Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) refers to meeting the academic requirements set by the school to remain eligible for financial aid.
Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Requirements
- Students must declare an academic program other than "undecided" and must be taking courses that apply to that degree or certificate.
- Student's failure to meet SAP will result in ineligibility for aid. Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) determines whether you qualify for financial aid.
- SAP will be measured on the three metrics required by federal regulations. Your SAP status is determined when you apply for financial aid and is based on all previous academic history.
- Once you receive aid, your academic progress is evaluated at the end of every semester.
- Lone Star College's (LSC) policy is designed to encourage students to achieve their academic goals and graduate.
- Download the Standards of Academic Progress (SAP) Policy PDF
SAP Components
There are three components to SAP. Failure to comply with any component may result in a loss of aid eligibility.
Minimum Grade Point Average (GPA)
- 2.0 GPA
- GPA Calculator
Completion Rate (Deficit Hours)
While students must be enrolled to be eligible for financial aid, each student must also successfully complete at least a minimum percentage of all credit hours attempted. This percentage includes all institutional and transfer credit hours, regardless of whether or not financial aid was received. Grades of W, F, I, N, NP, and NR are not considered to be adequate grades for completion.
- 67% Completion Rate
Maximum Hours (Excessive Hours)
Students are expected to complete their degree pursuits within a maximum timeframe, including transfer hours earned as well as institutional attempted hours. Students may not receive financial assistance beyond the following:
- 150% of the number of credit hours required to complete your academic program. For example, if you are in an associate degree program that requires 60 credit hours, you must complete the program within 90 credit hours (60x150%). Students lose eligibility when it becomes mathematically impossible to complete the program within the 150% maximum timeframe. Credit hours are cumulative; thus, students working towards obtaining more than one degree in the same degree type (e.g. undergraduate) may reach this maximum timeframe before completing their course of study. Students may submit an appeal if they lose eligibility.
Students exceeding Maximum Timeframe would not receive a warning semester.
SAP Warnings and Not Meeting SAP
After one semester of not meeting SAP requirements due to GPA or Completion Rate, students will be issued a warning and will be permitted to receive financial aid for the next semester. However, after the one semester of warning, students who fail to meet any one or a combination of the SAP components will be ineligible for financial assistance. Students may appeal ineligibility by providing information on extenuating circumstances, indicating what has changed to allow successful academic progress. If an appeal is granted, students will be asked to follow an academic plan that will lead to meeting minimum SAP requirements in the near future. If students do not meet the terms of the aid plan, eligibility for financial aid will cease and all remaining aid will be cancelled.
Subsequent appeals of the same nature are not permitted. Once a student falls from his/her academic plan and loses eligibility, the only way to regain eligibility for financial aid is to meet the SAP requirements.
SAP Appeal Instructions
SAP Notifications
Students who fail to meet minimum SAP standards are not eligible to receive financial aid. Students will be notified of the reason(s) for the loss of eligibility through the University student email account as well as via the Financial Aid Portal.
Students may appeal their ineligibility by providing information on extenuating circumstances, indicating what has changed to allow successful academic progress. However, the submission of an appeal is only a request and does not guarantee that scholarship or financial aid eligibility will be reinstated. The appeal must be submitted online through the Financial Aid Portal. The student should provide evidence of the extenuating circumstances that occurred.
Changes to recorded grades that take place after SAP evaluation has occurred may prompt a recalculation of SAP. This will include all grades in academic history as well as grades already entered on the current semester. Students' eligibility for financial aid may change after this calculation.
