Maintaining Satisfactory Academic Progress: 1Y MBA & 2Y MBA/MMM Programs
Criteria for Satisfactory Academic Progress
1Y MBA & 2Y MBA/MMM Programs
Federal regulations require all recipients of federal financial aid (For Graduate MBA students at Kellogg, this includes Federal Direct Stafford Loans and Direct Graduate PLUS Loans) to maintain satisfactory academic progress in their program of study. It is also the University’s expectation that students will make progress towards completion of their degree in which they are enrolled. These requirements apply to students for all quarters of enrollment within the academic year, including all quarters enrolled even if no financial aid was granted for that quarter of enrollment.
Full-time Kellogg Students enrolled in the 2Y MBA/MMM, MBAi programs and the 1Y MBA program must demonstrate satisfactory academic progress in the following three ways:
- By maintaining a cumulative Grade Point Average (GPA) of 2.0 or higher on a 4.0 scale.
- By completing two-thirds of all units attempted per academic quarter for the 1Y MBA program and per academic year for the 2Y MBA/MMM and MBAi programs.
- By completing their program of study within a specific time period.
Maintaining a cumulative Grade Point Average (GPA) of 2.0 or higher on a 4.0 scale
The Satisfactory Academic Progress regulations require that you maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.0 or higher to remain eligible for financial aid.
Completing two-thirds of all credits attempted
In order to meet the minimum standard of academic progress each academic quarter for the 1Y MBA program and each academic year for the 2Y MBA/MMM program, students must complete at least two-thirds of the units attempted.
Since Kellogg will allow students to drop courses up to the fourth week for 10 week courses and the second week for 5 week courses, these classes dropped will not be included in the two-thirds of units attempted. However, grades of F (failing), X (excused absence for exam), Y (incomplete) do not satisfy the requirements of the two-thirds completion rate. In addition, courses dropped after the add/drop deadline will be counted towards credits attempted.
Completing Your Program within a Specified Period of Time
Students must complete their programs within the following time frame:
2Y MBA – standard six quarters; The Kellogg Financial Aid Office may allow students to receive federal financial aid for up to two additional quarters in order to complete their program requirements.
MMM Program – standard seven quarters; The Kellogg Financial Aid Office may allow students to receive federal financial aid for up to two additional quarters in order to complete their program requirements.
1Y MBA Program – standard four quarters; The Kellogg Financial Aid Office may allow students to receive federal financial aid for one additional quarter in order to complete their program requirements.
MBAi Program – standard five quarters; The Kellogg Financial Aid Office may allow students to receive federal financial aid for one additional quarter in order to complete their program requirements.
Evaluation of Satisfactory Academic Progress
Evaluation of Satisfactory Academic Progress will be made at the end of each quarter by the Kellogg Office of Financial Aid once grades are posted for the 1Y MBA program and at the end of the academic year for 2Y MBA/MMM and MBAi programs. This evaluation is completed through a review of grades received, courses attempted, progress towards completing the program/graduate degree and GPA.
SAP Warning-1Y MBA program:
Please note that SAP warning only applies to the 1Y MBA program as SAP for this program will be reviewed after each academic quarter once the grades are posted. Since the 2Y MBA/MMM and MBAi programs are reviewed after the first academic year, if SAP is not met, the student would be put in SAP Suspension for the next quarter of enrollment.
If 1Y MBA students fail to meet the requirements for Satisfactory Academic Progress for any academic quarter, the student will be placed on SAP warning for one quarter. During the warning period, the student will still be eligible to receive federal financial aid, but the student must meet the following criteria:
- Complete at least two-thirds of all credits attempted during the following quarter with a grade C or higher. Courses dropped after the fourth week for 10 week courses and after the second week for 5 week courses will be counted towards the credits attempted. Grades of F (failing), X (excused absence for exam), Y (incomplete) do not satisfy the requirements of the two-thirds completion rate.
- Maintain and earn a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher.
- Be on track to complete their degree within their maximum allowed time frame.
Students will be notified via their Kellogg email account if they have been placed on SAP warning. Please note that if a student does not enroll in the following quarter after a SAP warning is issued, the warning period will carry over to the next quarter of enrollment.
