Standards of Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy
for Undergraduate Students
University of Nebraska at Kearney

The University of Nebraska at Kearney is required to establish minimum academic standards that students must meet to be eligible or maintain eligibility for federal and state financial aid, including grants, loans and college work study.

Students who are receiving financial aid or who seek financial aid in the future are required to meet these minimum standards. Failure to meet these standards for two consecutive semesters (fall, spring, summer) means the student is no longer eligible to receive financial aid.

Students must meet both a qualitative requirement (GPA) and a quantitative requirement (# of hours successfully completed) to maintain eligibility. Additionally undergraduate students are eligible to receive aid for only 180 credit hours - this is referred to as the maximum time frame requirement.

The quantitative requirements for undergraduate students are based upon enrollment status (full-time, part-time, half-time) at the end of drop and add week at the start of each semester. Students must successfully complete the number of hours for which their financial aid was based.

Enrollment status and quantitative progress for undergraduate students is defined as follows:

• Fulltime = 12 or more Credit Hours. Minimum required Earned Hours must be 12 credit hours.
• 3/4 time = 9 to 11 Credit Hours. Minimum required Earned Hours must be 9 credit hours.
• 1/2 time = 6 to 8 Credit Hours. Minimum required Earned Hours must be 6 credit hours.
• Less than 1/2 time = 5 or less Credit Hours. Minimum required Earned Hours is 1 credit hour.

The qualitative requirements for undergraduate students are:

• Students who have earned 1-24 credit hours must have a minimum university GPA* of 1.8.
• Students who have earned 25-45 credit hours must have a minimum university GPA* of 1.9.
• Students who have earned 46 or more credit hours must have a minimum university GPA* of 2.0.
• * University GPA includes all credit hours on the transcript from UNK, UNL, UNO and UNMC.

The qualitative requirements for second bachelor's degree and initial teaching certificate students are:

• Students who already have a bachelor's degree, who are admitted to a second bachelor's degree program, must maintain a cumulative 2.0 GPA or above.
• Students who are seeking their first teaching certificate must maintain a cumulative 2.5 GPA or above.
• Students who are seeking an additional subject or field endorsement to their teaching certificate must maintain a cumulative 2.5 GPA or above.

Successful Completion of Courses

To be counted as successfully completed or earned hours, the student must receive a grade of A, B, C, D or CR. Withdrawals (W), incompletes (I) or failures (F) are counted in the attempted hours but are NOT successfully completed or earned hours.

If a student fails to meet one or both (qualitative or quantitative) of the minimum standards for one semester the student is placed on financial aid warning for the following semester. The student will maintain financial aid eligibility and continue to receive financial aid during this semester. Students are notified via email when placed in warning status.

If the student fails to meet one or both of the standards again in the subsequent semester, the student is no longer eligible for financial aid.

Maximum Time Frame Requirement

Undergraduate students can receive financial aid for up to 180 credit hours. Second bachelor's degree seeking or initial teaching certificate students can receive funding for 150% of the credit hours required for completion of their degree as defined in the UNK catalog. The credit hours attempted include transfer hours. They also include hours in which the student did or did not receive financial aid. Students will be suspended from financial aid eligibility the semester following the semester their attempted hours exceed 180. There is no warning.

Regaining Financial Aid Eligibility

Students on financial aid suspension can enroll for classes without financial aid and meet the minimum standards. The Office of Financial Aid will check academic standing after each semester. The student may also notify the Office of Financial Aid in writing if the minimum standards have now been met. Students also will be given in their suspension notice the right to appeal. The appeal must be submitted in writing to the Office of Financial Aid by the due date indicated in the notification letter. Students are notified in writing with the decision of the Appeals Committee.