Completion Calculator
Appeal Submission Deadlines
A student who is ineligible for financial aid for failure to meet the SAP requirements may file a SAP appeal. If approved, the student will be placed on "Appeal Approved (Probation)" and is aid eligible. All appeals must be submitted to the Financial Aid Office by the following deadlines:
| Semester | Appeal | Appeal Committee (Second Appeal) |
Academic Plan |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall Semester | October 1 | October 15 | November 15 |
| Spring Semester | February 15 | March 1 | April 1 |
| Summer Semester | June 15 | July 1 | July 15 |
Verification Steps
| Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Statuses | ||
| SAP Statuses | Description | Action |
| Meets SAP | Student meets all SAP requirements; aid eligible | None |
| Warning |
Student did not meet one or more SAP requirements after a semester of Meeting SAP; aid eligible |
None |
| Not Meet SAP/Failed SAP | Student did not meet one or more of the SAP requirements; not aid eligible | May submit SAP Appeal |
| Appeal Approved (Probation) |
SAP Appeal Approved; aid eligible | Must submit Academic Plan |
| Academic Plan | Student Submitted Academic Plan; aid eligible | Follow Academic Plan Requirements |
| Appeal Denied | SAP Appeal Denied; not aid eligible | May submit a second appeal to the Appeal Committee |
| Ineligible | Student did not submit an academic plan or did not follow the academic plan; not aid eligible | None |
A student who is ineligible for financial aid for failure to meet the SAP requirements may file a SAP appeal. If approved, the student will be placed on "Appeal Approved (Probation)" and is aid eligible. Students must appeal their financial aid suspension through the myLoneStar Student Portal.
Appeal Documents
- SAP Form (Available in myLoneStar Student Portal)
- If submitting paper committee appeal: Committee Appeal Form
- Supporting documentation of the mitigating or extenuating circumstances,
- Student statement explaining the reasons for not making satisfactory academic progress, and what has changed in the student's situation that will allow the student to demonstrate satisfactory academic progress at the next evaluation.
Examples of Circumstances and Supporting Documentation
| Extenuating Circumstance | Supporting Documentation |
| Medical (personal or family illness) | Timeframe of illness, relationship to person with illness (if applicable) medical documents, letter from doctor |
| Death of a family member | Death certificate, obituary, program, funeral home certificate, letter from a family member (if not listed on the program, obituary, etc.) |
| Traumatic Event (assault, abuse, other personal violations) | Police report, letter from a case worker, insurance claim, letter from doctor or mental health professional |
| Job Loss | Proof of job loss; unemployment letter |
| Natural Disaster (Fire, hurricane, flood, tornado, earthquake, etc.) | FEMA documents, insurance claim, statement from landlord |
| Military Deployment | Military Orders, DD214 |
| Car Accident | Police report, insurance documents, dated photos |
| Legal Issues (divorce, separation, incarceration) | Divorce decree, relevant court documents |
Students who have reached maximum timeframe must also:
- Submit a program acceptance letter if participating in the Occupational Therapy Assistant, Nursing, Respiratory Therapy Assistant, Physical Therapy, or Accounting programs.
- Submit an academic plan signed by an Academic Advisor in the Advising Department of the campus that offers the program. The academic plan must outline the sequence and term in which courses must be taken and successfully completed to achieve satisfactory academic progress and be on track to graduate from the academic program.
- Submit the academic plan with the appeal.
Student must meet with an academic advisor on the campus in which the degree plan is offered to complete the academic plan. The plan must be submitted to the Financial Aid Office by the submission dates listed above.
While on an academic plan, student must:
- Maintain a 2.0 GPA each term.
- Complete 75% of the courses attempted each term.
- Have a 2.0 cumulative GPA at the 70% point of the academic degree plan.
Progress is reviewed by the Financial Aid Department at the end of each term. If at the end of the term, the student makes progress as stipulated in the academic plan, the student’s SAP status will remain “Academic Plan” until the student “Meets SAP” or fails to meet the requirements of the plan.
If not making progress as stipulated in the academic plan, the student’s status will change to “Failed SAP (Not Meet)” and does not have aid eligibility.
A student that fails to meet the SAP requirements and is placed on "Not Meeting SAP", and may or may not have filed an appeal that was denied, will have financial aid eligibility reinstated when the student meets all three SAP standards.