Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) is the minimum academic requirements students must meet to be eligible for financial aid. SAP is checked for all students after every semester, regardless of whether financial aid was received. Progress is evaluated based on all courses taken at Madera Community College, Reedley College, Fresno City College, Clovis Community College, and any other State Center Community College site, as well as transfer units from outside colleges.
Students must meet all three of the following requirements to make Satisfactory Academic Progress to receive financial aid.
For example:
Most certificate programs: 30 units are needed to graduate; the maximum timeframe to complete the program would be 45 attempted units.
Most degree and transfer programs: 60 units or more are needed to graduate; the maximum timeframe to complete the program would be 90 attempted units
Up to 30 units of remedial coursework may be excluded from the student's cumulative units attempted.
All repeated coursework and courses disregarded under Academic Renewal will be included in units attempted.
All units from prior colleges will be included when determining a student's maximum timeframe. The Financial Aid Office reserves the right to require official academic transcripts from all prior colleges attended before determining a student's financial aid eligibility.
If at any point in time it is determined that the student cannot complete their course of study within the maximum timeframe, the student will be immediately disqualified from future financial aid for the remainder of his or her program, even if he or she is meeting the current SAP standards outlined above.
Satisfactory Academic Progress is monitored for all students at the end of each semester after grades have been officially posted by Admissions and Records. If any grades are delayed, an otherwise eligible student may have their financial aid disbursement delayed. Once a delayed grade is made official, the student should contact the Financial Aid Office so the SAP process can be re-run.
Any student who does not meet SAP requirements will be notified by the Madera Community College Financial Aid via their Madera Community College student email, and their status will be updated on Self-Service.
If a student on a satisfactory SAP standing does not meet all cumulative academic requirements outlined in requirement 1 and 2 at the end of a graded semester, the student will be placed on warning status.
Students who are placed on warning status may continue to receive financial aid for one semester, after which the student must meet all three SAP requirements. Students who complete a semester on warning must have their academic progress reviewed before their financial aid eligibility for the following semester is determined. Due to the short time period between semesters, there will be at least a three-week delay in the notification of eligibility. If eligible, any disbursements of student aid will also be delayed.
If a student does not meet all cumulative academic requirements outlined in requirement 1 and 2 at the end of the warning semester, the student will be placed on financial aid disqualification. Generally, a student who is disqualified from financial aid may reestablish financial aid eligibility by meeting all cumulative SAP criteria outlined in Section I.
Students placed on disqualification status are not eligible to receive financial aid except for a CCPG fee waiver, if eligible (see section California College Promise Grant for eligibility requirements). Students who complete a semester on disqualification must have their academic progress reviewed before their financial aid eligibility is determined for the following semester. Due to the short time period between semesters, there will be at least a three-week delay in the notification of eligibility. If eligible, any disbursements of student aid will be delayed.
Under certain conditions, students placed on disqualification may file an appeal for consideration of reinstatement of financial aid eligibility. The following are examples of reasons students may file an appeal:
The following are not considered extenuating circumstances beyond student control:
To file an appeal, the student must obtain an appeal form from the Financial Aid office and submit it with an academic plan, supporting documentation, and a typed statement to their campus's Financial Aid Office. The typed statement must indicate the circumstance(s) that prevented the student from making SAP and what has changed to allow the student to make SAP at the next evaluation. Supporting documentation must be submitted for any semesters where there was a lack of progress.
The Financial Aid Office reserves the right to limit the number of academic appeals a student may file to one appeal per semester. Non-disclosure of information such as other colleges attended is a basis for denial. Once denied, students may not be allowed to submit another appeal until the next semester. All decisions made by the Appeal Committee are final and there is no higher appeal process.
Students on an approved appeal are on financial aid Probation. While on Probation, students must meet all the following requirements each semester to maintain financial aid eligibility:
Students who complete a semester on Probation must have their academic progress reviewed before their financial aid eligibility for the following semester is determined. Due to the short time period between semesters, there will be at least a three-week delay in the notification of eligibility. If eligible, any disbursements of student aid will also be delayed. If the student meets all Probation requirements during the Probation semester, the Probation status will continue for the following semester, unless the student reaches MTF and is therefore disqualified. If the student meets all cumulative SAP requirements, they will be placed back on Satisfactory SAP standing.
