Financial aid applicants have the right to:

• Be informed about financial aid application procedures, cost of attendance, aid availability, and renewal requirements.
• Confidential protection of your financial aid records. The contents of your file are maintained in accordance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).
• Appeal decisions made by the Financial Aid Office staff. Appeals should be submitted to the appropriate offices.

You have the responsibility to:

• Complete applications accurately and on time.
• Read and understand all materials sent to you from the Financial Aid Office and other agencies.
• Keep copies of all forms and materials submitted.
• Know and comply with the rules governing your aid programs.
• Comply with the provisions of any promissory note and all other agreements you sign.
• Inform the Financial Aid Office of any outside resources you have or will be receiving.
• Register for the number of credits required and maintain satisfactory academic progress.
• Request personal assistance if you have questions or don’t understand the information provided to you.
• Use the financial aid award for school expenses, tuition and fees, room and board, books and supplies, and transportation.

Policies

• Satisfactory Academic Progress
• Official or Unofficial Withdrawal
• Course Program of Study

Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Policy

Download SAP Policy.

Federal financial aid recipients must be making academic progress towards their degree in order to maintain financial aid eligibility.

1. Log onto your eBanner Student Dashboard.
2. At the top of the Financial Aid Page, select the aid year and campus..
3. Click on the Satisfactory Academic Progress header to see your current information.

Minimum Standards for Academic Progress

Qualitative Measure (GPA)

Students must maintain a minimum cumulative Financial Aid grade point average (GPA) of at least 2.0. For financial aid purposes, GPA is calculated by dividing the total points earned by the total credits attempted.

• Grades will be calculated into the student’s GPA as follows: A: 4 points, B: 3 points, C: 2 points, D: 1 point, F: 0 points, and N: 0 points.
• Credit/No Credit (CR/NC),Withdrawal (W), Incomplete (I), Record Delayed (RD), Audit (L), and Credit by Exam (CE) grades do not affect the student’s GPA.
• The highest grade from the first three attempts of the same course is included in the student’s GPA. Grades for the fourth attempt and beyond are all included.
• Grades excluded from the student’s institutional GPA via academic amnesty policies are not excluded from the student’s financial aid GPA, which may cause the student’s financial aid GPA to be different from the student’s academic GPA.

Quantitative Measure (Completion Rate and Maximum Time Frame)

Completion Rate

Students must successfully pass/complete at least 67% of all credits attempted (calculations will be rounded down to the nearest percent).

• The following grades will be considered as credits attempted but not earned: Failing (F), No Credit (NC), No Grade (N), Withdrawal (W), Incomplete (I), Record Delayed (RD). (Incomplete grades that revert to a letter grade are factored in at the next SAP evaluation.)
• Audited classes are not eligible for financial aid and will not be counted towards credits attempted or completed. Credit by exam (CE) grades will be counted as both attempted and completed.
• Portfolio-Based Assessment (PBA) credits will be counted as both attempted and completed.
• Transfer credits will be counted as both attempted and completed.
• Repeated courses will count as attempted, but only one attempt, if passed, will count as completed.
• Credits taken at another UH campus (consortium credits) that are completed will count as both attempted and completed. Consortium credits that are approved for aid but not completed will be counted as attempted but not completed.
• Administrative Withdrawal credits may be counted as attempted and completed, or attempted but not completed, per institutional policy. Credits excluded via academic amnesty policies are not excluded from the student’s completion rate.

Financial Aid Time Frame

Students must earn their degree or certificate within 150% of the credits required for completion. All attempted credits counted in the completion rate are counted in the student’s financial aid time frame. Students who are unable to complete their degree or certificate within their remaining time frame do not meet the financial aid time frame requirement.

