Satisfactory Academic Progress

This chapter provides an overview of Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) and discusses how to:

• Set up SAP.

• Process and maintain SAP.

Understanding SAP

This section includes an overview of SAP calculations and discusses:

• Eight tests for SAP.

• Student selection criteria for SAP evaluation.

• Batch, online, and simulation processes.

• Pass 1 and Pass 2 evaluations.

Overview of SAP Calculations

The SAP online or batch process determines a student's SAP status by comparing calculated values with established setup or student-specific rules. The process calculates up to eight separate tests. The institution chooses whether or not to use each of the following tests and sets the rules for each:

• Academic Standing

• Maximum Attempted Units

• Maximum Attempted Terms

• Minimum Current GPA

• Minimum Cumulative GPA

• Current Earned Units

• Cumulative Earned Units

• Two Year GPA

The process uses the user-defined rules to calculate a status code for each individual test and then calculates an overall status code. The overall status code is determined by the highest severity code for each test used. All calculated statistics and status codes are populated on the Student SAP page, which has a Packaging Status Summary link to the updated Satisfactory Academic Progress field on the Packaging Status Summary page.

The calculated code or override status code determines the Satisfactory Academic Progress value on the Packaging Status Summary page. This value is used for other Financial Aid processes and is only updated when the SAP process is run. Further change to the SAP status value can be made only on the Student SAP page, which automatically updates the Satisfactory Academic Progress field on other pages.

SAP calculation can be performed two ways:

• Term processing, which is based on a single term.

• Aid Year processing, which is based on multiple terms within an aid year.

When updating the Satisfactory Academic Progress field on the Packaging Status Summary page:

• Term processing looks up the term being processed on FA Term and uses that FA Term aid year to update the Packaging Status Summary page.

• Aid Year processing uses the aid year being processed to update the Packaging Status Summary page.

The calculation and evaluation of the rules of the eight tests uses a student's data from Student Career Term (Term History) and Student Enrollment, which are both term-based tables. Consequently, you must define which terms are evaluated for the calculation based on each of the two processing types (term and aid year). Here is how the two process types differ:

• For term processing, you define a specific term in which to determine SAP eligibility. This setup step associates all the terms to be used for evaluating the eight tests when calculating for this specific term. For example, SAP eligibility for spring 2008 term is based on data from the fall 2007 and summer 2007 terms.

• For aid year processing, you define a specific aid year in which to determine SAP eligibility. This setup step associates all the terms to be used for evaluating the eight tests when calculating for this specific aid year. For example, SAP eligibility for Aid Year 2008 is based on data from the fall 2006, spring 2007, and summer 2007 terms.

The SAP process selects the group of students to be updated based on selection entered on the run control page or established criteria for a single student when running online. The following table lists the hierarchy used by the process to determine which exception rule or setup rule to apply for each of the eight tests.

Eight Tests for SAP

The Satisfactory Academic Progress feature uses eight specific tests to measure whether a student is making progress. Three tests (Academic Standing, Maximum Attempted Units, and Maximum Attempted Terms) are quantitative evaluations and five tests (Minimum Current GPA, Minimum Cumulative GPA, Current Earned Units, Cumulative Earned Units, and Two Year GPA) are qualitative evaluations. You set up rules for each test on the Criteria1 (quantitative) and Criteria2 (qualitative) pages.

During the test evaluation, each student's actual value for the test is calculated. Then the process searches through setup rules for a match to that value:

• If no rule matches are found, the student is considered to have passed the test and the Career Pass Default Status code is assigned as the SAP status for that test.

• If a rule match is found, the student is considered to have failed the test and the corresponding SAP status for that rule is assigned as the status and the fail flag is set to Yes.

  The student should then be warned or disqualified. Therefore, it is strongly recommended that you set up the rules to cover the full range of fail requirements with no overlaps.

• An additional quantitative setup, Statuses and Actions rules, is used to compare a student's newly determined SAP status with a previous status and then assign a different status. Statuses and Actions rules can only be applied to Pass 1 eligible records.

  This can be used for multilevel probation statuses.

The SAP Status field in each of the test rule setup grids indicates which SAP Status code to use if a student meets the rules of the test. Ranges and statuses are set up to find students who are not making progress. The rules that you set up should cover the entire range by career, by career and program, or by career, program, and plan. If you set up a rule with program and plan blank, but ranges populated, the process evaluates all students based on the career defined on the Setup page (Set Up SACR, Product Related, Financial Aid, Satisfactory Academic Progress, Define Setup Criteria, Setup). It is important that the rules do not overlap each other as this can cause runtime errors. You can set up these failing tests for any academic program and academic plan combination.

Academic Standing Test

Student Records calculates the academic standing value each term. The Academic Standing test determines the SAP status code based on the Academic Standing value for either the evaluation term or for the maximum term the student was enrolled within the aid year as defined in the Define Evaluation Aid Year page. The SAP status is determined as follows:

• If the Academic Standing field is blank or an academic standing action row does not exist for the maximum term, the Undetermined Default Status code is used.

