Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Appeal

Your financial aid offer is contingent on you maintaining Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) as a student. Learn more about our SAP policy. If you are not meeting SAP at the end of the spring semester, your financial aid will be suspended until you meet the SAP requirements.

You can appeal this suspension if you experienced an extenuating circumstance that impacted your academic progress. This means that you experienced something that was out of your control and was not common to the entire student population. For example, having a busy part-time job would not qualify for an SAP appeal.

Examples of these extenuating circumstances include:

The death of an immediate family member or close relative (i.e. mother, father, grandparent, sibling, or immediate family such as a related aunt or uncle)
A serious injury or illness (physical or mental) that required medical intervention
Significant, unanticipated family obligations due to medical issue or illness
A catastrophic loss due to fire, flood, or natural disaster that affects the student’s academic attendance or performance
An involuntary call to active military duty
An unsafe or abusive environment
Any undue hardship that prohibits the successful completion of coursework

Appealing a financial aid suspension is not the same as appealing an academic suspension. Even if an academic suspension is lifted, it does not automatically remove the financial aid suspension.

If you do not appeal your SAP status:
You may choose not to appeal your SAP status. In this case, your financial aid will be suspended. It will be reinstated once you are meeting SAP requirements.

How to file a SAP Appeal

If you are not meeting SAP, you will receive an email and/or paper notice at the end of the spring semester informing you that your financial aid will be suspended.
You will also receive an email notification to log in to an online platform where you can move forward with an SAP appeal. You may be asked to upload required documents (see below) to support any extenuating circumstances that have impacted your academic progress. The sooner we receive your documents, the sooner we can move forward in the process.
The appeals committee will review your appeal and make the decision as to whether it is approved or denied. Please allow 4 to 6 weeks for a response. Incomplete appeals will delay the review process.
If your request is approved, you will be notified via email and your financial aid offer should appear in myUSF within two weeks. You may need to accept your offer again in myUSF in order for it to apply to your student account.
If your request is denied, you will be notified via email with a specific reason as to why your request was denied. Please read the email carefully. If you have any questions or concerns, please call us. You can appeal again the following semester if you can demonstrate that you are meeting SAP.

How To Re-Establish Eligibility

If you are not meeting Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) and decide to not submit an SAP appeal, you may re-establish financial aid eligibility should you meet SAP requirements on your own. Should you meet SAP requirements prior to the next evaluation period, you may submit a "Regain Eligibility Form Appeal" for our office to review. The form must be submitted online to financialaid@usfca.edu. If approved, you will be notified and your SAP status will be updated to satisfactory. Your financial aid will be reinstated for the subsequent term following your approval.

For example, you failed to meet SAP standards in Spring 2023, did not submit an appeal and take courses over Summer 2023 (without aid). If you meet SAP standards after completion of the Summer 2023 term, you may submit the "Regain Eligibility form" to be eligible for aid beginning with Fall 2023.

Circumstances for which appeals will not be accepted:

Lack of knowledge/understanding of the SAP Policy at USF
Medical appeals for illness/injury/hospitalization that do not coincide with the semester(s) of sub-standard academic progress
Work/scheduling conflicts (including voluntary overtime)
Acclimation issues in regard to being in a university setting
If you’ve previously submitted an SAP appeal with the same extenuating circumstance(s) and you are still not meeting SAP requirements

Examples of supporting documentation:

Obituary/Death certificate
Documentation from your (or your family member’s) medical provider
Documentation from your (or your family member’s) insurance provider
Military orders
Police report
Statement from a third party (preferably in a professional capacity e.g. lawyer, employer, health professional, government entity)

SAP Appeal Outcomes

If your SAP appeal is denied, you have two options.

Option 1: You may resubmit your appeal with an extenuating circumstance and new supporting documentation. The appeal will then be reviewed according to standard procedure.
Option 2: You may re-establish your SAP status without the use of financial aid (Federal, State, and Institutional). You may utilize a Private Educational Loan or sign up for the Semester Payment Plan. Should you meet SAP on your own prior to the next evaluation period, you may submit the Regain Eligibility SAP Appeal.

If your SAP Appeal is approved, you may receive aid during the duration of your SAP Academic Plan as long as forward progress is being met. The Office of Financial Aid will review your progress after each term.

Scenario 1: Students whose SAP appeal is approved, may receive aid for one term, following your successful SAP approval. Students are expected to meet SAP standards on their own following the end of the term. Should you meet SAP after the end of the period, your financial aid eligibility will be re-established to Satisfactory and you are eligible to receive aid for the following term. If you fail to meet SAP standards at the end of the term, your SAP status will be updated to Unsatisfactory and you may re-appeal with a new and extenuating circumstance.
Scenario 2: For a student whose SAP appeal is approved, but will not be able to meet SAP standards after one term, you will be placed on a SAP Academic Plan. If you are placed on an academic plan, you must follow the approved plan submitted and make forward progress after each term. The Office of Financial Aid will review your enrollment and final grades to ensure forward progress is being met. If you are meeting the stipulations outlined in your approval and plan, you will remain eligible for financial aid. You must notify the Office of Financial Aid of any enrollment changes to ensure that you are remaining on track for SAP purposes.

SAP Appeal Deadlines

An appeal must be filed by the appropriate deadline in order to be considered for a particular semester. We cannot award financial aid for previous terms if we did not receive the appeal by the term deadline.

Deadlines:
Fall term: November 10
Spring term: April 10
Summer term: July 15

You will be notified at the end of each spring semester if you are not meeting SAP requirements, and you will be ineligible for your financial aid for the summer term and the following fall and spring terms.

Fall Appeal Example:
Spring 2023: You are notified that you are not meeting SAP requirements. You are ineligible for financial aid for the fall 2023 and spring 2024 terms.
Fall 2023: If you appeal before the November 10 deadline and your appeal is approved, your financial aid will be reinstated for the fall 2023 semester.
Spring 2024: You may retain your financial aid for the spring 2024 term as long as you continue to meet the requirements of your academic plan.

Spring Appeal Example:
Spring 2023: You are notified that you are not meeting SAP requirements. You are ineligible for financial aid for the fall 2023 and spring 2024 terms.
Fall 2023: You do not complete/submit an appeal by the November 10 deadline. You will remain ineligible for financial aid.
Spring 2024: If you appeal before April 10 and your appeal is approved, your financial aid will be reinstated for the spring 2024 semester only.