• Up to 30 remedial English and Math credits are not counted against the student’s financial aid time frame.
• English as a Second Language (ESL) credits are not counted against the student’s financial aid time frame.
• All transfer credits count against the student’s financial aid time frame.
• Credits that do not satisfy degree or certificate requirements count against the student’s financial aid time frame.
• Students may choose to change their program or major, or pursue another certificate or degree after completing one prior, however all credits previously attempted at the college, as well as accepted transfer credits, will be counted against their financial aid time frame.

Failure to Meet Minimum Standards for Academic Progress

Financial Aid Suspension

Students who do not meet the Satisfactory Academic Progress requirements are not eligible to receive financial aid.

Reinstatement of Financial Aid Eligibility

Students who are not meeting GPA or completion rate requirements may improve their GPA and completion rate by taking and earning credits until both standards are met. Students who are unable to graduate within their financial aid time frame are not able to regain financial aid eligibility on their own - an approved appeal is required.

Appealing Financial Aid Suspension

Appeal Process

A student who is not meeting Satisfactory Academic Progress requirements may appeal for eligibility if extenuating circumstances prevented them from meeting the minimum standards. Such situations must generally be beyond the student’s control and non-recurring in nature. Examples of situations that may cause a student to fail to meet SAP standards include:

• Family difficulties, such as divorce or illness;
• Interpersonal problems with friends, roommates, significant others;
• Difficulty balancing work, family responsibilities, and school;
• Financial difficulties.

The appeal must explain why the student failed to meet Satisfactory Academic Progress standards and what has changed that will allow the student to demonstrate progress at the next evaluation. Students must complete and submit a Satisfactory Academic Progress Appeal Form to the Financial Aid Office. Students will be notified of an appeal decision via their UH email.

A student’s appeal will not be considered if they are unable to meet the minimum cumulative academic standards (2.00 cumulative GPA and 67% cumulative completion rate) by graduation or end of their financial aid timeframe, whichever is earlier.

Financial Aid Probation

If an appeal is approved, the student is placed on Financial Aid Probation and given an academic plan that includes requirements they must meet each term. Compliance with academic plan requirements is reviewed each term until the student meets all Satisfactory Academic Progress standards or completes their program. Students who do not meet their academic plan requirements will revert to Financial Aid Suspension and lose financial aid eligibility. Subsequent appeals may be allowed depending on campus policy. Students are notified of their appeal status, probation requirements, and/or suspension status via their UH email.

Contact your home campus to review their Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy.

Official and Unofficial Withdrawal

When a student who is receiving financial aid from a campus partially withdraws, completely withdraws or stops attending classes, a revision is made to their financial aid award. It is the student’s responsibility to follow the official withdrawal process and to notify the Financial Aid Office of any changes made to their enrollment status. View the campuses catalog for the official withdrawal process.

Official Withdrawals

• Withdrawing from all classes during a term may result in a change in institutional charges and will change the financial aid awards for that term. Recent changes to Federal financial aid regulations have created a new Return of Title IV Funds Policy.
• Upon withdrawing, the Financial Aid Office will do a calculation to determine how much aid a student “earned”. This is based on a pro-rated schedule of enrollment up through the 60% point in an enrollment period that shows how much aid the student and school will need to return to the Federal aid programs. Basically, it is any “unearned” aid that must be returned to the Federal aid programs; which Federal aid programs funds will need to be returned; and does the student have a post-withdrawal disbursement due to them, if so, how it will affect the student and their future eligibility.
• Students who are considering withdrawing from classes should contact the Financial Aid Office to discuss the impacts it will have on their current financial aid and future financial aid eligibility.

Unofficial Withdrawals

• Students who cease attending all classes during a term may also be subject to the Return of Title IV Funds Policy. In all cases, official withdrawal procedures should be followed. This is based on a pro-rated schedule of enrollment up through the 60% point in an enrollment period. The calculation will show any "unearned" aid that the student and school will need to return to the federal aid programs.
• Also, students who fail all classes during a term will be reviewed to determine if the failure was due to not attending the class. Students who have stopped attending classes before the end of the term will be treated as an unofficial withdrawal.