• If no student-specific exception exists for this criteria and the student is set to the Career Pass Default Status code, Student Records must enter an academic standing value for the student, which can then be calculated normally.

• For students affected by an aid year exception or a term exception, the SAP status is set to Exception Fail Default Status.

• If no override exists for academic standing, the process searches for a match by career, program, or plan and the associated SAP status is used if a match is found.

  When no rule match exists, the Career Pass Default Status code is used.

Maximum Attempted Units Test

This test first counts the units attempted at the institution and does not include any transfer units. The total units attempted at the institution are summed from student enrollment, counting units that are within and prior to the term or aid year being processed. The process uses either the units-taken value or, if that value is zero, the Financial Aid progress units to gather this sum of units attempted at the institution.

The student must be enrolled in the maximum term past the fully graded date. Audited units are not counted. Second, the transfer units are added to that sum from Student Career Term (Term History) based on the transfer unit options selected on the setup. If no transfer unit options are selected, then the Maximum Attempted Units test only includes units attempted at the institution.

Additionally, if course exclusions are set up and the student is enrolled in any of the defined courses, then those units are subtracted from the attempted unit calculation.

You can select any or none of the following options for including transferred units in attempted units:

• The Towards GPA option counts transfer units that have been matriculated for any term prior to or including the term being processed as included in GPA units.

• The No GPA option counts transfer units that have been matriculated for the term prior to or including the term being processed as no GPA units.

• The Course Credit option counts transfer units that have been matriculated for the term prior to or including the term being processed as course credits.

• The Test Credit option counts test credit units that have been matriculated for the term prior to or including the term being processed.

• The Other Credit option counts other credit units that have been matriculated for the term prior to or including the term being processed.

• The TC Units Adjust option subtracts transfer credit adjustments from the attempted unit total that have been entered for any term prior to or including the term being processed.

You can use the following Course Exclusion options to subtract Remedial and/or English as a Second Language (ESL) courses from attempted units:

• Subtract all remedial course units set up in Course Exclusions that the student is enrolled in unless the value of the total remedial units that the student is enrolled in exceeds the value in the Max Remedial Units to Exclude field. For example, if the student is enrolled in 8 remedial units, and the Max Remedial Units to Exclude value is 3, the SAP process count 5 of the 8 remedial units in the attempted unit calculation.

• Subtract all ESL course units set up in Course Exclusions that the student is enrolled in unless the value of the total ESL units that the student is enrolled in exceeds the value in the Max ESL Units to Exclude field.

The setup should cover the entire range of units by career, by career and program, or by career, program, and plan. If no rule match is found, the student is assigned the Career Pass Default Status code. The ranges and statuses that are set here are to find students who are not making progress.

Maximum Attempted Terms Test

The Maximum Attempted Terms test is based on the number of attempted terms by academic career, as indicated by student enrollment. A term is counted if units are taken, enrollment status is enrolled,and at least one course in that term is not audited. A term is not counted if the student either completely drops or audits all courses in that term.

If a student has a career-specific exception, that is evaluated first. The setup should cover the entire range of units by career, by career and program, or by career, program and plan. If a rule match is not found, the student is assigned the Career Pass Default Status code.

The setup should cover the entire range of units by career, by career and program, or by career, program, and plan. If no rule match is found, the student is assigned the Career Pass Default Status code. The ranges and statuses that are set here are to find students who are not making progress.

Minimum Current GPA Test

The Minimum Current GPA test tests whether a student's current GPA falls within a certain range in relation to a range of cumulative earned units. In an example test rule, a student who has between 31 and 60 cumulative earned units and current GPA between 0.00 and 2.99 is assigned a disqualified status.

This test evaluates both the student's current GPA and cumulative earned units. The cumulative earned unit value used in the comparison for this test is not derived in the same way as it is for the Cumulative Earned Units Test. Instead, the value is taken directly from the Total Cumulative Units field on the Student Career Term table for the term being evaluated.

The Minimum Current GPA test has two options, an average GPA or a special GPA.

Special GPA is calculated as follows:

• If a student has an aid-year or term-specific exception, that is evaluated first.

• If the Special GPA field is populated in the setup, the process compares that student's individual Special GPA Type value to the setup rules.

• If the Special GPA field is populated in the setup, and the Student Special GPA Type is blank or does not exist for the student, the Undetermined Default Status code is used.

• If the Special GPA field is not populated, an average GPA is calculated for this test and is compared to the setup rules.

  This average is calculated by summing the total GPA for all terms for the student within the aid year and then dividing by the number of valid terms from the student career term data.

