eligibility purposes.

Pursuant to Federal regulations, the following constitutes Loyola's policy on satisfactory academic progress for graduate students.

***Guidelines for Students in the MSN Program***

Maximum hours to earn degree:

Students in graduate programs are allowed a total of 70 scheduled hours (this includes the required graduate coursework and any required undergraduate prerequisites) in order to earn the degree. Many students are required to take prerequisite undergraduate courses, and the prerequisite courses do not result in quality points or earned credit hours. Therefore, during the first 30 scheduled hours, it is assumed that the student will not earn credits or accumulate a grade point average. After 30 hours have been scheduled or when the student has earned the first credit, 40 hours shall be allowed for completion of the program.

Satisfactory Progress Definition

During the 40 hour portion (as described above), the student will be expected to complete at least 75% of the hours scheduled each semester. ( Scheduled hours are those hours for which students were still officially registered at the conclusion of each semester's Add/Drop period.

Procedures:

Each aid recipient's record must be evaluated at the end of each term to determine that the student is meeting the standards described above. If the student has reached the maximum number of scheduled hours without earning the degree, the student must be excluded from further participation in federal financial aid programs.

Federal regulation require that these standards apply to all Graduate students, even to first time applicants who have previously enrolled at Loyola, or to those who have not been formally placed on Financial Aid probation.

Financial Aid Probation

The student's financial aid notification letter will require that the student complete all courses scheduled with passing grades (no grades of "W", "F", or "I") until his/her completion ratio has reached the required level. The notification could also include the requirement that the student schedule additional hours.

If the student on financial aid probation meets the terms of the probation, he/she will be permitted to continue to participate in the federal student aid programs for a subsequent semester. If the student does not meet the terms of the probation, the student will forfeit eligibility for all federal financial aid programs.

Loss of eligibility due to lack of satisfactory progress:

A student who has lost eligibility to participate in federal student aid programs for reasons of academic progress can regain that eligibility only by enrolling at Loyola at his/her own expense and demonstrating that he/she is capable of completing a semester without any failures, incompletes or withdrawals and showing the ability to complete his degree requirements in a more regular fashion. The mere passage of time will not ordinarily restore eligibility to a student who has lost eligibility for failure to make satisfactory progress.

Grade Point Averages:

The qualitative standards for making progress will not normally be monitored by the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid, but by the several deans in accordance with the policies of each GRADUATE college. However, in accordance with federal regulations after the second year of enrollment at Loyola, the student must have at least a 3.0 cumulative g.p.a. to be considered making satisfactory progress. Students who do not meet this test will be ineligible to participate in federal financial aid programs until the deficiency is corrected. There is no probationary period attached to this requirement except that which may be provided by future federal statute.

Right to Appeal:

You have the right to appeal any decision of ineligibility to continue to receive financial assistance. Your appeal must be filed within 30 days of notification that aid eligibility has been lost, and it must be made in writing to the Director of the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid. The appeal may not be based upon your need for the assistance of your lack of knowledge that your assistance was in jeopardy. An appeal would normally be based upon some unusual situation or condition which prevented you from passing more of your courses, or which necessitated that you withdraw from classes.

If you do not have grounds for an appeal, or if your appeal is denied, you may still be able to regain your eligibility for future semesters. This is done by enrolling at Loyola at your own expenses -- without financial assistance -- and negotiating a contract with the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid, in advance, for the conditions under which eligibility may be restored.