Satisfactory Academic Progress - Max Time Frame Appeal

Paying for College
1

<p>First off thank you for reading this. It is a long one so I understand if your cursor is heading for the back button. I’ll try to provide all necessary information and keep this short and to the point.</p>

<p>I need to appeal my SAP regarding Max Time Frame so that I can return to a large public university for my SECOND bachelor’s degree.</p>

<p>Relevant timeline

  • 2007, spring - graduated high school
  • 2007, fall - entered a large public university
  • 2009, summer - parents get divorced
  • 2010, spring - father passes away (alcoholism)
  • 2012, fall - graduated from the same university with BA in Economics</p>

<p>Academic facts

  • maintained GPA in accordance with SAP
  • maintained completion rate in accordance with SAP
  • was a full time student for my five years at the university
  • as a student I took classes for 3/4 of the year (fall, winter, spring quarters)
  • currently only have 10 more credit hours left before reaching my max hour limit
  • my “dollar limit” is not even close to the max of $57k, have only tapped 20% of the federal limit</p>

<p>Goals

  • return for a second degree, BS Computer Science</p>

<p>Problems

  • second degree will take 2.5 years to complete, about 100 credit hours</p>

<p>My school allows for an appeal when SAP is not met. The appeal can be approved if extenuating circumstances prevented you from maintaining SAP. For me this is the divorce of my parents and the death of my father (background: mother and father were happily married, he was a closet alcoholic, he supported the family as a senior mechanical engineer for a large firm in the aerospace industry, she left under the condition that she would come back if he was clean, he died the night before he was supposed to check into rehab, mom found him when she went to pick him up).</p>

<p>My schools description for reasons to appeal Max Time Frame:
“Maximum Time Frame: Address circumstances that resulted in current excessive unit situation (e.g. EM credits, transferred units that were not accepted toward current degree, pursuing a double major, pursuing a minor, pursuing a second undergraduate or graduate degree, changed majors, etc.); Address specific courses attempted where credit was not earned (grades E, EN, NEN, I, IX, NP, U, UEN, W, and P) A student who completes the academic requirements for a program but does not yet have the degree is not eligible for further additional aid funds for that program.”</p>

<p>I will build my case by saying that from 2009-2011 my family foundation was rocky at best, but has now stabilized, and that due to the instability I chose to be bullheaded and finish with any degree I could get (i changed majors 4+ times). But not I am set on getting a more useful degree in a booming industry that is poised to grow for the next 10+ years according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.</p>

<p>So to my questions:

  • have you successfully appealed for hitting your max time frame?
  • do you work at a financial aid office? can you shed some light on the success rate of this procedure?
  • do you think I have a chance at getting approved to finish a second degree?</p>
2

<p>Your maximum time frame issue is not really related to anything that happened with your first degree. You finished that degree within the maximum time frame. The issue now is that you are exceeding the maximum time frame because it is a second degree. Simply explain that you are pursuing a second degree, and include an academic plan (signed by a school advisor) that outlines your classes. You will then have to stick to that plan if the SAP appeal is approved - so you may have to appeal on a regular basis until you have earned the degree.</p>

3

<p>Thanks for the reply, kelsmom. Have you had any experience doing this?</p>

<p>I am wondering what my best angle of approach would be to increase my chances of being successful. Would it be to just appeal the max hours citing the fact I am pursuing a second degree? Would it be better to do that and include reasons why it took me 5 years instead of 4 to finish the first?</p>

4

<p>I am a financial aid director, so I do have experience with SAP appeals. It’s not unusual for students to take 5 years to get their undergrad degree. You don’t need to address that. Your focus should be on the fact that you are working toward another degree. You will want to show that you are only paying for classes necessary for the second degree - that is why I suggested visiting an academic advisor, making a plan, and sticking to it. If you are only requesting money to pay for classes necessary to receive a second degree, you have a better chances of having the appeal granted. No one can tell you whether or not the appeal will be granted, though … each school has its own rules. Just be sure to submit everything the appeals process requests, in a timely manner.</p>