Community College of Allegheny County (CCAC)

Community College of Allegheny County

Academic Progress

New Financial Aid regulations have been established to ensure academic success to all CCAC students. The new rules for Satisfactory Academic Progress are effective on July 1, 2011. This important notice concerns the new requirements for ALL students to receive—or continue to receive—Federal financial assistance.

Please read this notice even if you do not currently receive financial aid, if in the future you have a need for financial aid, your eligibility will be dependent on the progress that you are currently making toward the completion of your degree as described below in the Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Policy.  

Financial aid includes—but is not limited to—the following:

  • Federal Grants (Pell, Supplemental Educational Opportunity(SEOG))
  • Federal Work Study
  • Federal Direct Stafford Loans
    • Subsidized
    • Unsubsidized
    • Parent Loans to Undergraduate Students (PLUS)

 This SAP Policy is effective beginning with the second summer session of 2011

Satisfactory progress toward your degree:

Federal regulations require that the Community College of Allegheny County monitor the satisfactory progress of all students regardless of if they have received financial aid in previ­ous semesters. CCAC students are required to make progress toward their degree to be eligible for Federal aid sources. Progress is measured in the three following ways:

  1. Length of time to complete your degree—Students must com­plete all degree requirements within 150% of the minimum number of credit hours required to complete their program of study.
  2. Required percentage of attempted credits completed (Now known as “Pace”)—All students must complete 67% of all CCAC credits attempted during each semester of enrollment (including the summer semester).
  3. Satisfactory academic progress for financial aid recipients is defined as follows:
    

An overall minimum Grade Point Average (GPA) must be maintained as follows:

    
                     
         0–24 credits attempted:1.50          
         25–48 credits attempted:1.75          
         49–59 credits attempted:1.90          
         60+ credits attempted:2.00          
         

“W”, “I”, “F”, “N”, and “X” grades will be calculated into the GPA as credits attempted with zero quality points earned. Courses passed with a grade of “P” will be counted into courses attempted but not into GPA.

Developmental courses will not be counted as credits attempted or calculated into the GPA.

Important: Students may be academically eligible to continue to take courses at CCAC, but ineligible for federal financial aid. Students will have the option of paying their cost of attendance with personal funds, by credit card or with alternative education loans that do not require students to be making Satisfactory Progress.

Warning, Probation, Suspension and Reinstatement

Financial Aid Warning—The student will be placed in this status for one semester if their Cumulative GPA is below the published requirement (see chart above) or if they are not completing 67% of credits attempted each semester. Financial Aid can be received while the student is on Financial Aid Warning.

Financial Aid Probation—If the student does not meet SAP guidelines during the warning period they will be placed in this status for one semester after Warning and must submit an Appeal to the FA office in order to receive Federal Aid if the appeal is approved. The student will be placed on an academic plan as part of the appeal approval. Students can receive federal and/or state financial aid while on financial aid probation, provided they file an appeal and follow the appropriate academic plan as outlined by the Director of Financial Aid.

Financial Aid Suspension—If the student does not follow the academic plan as outlined after the appeal, they will be placed on Financial Aid Suspension. This means that no further aid will be awarded until Satisfactory Academic Progress is met. The student can continue taking CCAC classes but will not be awarded any federal or state aid to pay for them.

Financial Aid Reinstatement—Process by which the Financial Aid office will allow the student to begin receiving federal financial aid, once they meet the SAP guidelines and are no longer on suspension.

Change of Program

In the case where the student changes programs, CCAC will use cumulative credits attempted and earned to determine the student’s Pace and Maximum Time Frame for eligibility of federal financial aid. 

Review CCAC’s complete SAP policy and the process to appeal the loss of aid eligibility.

Please call or visit the Financial Aid office of the campus at which you are enrolled, should you have additional questions.