Maintain Aid | Financial Aid and Scholarships

SATISFACTORY ACADEMIC PROGRESS

Discover how to maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP), as this is one of the determining factors of student eligibility for continued receipt of federal financial aid.

Policy Basics Overview

Satisfactory Academic Progress, or SAP, is a federal regulation requiring the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships to monitor the progress of each student who is receiving financial aid as they move toward completing their degree. Students who fall behind in their coursework, fail to achieve minimum standards for grade point average, or fail to complete classes in a maximum time frame may lose eligibility for all types of federal, university, and state aid administered by our office.

Auburn University’s Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships reviews academic records at the end of each term to determine satisfactory academic progress (“SAP”) status which affects aid eligibility. Emails are sent to students who are not meeting requirements.

The required components include:

GPA- Students must maintain a 2.00 AU cumulative GPA (unadjusted)
Completion Ratio (CR) - Students must achieve a passing rate of at least 67% of all hours attempted.
Maximum Time Limit (MTL)

SAP is evaluated at the end of each term for all students. Students who fall below the SAP requirements will be placed on SAP Warning status. Students on SAP Warning status are eligible for aid.

Maximum Attempted Hours

180 semester hours of academic work
Architecture - 258 semester hours of academic work.

Master’s - 50 semester hours of academic work.
Doctoral (PHD, EDD) - 156 hours of academic work (Including Master’s hours).

Veterinary Medicine - 258 semester hours of academic work.
Pharmacy- 235 semester hours of academic work.

SAP PROBATION

Students who are on Failing SAP status may submit an appeal if they have extenuating circumstances that contributed to not meeting SAP requirements. Please note that GAP (Grade Adjustment Policy) courses cannot be taken into account when determining SAP status.

For detailed information on SAP Requirements, SAP Evaluation, SAP Probation, Reinstatement of Financial Aid Eligibility, and SAP Appeal Guidelines visit Auburn University’s complete Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Policy.

COURSE PROGRAM OF STUDY

Learn how your course selections affect your eligibility for federal financial aid.

Federal regulations require that financial aid funds be used only for courses that apply directly to your degree program. These are considered eligible courses for financial aid purposes.

Courses that do not apply to your program of study are considered ineligible and will not count toward the minimum credit hour requirements for federal aid. Enrolling in ineligible courses may result in receiving reduced or no federal aid.

Register only for courses that fulfill requirements for your declared major, minor, or other approved academic program.
Review your degree audit regularly to ensure your courses align with your program of study.
Contact your academic advisor if you're unsure whether a course qualifies.

SCHOLARSHIP TERMS, USE, AND RENEWAL

Must enroll in 12+ credit hours by the 15th class day
Graduating students with 6+ credit hours may qualify with enrollment in UNIV 4AA0 (Achieve the Creed)
Scholarships split evenly between fall and spring semesters and disbursed a maximum of 10 days before the semester begins
Can be used for Auburn faculty-led study abroad or exchange program (must earn 12+ Auburn credit hours)

Applies only to your first undergraduate degree
May be used for professional or ABM programs if you have not yet graduated
Online programs are not eligible
Total of institutional scholarships awarded may not exceed the annual estimated cost of attendance

Non-resident awards adjust if residency classification changes
Institutional scholarships cannot exceed Auburn’s estimated cost of attendance
Funds used in summer count toward the 8-semester maximum
When attending summer, email University Scholarships you are registered for at least 12 Auburn credit hours and would like to use a semester of eligibility toward a summer semester

Renewal

Must maintain a minimum cumulative, unadjusted 3.0 Auburn GPA (2.99 does not round up)
Must be registered for 12 Auburn credit hours through the 15th class day for your scholarship to pay out and remain paid to your ebill
Must earn at least 24 Auburn credit hours from fall through spring
Standards of acceptable behavior for students and student organizations are reflected in the Code of Student Conduct and other university policies. Suspension from the university for academic or non-academic conduct violations may result in scholarship termination.
Note: we audit for renewal after spring grades post and will email students about the status of their scholarship via Advise Assist

*Attention Co-op students with a four-year competitive merit scholarship

The tables below show typical co-op schedules and the criteria that will be reviewed to determine your eligibility for scholarship renewal for the following academic year.

Students who co-op spring term must earn a total of 24 Auburn hours between fall and summer of the current academic year and maintain a 3.0 cumulative, unadjusted Auburn GPA.
Term	Schedule	Renewal
Fall	AU	Must earn a total of 24 Auburn hours between fall and summer and
Spring	Co-op	maintain a 3.0 cumulative, unadjusted Auburn GPA.
Summer	AU*

*If you co-op two semesters in a row, please contact our office to complete a Request for Non-Payment form.

Students who co-op fall and summer of an academic year must earn a total of 12 Auburn hours during spring semester and maintain a 3.0 cumulative, unadjusted Auburn GPA.
Term	Schedule	Renewal
Fall	Co-op	Must earn a total of 12 Auburn hours during spring semester and
Spring	AU	maintain a 3.0 cumulative, unadjusted Auburn GPA.
Summer	Co-op