| Satisfactory Progress Policy | Completion Requirements | Petition for Reinstatement |
The basic responsibility for financing an education at PLU rests with students and their families. In addition to expected contributions from parents or guardians, students are expected to assist by contributing from their savings and summer earnings. Financial assistance from the university is therefore supplementary to the efforts of a student's family. It is provided for students who demonstrate need.
The policy of the university is to allow students to continue receiving financial assistance as long as they are in good standing. To do otherwise could cause a severe hardship on students who must devote their efforts to achieving satisfactory grades. However, no institutional grants will be awarded to students with cumulative grade point averages below 2.00. Moreover, federal regulations require that after four terms or more of attempted enrollment, students below 2.00 cumulative grade point average will have their federal financial aid revoked. Pacific Lutheran University's Schools of Business and Education require a minimum grade point average of 2.50.
To be given priority for most types of financial aid, an applicant must be enrolled as a full-time student. For Federal Financial Aid programs, a full-time student is defined as any person enrolled for a minimum of 12 credit hours or more per semester. Adjustments in an award may be made during the year if an aid recipient has not enrolled for a sufficient number of credit hours. However, each financial aid recipient must maintain satisfactory academic progress in the course of study he or she is pursuing in order to continue to receive financial assistance awarded by the Pacific Lutheran University Financial Aid Office.
The following requirements are expected of each financial aid recipient:
To make satisfactory progress toward a degree, an undergraduate student must complete 24 semester hours of credit each academic year. For this purpose, an academic year is defined as the fall semester and the spring semester. Financial aid is awarded on a year-by-year basis, for an average of 34 credits per year. This will allow a student to complete a bachelor's degree in four years.
For full-time undergraduate students receiving financial aid, the maximum number of credit hours that may be attempted is 192 and the maximum time frame for completing a baccalaureate degree is six years. Even if a student changes his or her major or academic program, only 192 credit hours may be taken qualifying for financial aid, and the maximum time frame of six years for receiving a degree is enforced. Some financial aid programs (e.g., most university gift aid programs) allow aid to be awarded a maximum of four academic years for entering first-year students, and two years for entering transfer students or a maximum of 153 hours.
For part-time undergraduate students, a minimum of 12 credit hours
must be completed each academic year and a degree must be achieved
within a maximum time frame of 10 years. (The maximum number of credits
allowable is 192.)
| Undergraduate Need-Based Credit Completion Requirements | ||
| Enrollment Status | Minimum per term | Minimum per year |
| Full-time | 12 |
24 |
| 3/4 time | 9 |
18 |
| 1/2 time | 6 |
12 |
| Less than 1/2 time* | All credits attempted | All credits attempted |
| * Less than 1/2 time enrollment applies to the Pell Grant Program only. Less than 1/2 time enrollment will cause a student's loan to be canceled and may jeopardize deferment status. | ||
Satisfactory progress is reviewed for financial aid purposes after the end of spring semester. For Washington State Need Grants, the Washington State Work Study Program, Educational Opportunity Grand (EOG), Washington Scholars, Wave, TRIO, and any other State of Washington funded program, satisfactory progress is reviewed at the end of each semester.
The following grades do not indicate successful completion of academic credit applicable toward a degree: incompletes (I), withdrawals (W), and grades of E and F.
Any courses in which grades are received are, however, included in the maximum number of credits that may be attempted (192) and are considered to be within the maximum time frame allowable for achieving a degree (six years).
All credits earned by examination, which are applicable toward a degree, will be included in the limitation on credits that can be attempted while eligible for financial aid.
Once a course has been completed successfully, the credit hours earned are counted toward the maximum number of hours that can be taken under financial aid eligibility. If a course is successfully completed more than once, it is counted only once toward a student's degree requirements and toward the maximum number of hours that can be taken under financial aid eligibility.
The university's curriculum includes very few noncredit courses or courses whose credit hours are not applicable to a degree. If any such courses are taken by financial aid recipients, the hours will be included in the limitation on credits that may be attempted and will be considered within the time frame allowable for achieving a degree.
In the event that a student fails to meet the criteria for satisfactory progress during a particular semester, he or she will be placed on financial aid probation. Failure to regain satisfactory financial aid academic status will result in the cancellation of financial aid.
Once unsatisfactory financial aid progress has been determined, students receive official notification. Students who have had their aid denied due to unsatisfactory progress may apply for reinstatement by submitting a letter of petition to the Financial Aid Office.
Students whose financial aid has been denied may petition for reinstatement of their aid in one of two ways:
Summer sessions may also be used as terms during which a student on financial aid probation may regain satisfactory academic status. However, students enrolling in summer sessions for this purpose must use their own financial resources and are ineligible for financial aid through the university.