Approved by President
Effective Date: November 13, 2023
Responsible Division: Academic Affairs
Responsible Office:  Financial Aid and Scholarships
Responsible Officer:  Director, Financial Aid and Scholarships

I. Purpose

Federal regulations require institutions to establish and apply reasonable standards of satisfactory academic progress (SAP) for the purpose of awarding financial assistance under the Title IV programs authorized by the Higher Education Act of 1965 as amended (34 CFR 668.34). Federal Title IV Programs include the Pell Grant, Supplemental Education Opportunity Grant, TEACH Grant, Work-Study, and Direct Loans.

Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU or University) complies with this requirement by monitoring each student's grade point average (GPA), pace (credit hours earned divided by credit hours attempted), and maximum timeframe for completion of the student's program of study. 

II. Scope

This policy is used to determine satisfactory academic progress for financial aid eligibility to participate in Federal Title IV programs, State programs (e.g., Tennessee Student Assistance Award, the Tennessee Education Lottery Scholarship, etc.), and various MTSU scholarship programs. References to financial aid within this policy apply to these programs. 

This policy is used to determine satisfactory academic progress for financial aid. Students should reference the MTSU undergraduate and graduate online catalogs for academic regulations used to determine acceptable academic standing, whether or not the student is receiving financial aid.

A.  First-time freshmen with college credit earned while in high school (e.g., dual enrollment credit, AP credit, etc.) will be placed in a good standing SAP status their first semester enrolled at MTSU. These credits will be included in the SAP status evaluation at the end of the first semester.

B.  Readmit students who have not attended a subsequent institution will be evaluated based on the current SAP policy. A readmit student who has attended a subsequent institution will be evaluated based on the current policy as a transfer student.

C.  Transfer students whose final transcripts from prior institutions have not been received or evaluated will be ineligible for financial aid until the transcripts have been received/reviewed and the initial financial aid academic progress status has been evaluated. New transfer students must meet the criteria in Sections IV - V below to initially be considered for financial aid. Since Summer 2015, MTSU no longer includes the transfer GPA in the undergraduate MTSU GPA used towards graduation and thus the Qualitative Standard (GPA) described in Section III will not be measured for transfer students until the end of the first semester at MTSU. However, readmit transfer students must meet criteria in Section III since they have an overall combined GPA at MTSU.

D.  First-time graduate students and continuing undergraduate/graduate students are evaluated based on the current SAP policy at the end of each semester (fall/spring/summer) and apply whether or not they are receiving financial aid during the semester being measured.

Students must meet the criteria addressed in Sections III – V to maintain e