SAP suspension
Students who do not meet the terms of the SAP warning period for the 1Y MBA program or do not meet SAP after the first academic year for the 2Y MBA/MMM and MBAi programs will be placed on SAP suspension. SAP suspension will designate that the student will not be eligible for federal financial aid. In order for a student on SAP suspension to reinstate his or her federal financial aid eligibility, the student must meet the following criteria:
- Complete 100% of the courses they enroll in for their suspension quarter with a grade of “C” or higher. Grades of F, X or Y will not be considered sufficient for meeting Satisfactory Academic Progress. Receiving these grades will disqualify you from receiving federal financial aid for the following quarter.
- Students must complete at least two classes according to the criteria above. Therefore, if a student enrolls in only one class for their first quarter of SAP suspension, the student must complete that course with a grade of C or higher and then complete 100% of all courses for which they enroll in the subsequent quarter before they can be reinstated.
- Any quarter that a student does not enroll does not count toward Satisfactory Academic Progress. Therefore, the suspension period will go into effect in the next quarter of enrollment.
- Any courses that a student is enrolled in before the add/drop period will count toward their SAP calculation. Therefore, any classes dropped after the fourth week for 10 week courses and after the second week for 5 week courses will mean a failure to complete 100% of their classes with a grade of C or higher and will result in continued suspension of federal financial aid.
- Maintain and achieve a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher.
Once a student meets all requirements for reinstatement of financial aid after a suspension, it will be the student’s responsibility to contact the Office of Financial Aid to request a SAP review for reinstatement of federal financial aid. Once the Office of Financial Aid determines that a student is now in compliance with SAP requirements, federal financial aid will be reinstated in the following quarter.
Appeals
If a student fails to meet the SAP requirements as stated above due to extenuating circumstances such as a family member’s death, illness (of the student or an immediate family member), the student may submit a written and signed appeal to the Kellogg Financial Aid Office. The signed appeal request must be received by the Office of Financial Aid within 15 days of receipt of the notice of SAP suspension.
The written appeal should explain any relevant extraordinary circumstances, address the reason(s) for failing to meet the minimum academic requirements, and offer some solution to the problems that affected prior academic performance. Supporting documentation, such as statements from academic advisers, professors, health care providers, etc., may also be requested. The appeal will be reviewed by a committee chaired by the Assistant Dean, Director of Admissions and Financial Aid. All decisions made by the committee are final. Students will be notified if their appeal is granted or denied via an email to their Kellogg email account.
If an appeal is granted, the student will be placed in one of two categories:
- SAP Probation
If a student is placed on SAP Probation after an appeal, the student will be eligible for federal financial aid during one additional payment period. During the probationary period, the student must meet all SAP requirements. If the student fails to meet SAP during his or her probationary period, his or her aid will be suspended without the ability to appeal. In order to reinstate federal financial aid eligibility after the SAP suspension, students must meet the criteria for reinstatement listed above without the use of federal financial aid.
- SAP Academic Plan
Students may be placed on an academic plan upon submission of a successful appeal. If it is mathematically impossible for a student to resolve all deficiencies during one term of attendance and the student’s reason for appeal is appropriate according to federal regulations, the student may be placed on an academic plan with the end goal being to resolve all deficiencies. An academic plan varies in length and is determined by the SAP committee. It does not have to equate to the exact number of quarters it would take a student to resolve all deficiencies. If the student is meeting the criteria identified in the SAP appeal approval at each quarter review, the student’s academic plan may be extended.
Special Considerations for First-time Financial Aid Applicants
Current students who apply for financial aid are required to meet the satisfactory academic progress requirements. Therefore, for currently enrolled students who have not received federal financial aid for their previous quarters of enrollment are considered to be First-Time Financial Aid Applicants and their previous coursework must meet the satisfactory academic progress requirements. If it does not, First-Time Financial Aid Applicants will need to complete a Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) appeal for first-time aid filers. Your appeal should include the following:
- Describe a specific reason, event, or circumstance that prevented one from meeting the satisfactory academic progress requirements.
- Provide a specific plan/corrective action to improve your academic progress.
For any questions regarding the SAP policy for the Kellogg full-time programs, please do not hesitate to contact the Kellogg Office of Financial Aid at 847.491.3308 or finaid@kellogg.northwestern.edu.