Financial Aid Suspension

Students who fail to earn the minimum requirements during the warning semester will be considered as not making SAP and all financial assistance will be terminated or suspended until the student regains minimum satisfactory academic progress standards. Students may re-establish eligibility for upcoming periods by achieving the satisfactory progress standards. After a student has re-established eligibility, he/she may be considered for aid for upcoming periods but not for periods during which the standard had not been met.

Appeals

A student who is denied aid because of a failure to meet satisfactory progress standards after the warning semester may appeal this determination by completing a Financial Aid SAP Appeal by published deadlines. An appeal must be based on significant mitigating circumstances, circumstances that seriously affected academic performance. Examples of possible mitigating circumstances are serious illness, severe injury, death of a family member, and other similar situations. The appeal must include an explanation of why the student failed to meet SAP standards, and what has changed that will now allow the student to regain satisfactory SAP status. Appeals can only be approved if it appears that the student can regain satisfactory SAP status after the end of the following semester of enrollment, or if the student can regain satisfactory SAP status by following an academic plan that will lead to timely completion of the degree program. Students with approved appeals are placed in probationary status for one semester or placed in an academic plan lasting more than one semester. Students placed in an academic plan must meet all requirements of the academic plan in order to continue receiving financial aid. Probationary or academic plan status ends when the student regains SAP status or does not meet the requirements of the academic plan. Students whose appeals are denied remain in financial aid suspension until satisfactory progress standards are regained.

The Appeals Committee of the Financial Aid Office will review the appeal within ten business days of receiving a completed appeal and required documentation. Decisions are made after a careful evaluation of the student’s unique circumstances, Federal Title IV regulations, and UTRGV guidelines. The student will be notified of the committee’s decision via e-mail and the student portal. During this time, the student is responsible for any tuition and fees (including late fees) that are charged to their account. Students that are placed on Academic Plan will receive an e-mail indicating the conditions of this plan. Students can also view the conditions of the Academic Plan via the student portal.

The Appeals Committee is composed of professional staff from the financial aid office that function in a student advisory or administrative capacity and are knowledgeable of federal, state, and institutional financial aid regulations and policies and may include staff from other departments when deemed that their expertise may be necessary for a decision. Appeal decisions are final.

Note: Students from UTB-TSC who transferred during Fall 2015 thru Summer 2017 had their UTB-TSC SAP status migrated into UTRGV as their initial SAP status. Coursework transferred from the University of Texas at Brownsville/Texas Southmost College for students enrolled at UTRGV prior to Fall 2017 will be included in the calculation of the total GPA. All other Transfer students are considered new students unless their transfer-attempted hours exceed Max Time Frame.

Treatment of Title IV Aid When a Student Withdraws

When federal Title IV grant or loan assistance is disbursed and the recipient does not complete the enrollment period, the law requires that UTRGV calculate the amount that must be returned by the school and/or student to Title IV program accounts.

The date the student initiates the withdrawal is used for calculating the percentage used in the formula for Return of Title IV Funds. The number of days from the first class day to the withdrawal date divided by the number of days in the payment period (semester) equals the percentage of Title IV Funds earned. If the withdrawal date is after the 60 percent point of the semester, the student has earned 100 percent of the Title IV funds.

If a student fails to earn a passing grade in at least one class, UTRGV is required to calculate the amount for Return of Title IV Funds based on the last day of enrollment. The last day of attendance is provided by UTRGV faculty when entering a non-passing grade. If last day of attendance cannot be determined, UTRGV may use the midpoint of the period (in lieu of an official withdrawal date) as documentation of the student’s last date of attendance. If the student was not enrolled more than 60 percent of the semester, the student may owe a refund back to UTRG and the federal government.