Federal regulations require institutions to establish minimum standards of satisfactory academic progress for students receiving federal, state, and/or institutional financial aid.  All course work is considered in the evaluation of students' academic progress, whether or not the student received financial aid at the time the work was completed.

Financial aid at Monmouth University is awarded to students for the entire academic year or summer session. Academic progress for all aid recipients is reviewed at the conclusion of the spring semester. If a student has not met all of the requisite standards, the student will be ineligible to receive federal, state, and/or institutional funds in future terms. Students who are deemed ineligible will be offered the opportunity to submit an appeal for reinstatement of their financial aid; refer to the Appeals section below for the appeals procedure.

The standards for determining satisfactory academic progress for federal or state funding at Monmouth University are measured along three dimensions: cumulative grade point average, pace, and maximum time frame.

To remain in good standing, a student must meet each of the three requirements:

• Cumulative Grade Point Average: Consistent with the general academic requirements of the University, graduate students must maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.00 to remain eligible for institutional and/or federal funding.
• Pace: All students must successfully complete at least 67% of the credit hours for which they enroll. Note that repeated courses and course work assigned grades of “W,” “WF,” "F," or “I” will not be counted as credits completed toward graduation but will be counted as attempted credits.  “I”ncomplete grades that are later converted to a letter grade are factored into the next regular evaluation of academic progress.  Credits transferred from another institution will count as both attempted and completed credits. Course work graded on a Pass / Fail basis and that counts toward degree requirements will count as attempted credits and courses in which the student receives a grade of “P” will count as completed credits. 
• Maximum Time Frame: The maximum number of credits a graduate student may attempt and receive funding for is 150% of the published number of credits required to complete the degree, certificate, or endorsement program in which they are enrolled. Course work attempted on a Pass/Fail basis and credits transferred from other institutions will be counted toward the maximum.  Students who add majors and/or change majors or degree programs are still subject to the same maximum time frame requirements.  Although students may attempt more credits than the 150% limit, federal will not be awarded for credits attempted in excess of the limit.

To maintain satisfactory academic progress for University funding, graduate students must achieve a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0 for all graduate course work.

Appeals Process

Students who fail to meet one or more of the standards (cumulative grade point average, pace, or maximum time frame) noted above are ineligible for financial aid.  Students will be notified in writing that they are ineligible and offered the opportunity to appeal.  All appeals must be submitted using the "Satisfactory Academic Progress" etrieve form and must be received by the stated deadline.  Students who do not appeal will remain ineligible for federal and state financial aid.  Students should note that the appeals process for Financial Aid Satisfactory Academic Progress is separate from the University’s Academic Standards Review process for academic reinstatement to the University.  

Circumstances that might merit an appeal include, but are not limited to: serious illness or injury to the student or a member of the student’s immediate family, a death in the immediate family, or other special circumstances outside the student’s control. Supporting documentation of the circumstances forming the basis for the student’s appeal must be submitted with the appeal. Students who have been deemed ineligible in a prior semester, but who have since improved their performance to the required level are also encouraged to submit an appeal for the reinstatement of their aid; a student’s aid will not be automatically re-instated.

The Associate Director of Financial Aid will review the appeal, and may elect to either grant the student a one semester probationary period and require the student to agree to an academic plan or uphold the determination of ineligibility (e.g., cancel the student’s financial aid; University grants and scholarships may be reduced.

A probationary period may not last more than one semester and if, at the conclusion of the probationary semester, the student has not met the standards for academic progress their award(s) will be removed.  If the student is offered an academic plan, the student must return a signed copy of it to the Financial Aid Office; funding will not be restored to the student’s account until the plan has been received.  The student’s academic progress will be reviewed at the conclusion of each semester that the plan is in force.

Throughout the duration of their enrollment, students may submit a maximum of two appeals based upon the same circumstance.  Additional appeals must include a description of what circumstances have changed that would enable the student to meet the requirements for satisfactory academic progress and the allowability of such appeals will be determined on a case by case basis by the Associate Director of Financial Aid.

Students who submit an appeal will receive written notification of outcome of the appeal. Documentation of the student’s ineligibility and any subsequent appeals is maintained within the student’s financial aid record. Students who leave the University and subsequently re-enroll will be evaluated based upon their status at the point they left.