The University has developed the following Standard of Satisfactory Progress for students (graduate and undergraduate) to maintain or re-establish eligibility to receive Title IV student financial aid funds.
For satisfactory progress purposes, all transfer students will be considered eligible to receive financial aid, and will be handled in one of the following ways:
- If their academic history and/or transfer record is relatively insignificant they may be given the full six-year maximum to complete their undergraduate degree, or
- If their academic history and/or transfer record is substantial so as to clearly document that they have completed two years of college, for instance, and have, therefore, met junior status at the University, they will be given a maximum of only four additional academic years or increments to complete their undergraduate degree as a full-time student.
A student who earns the minimum number of hours but whose GPA is less than the expected minimum by not more than .2 of a point will be placed on satisfactory progress probation. Also a student who earns the minimum GPA but who fails to obtain the minimum expected number of hours by not more than two semester hours will be placed on satisfactory progress probation and will be considered to be maintaining satisfactory progress. In each of these two categories the student will be given one Full-time academic year to meet the stated cumulative GPA and hours as shown in the progression chart.
If this failure occurred because of a mitigating circumstance, the student may appeal to the Satisfactory Progress Committee to continue to receive financial aid. If the committee determines such student had a mitigating circumstance, he/she will be considered to be making satisfactory progress. During that year he/she must raise his/her GPA and total hours earned to the required level as shown in the chart.
Special Services students will be required to meet the same requirements as other students; however, their GPA will be determined based on the agreement be the University and the U.S. Department of Education.
Even though all students will be given (1) one academic year (fall, spring, and summer semesters) to comply with or achieve our satisfactory progress standard, their progress will be measured at the end of the spring and/or summer semesters to get students who enter the University at different times on the same full-time measuring schedule. A student who attends the fall and spring semesters and is not in compliance with our policy at 3/4-time the end of the spring semester may use summer school to achieve compliance. If such student does not attend summer/school, he/she will be considered to/2-time have used a full academic year’s eligibility (three semesters); such student will not be eligible for Title IV aid for the upcoming fall semester.
A student who has used more than 5.5 increments but less than 6 will be allowed to receive aid for the next semester. The maximum time given a full-time undergraduate student to complete a four year course of study is six years; for a three-quarter time student, nine years; for a one-half time student, 12 years with a minimum 2.00 average on a 4.00 scale. Eligible students who matriculate at less than a one-half time level will be treated in accordance with their level of matriculation.
Most departments at the University require the completion of 130 semester hours for a student to graduate (see chart). An eligible student who matriculates at less than a one-half time level will be treated according to his/her matriculation level. However, for Pell Grant recipients, the maximum years may be five.
Drops, withdrawals, incomplete, and/or repeats will not affect a student’s eligibility if he/she completes the minimum hours each year or the average hours for all years (based on the student’s level of matriculation). A student’s maximum time allowed to complete his/her degree is six years including all non credit remedial courses taken.
A student who withdraws from all courses after the drop period will forfeit that semester. The student’s entire undergraduate academic history at TSU is to be considered in the six year determination. Academic history, for purposes of this document, is defined as all records covering the period since Fall 1979. A mitigating circumstance is being given to academic history prior to Fall 1979 due to the University’s inability to produce accurate data beyond that period, and because of the U. S. Department of Education’s five year retention requirement.
A student who is administratively withdrawn from the University, with appropriate documentation, for reasons not related to misconduct, or who has to withdraw for medical reasons relating to him/herself, spouse or a family member, will not be charged for using a semester’s eligibility. Therefore, the semester will not count toward the 6 years maximum, even though it will be counted by the computer. The semester(s) for which the student was withdrawn will be added to the 6 year maximum, if the student has not received his/her bachelor’s degree.
If a student matriculates for 6 years and has not completed his/her course of study and failure to complete his/her course of study was caused by the University (example: changing requirements or recruiting students into another program which may be critical to the University), such student will be given a reasonable amount of additional time to complete the new course of study.
Most departments at the University require the completion of at least 30 semester hours to receive a master’s degree, 30 semester hours to receive a specialist degree and at least 72 semester hours to receive a doctoral degree. A full-time graduate student will be expected to progress toward the specialist degree and doctoral degree at the same rate as required for the Master’s degree.
All graduate students are expected to maintain a minimum GPA of 3.0. When a student has completed nine or more graduate hours with a GPA less than 3.0, he/she will be given probationary status but will remain eligible to receive Title IV aid. Probationary status must be removed by raising his/her cumulative GPA to 3.0, or better during the next nine hours of graduate work to maintain eligibility.
Undergraduate
| Increment (Year) | Expected Hours | Minimum GPA | |
| Full time | 1st | 22 | 1.4 |
| 2nd | 44 | 1.7 | |
| 3rd | 66 | 1.9 | |
| 4th | 88 | 2.0 | |
| 5th | 110 | 2.0 | |
| 6th | 132 | 2.0 | |
| 3/4 time | 1st | 17 | 1.4 |
| 2nd | 34 | 1.4 | |
| 3rd | 51 | 1.7 | |
| 4th | 68 | 1.9 | |
| 5th | 85 | 1.9 | |
| 6th | 102 | 2.0 | |
| 7th | 119 | 2.0 | |
| 8th | 132 | 2.0 | |
| 1/2 time | 1st | 11 | 1.4 |
| 2nd | 22 | 1.4 | |
| 3rd | 33 | 1.7 | |
| 4th | 44 | 1.7 | |
| 5th | 55 | 1.9 | |
| 6th | 66 | 1.9 | |
| 7th | 77 | 2.0 | |
| 8th | 88 | 2.0 | |
| 9th | 99 | 2.0 | |
| 10th | 110 | 2.0 | |
| 11th | 121 | 2.0 | |
| 12th | 132 | 2.0 |
Graduate
| Increment (Year) | Expected Hours | Minimum GPA | |
| Full time | 1st | 15 | 3.0 |
| 2nd | 30 | 3.0 | |
| 3/4 time | 1st | 11 | 3.0 |
| 2nd | 22 | 3.0 | |
| 3rd | 30 | 3.0 | |
| 1/2 time | 1st | 8 | 3.0 |
| 2nd | 16 | 3.0 | |
| 3rd | 24 | 3.0 | |
| 4th | 32 | 3.0 |