Financial Aid Policy

Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Standards

Florida Tech complies with federal statutes requiring students be enrolled in a degree-seeking program and maintain satisfactory academic progress in order to continue receiving financial aid.

Upon admission to Florida Tech, the admission office review of an applicant's academic record is sufficient for the student to apply for an initial financial aid package. To remain eligible, students must continue to meet Florida Tech's SAP sandards as indicated in this policy.  Note that SAP is a financial aid assessment and distinct from the Registrar's academic standing.

Florida Tech applies the same policies and the same undergraduate or graduate standards to students in all academic programs.  The assessment period for students participating in 8-week terms is different than for students in semesters.  This difference enables 8-week term students to complete a comparable number of credit hours before being assessed with the risk of being declared ineligible for financial aid.  To accomplish this level of comparability:

  • Eight-week term students are assessed annually and may be declared ineligible for financial aid immediately with no warning period. 
    • The assessment period is based on the student’s initial entry term and is not increased for terms a student does not attend.
    • Students who withdraw from the university without official notice are assessed at the end of the withdrawal term.
    • Two exceptions to the annual assessment based on entry term involve the cohort of students enrolled during the transition term, Summer 2011 (8-week Term 1).
      • Students placed in eligible status at the end of Summer Term 1 will be reviewed annually based on the Spring 2 terms (201282, 201382, etc.).
      • Students placed in warning status at the end of Summer Term 1 were re-assessed at the end of the next payment period, Summer Term 2.
  • Semester based students are assessed after each semester (payment period) and may continue to receive financial aid for one additional semester in warning status.
  • Once declared ineligible, all students may appeal their status based on mitigating circumstances.  If the appeal is approved, the student may continue to receive financial aid in probationary status provided they have accepted the individual academic plan prepared for them and they continue to meet its requirements when they are assessed at the end of each successive payment period (term or semester).    

Three measures of academic progress:

1. Grade Point Average (GPA) - Undergraduate students must maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.0 at Florida Tech to achieve satisfactory academic progress.  Graduate students are expected to maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0.

2. Pace of Progress (credit hours completed) - Undergraduates must successfully complete 75% of attempted course work.  For graduate students an 80% completion rate is required.  Grades of F, I, AU or W are attempted courses, but are not counted as completed.

3. Maximum Timeframe to Earn Degree (credit hour limit) – Eligibility for financial aid includes an expectation that students focus on courses required to earn a degree.  At the same time, this standard allows more credits than the minimum credits required to earn any specific Florida Tech degree.  The allowance acknowledges that students may transfer credits from another college that will not count towards their Florida Tech degree or that a student may change majors before graduation.  Some degree programs also have prerequisite requirements that do not count as degree coursework.  Florida Tech’s maximum credit standards follow:

  • Undergraduate students are expected to complete a degree program within 180 credit hours attempted, including transfer credits earned at other institutions.  In general, full-time undergraduates should complete 24 credit hours each academic year and part-time undergraduate students should complete at least 12 hours.
  • Masters Degree students are expected to complete within 80 credit hours attempted.
  • Doctoral students are allowed 120 credit hours attempted except for the clinical psychology program where 160 credit hours attempted is the standard.

The Appeal Procedure:

The Academic Progress Appeal form can be downloaded from the Financial Aid website (http://www.fit.edu/financialaid/, click on the clipboard Forms icon).  You may complete the appeal online, then print it and sign and date it.  Include necessary supporting documents before submitting it to the Financial Aid Office.  Examples of mitigating circumstances include:

  • Sudden severe illness
  • Serious automobile accident
  • Family tragedy
  • Loss of a loved one

The above are examples and not all-inclusive.  Any mitigating circumstance must be explained in detail with dates.  Supporting documentation should be attached to the appeal.  If the student is over the credit limit, a degree audit should also be attached.

The appeal will be reviewed and the student will be notified of the decision via the student’s Florida Tech e-mail account.  An approved appeal will be accompanied by an individual academic plan which the student must accept before being placed on probationary status.  Students who decline to accept their academic plan and are in good academic standing with the university may continue without financial aid.  They will continue to be assessed at each assessment period and will again be placed in eligible status if they meet the SAP standards.

Students are removed from probationary status when the minimum SAP requirements are met:

  • Undergraduate students:  2.0 cumulative GPA and a 75% completion rate.
  • Graduate students:  3.0 cumulative GPA and 80% completion rate. 
  • While a student is on Probation, academic progress will be assessed at the end of each successive payment period (term or semester).