Review your home campus Return of Title IV Funds Policy

Course Program of Study

What is Course Program of Study (CPOS)?

Course Program of Study is a process that helps our school stay in compliance with Title IV (federal) guidelines regarding financial aid. Guidelines state that financial aid can only be awarded for courses that are required for the degree or certificate you are enrolled in.

These guidelines make it very important to take courses that apply towards your degree. Doing so will help you ensure your courses may be eligible for financial aid and will also help you finish your degree faster!

• How do I know what degree or certificate I am enrolled in?  You can see your degree plan in your STAR account. Your major will be listed at the top of your GPS Registration page.
  
• How do I know what courses count for this degree / certificate?  Your STAR account will be a helpful tool in displaying the required courses for your degree or certificate. They are listed in your STAR Graduation Pathway. You can also click on a requirement for more details regarding what courses count for that requirement.
  
• What if I need to change my degree or certificate?  To change your degree or certificate, contact your home campus Admissions and Records Office. If you find that your degree or certificate is incorrect, it is very important that you make this change as soon as possible.

How do I know if my classes "count" for financial aid?

When you register, be sure to check your STAR GPS Registration. Any course listed as NOT IN PLAN or Non-Applicable will not count for financial aid. Here are how the courses will appear in your STAR:

If any of your courses are noted as NOT IN PLAN or Non-Applicable, don’t worry! We encourage you to email or make an appointment with your academic advisor as soon as possible to determine the best course of action.

Why would a class not count for financial aid?

Generally, a course will display as NOT IN PLAN because it does not count for a requirement for the degree. This could be because the course is not part of the degree plan or because you took a course(s) that already fulfills that requirement.

A course will display as Non-Applicable when it is a repeat; however, some repeats can count and will be adjusted accordingly. See the next section for details on repeats that can count for financial aid.

Can I repeat courses and still have them count for financial aid?

Per Federal regulations, you may repeat an applicable course once for financial aid if you previously earned a passing grade (‘D’ or better).

Example 1:
Kimo took MATH 100 (3) times but only eligible for financial aid for the first two attempts:

• 1st Attempt, received a ‘D’ grade and course is eligible for financial aid
• 2nd Attempt, received a ‘F’ grade and course is eligible for financial aid
• 3rd Attempt – not eligible for financial aid because Kimo passed with a ‘D’ grade in his first attempt and tried to better his grade in the 2nd attempt but did not pass

Example 2:
Nani took MATH 100 (3) times and eligible for aid for all (3) attempts:

• 1st Attempt, received a ‘F’ grade and course is eligible for financial aid
• 2nd Attempt, received a ‘D’ grade and course is eligible for financial aid
• 3rd Attempt – eligible for financial aid because Nani did not complete the 1st attempt with a passing grade and has one more attempt to better her grade. After this attempt, the course will not be eligible for financial aid.

Example 3:
Kekoa took MATH 100 (4) times and eligible for aid for all (4) attempts:

• 1st Attempt, received a ‘W’ grade and course is eligible for financial aid
• 2nd Attempt, received a ‘F’ grade and course is eligible for financial aid
• 3rd Attempt, received a ‘D’ grade and course is eligible for financial aid
• 4th Attempt – eligible for financial aid because Kekoa did not complete the first (2) attempts with a passing grade and has one more attempt to better his grade. After this attempt, the course is not eligible for financial aid.

What about courses that can be repeated for credit?

Courses which can be repeated for credit - meaning they can count more than once even with passing the course more than two times - can be counted for financial aid. Be sure to check with your counselor if a repeatable course will be counted towards a requirement in your degree.

What if I am taking courses at another University of Hawai’i campus?

If you are enrolled in Distance Education courses and/or concurrently enrolled at other University of Hawaii Campuses, under certain conditions you may be able to receive aid for those courses. All courses will be reviewed for Financial Aid eligibility.

For more information, contact your home campus.