The current GPA is determined through evaluations:

• For Pass 1, the sum of all of GPAs of the fully graded terms associated with the Aid Year or Term being evaluated divided by the number of the fully graded terms associated with the Aid Year or Term being evaluated. For example, if you are evaluating eligibility for the fall 2006 term and the associated terms are fall 2005 (GPA = 2.50), spring 2006 (GPA = 3.00), and summer 2006 (GPA = 3.50), then the current GPA to be used in the test would be (2.50 + 3.00 + 3.50) divided by 3 equaling 3.00.

• For Pass 2, the current GPA of the most recent enrolled term that is less than the lowest numbered evaluation term associated with the Aid Year or Term being evaluated. For example, if you are evaluating eligibility for the fall 2006 term and the associated terms are fall 2005, spring 2006, and summer 2006, and no term data exists for the student, but the student does have spring 2005 term data, then the GPA for spring 2005 is used in the evaluation. Pass 2 does not look at the fully graded date.

The setup should cover the entire range of units by career, by career and program, or by career, program and plan. If no rule match is found, the student is assigned the Career Pass Default Status code. The ranges and statuses that are set here are used to find students who are not making progress.

Minimum Cumulative GPA Test

The Minimum Cumulative GPA test examines whether a student's cumulative GPA falls within a certain range in relation to a range of cumulative earned units. In an example test, a student who has between 31 and 60 cumulative earned units and a cumulative GPA between 0.00 and 2.00 would fail.

The Minimum Cumulative GPA test has two options, the Total Overall GPA and the Special GPA.

• If a student has an aid year- or term-specific exception, that is evaluated first.

• If a student has a career-specific exception, that is evaluated second.

• If the Use Special GPA Code field is populated in the setup, the student's Special GPA is used, if the student has a matching Special GPA Type defined.

• If the Special GPA field is not populated in the setup, the cumulative GPA value from the student career term record is used.

  This is the total overall GPA including transfer units from student career term.

• If the Special GPA field is populated in the setup and the Student Special GPA field is blank or does not exist for a student, the Undetermined Default Status code is used.

The Cumulative GPA is determined through evaluations:

• For Pass 1, the cumulative GPA as of the most recent fully graded term associated with the Aid Year or Term being evaluated.

• For Pass 2, the cumulative GPA of the most recent enrolled term that is less than the lowest numbered evaluation term associated with the Aid Year or Term being evaluated. Pass 2 does not look at the fully graded date.

This test evaluates both the student's cumulative GPA and cumulative earned units. The cumulative earned unit value used in the comparison for this test is not derived in the same way as it is for the Cumulative Earned Units Test. Instead the value is taken directly from the Total Cumulative Units field on the Student Career Term table for the term being evaluated.

The setup should cover the entire range of units by career, by career and program, or by career, program and plan. If a rule match is not found, the student is assigned the Career Pass Default Status code. The ranges and statuses that are set here are used to find students who are not making progress.

Current Earned Units Test

The Current Earned Units test compares the student's attempted units and earned units and assigns an SAP status code. You choose to measure by percentage (percentage of completed units for the current term or aid year) or number of units (number of units to be completed for the current term, by term or aid year).

For example, a student whose attempted units for the current term were between 9 and 12 and earned units were between 0 and 6 might fail.

Unit values are calculated as follows:

• Attempted units are calculated from institutional units only.

  Units are summed from student enrollment from the aid year or term being evaluated. To gather the sum of units attempted at the institution, the process uses the units taken value or if that value is zero, the Financial Aid progress units. The student must be enrolled in the maximum term past the fully graded date. Audited units do not count. Grade Exclusions are not factored into the Attempted Units portion of this test. No transfer units are included.

• Earned units are calculated in one of two ways:

  If grade exclusions are not enabled, units are calculated as the sum of the values from the total passed with GPA and the total passed without GPA on the student career term table. Transfer units are included in the values being summed.

  If grade exclusions are enabled, as with attempted units, the units are derived from student enrollment, but with transfer units included. Then courses that are on the grade exclusions setup are subtracted from the total.

With the attempted units and earned units determined for the aid year or term, the calculated SAP status code is determined in one of two ways:

• Use Percentage

  The student-specific percentage is compared to the calculated percentage (earned/attempted). If the calculated percentage falls within the percentage range and attempted units fall within the attempted units range, the student receives the status associated with the rule. Otherwise the student receives the Career Pass Default Status code.

• Use Completed Units

  The student-specific number is compared to the calculated number (earned/attempted). If the calculated earned units fall within the earned units range and attempted units fall within the attempted units range, the student receives the status associated with the rule. Otherwise the student receives the Career Pass Default Status code.

The setup should cover the entire range of units by career, by career and program, or by career, program, and plan. If no rule match is found, the student is assigned the Career Pass Default Status code. The ranges and statuses that are set here are used to find students who are not making progress.

Cumulative Earned Units Test

The Cumulative Earned Units test compares the student's cumulative attempted units and earned units and assigns an SAP status code. For example, a student whose cumulative attempted units were between 45 and 60 and cumulative earned units were between 0 and 30 would meet the rule.

Attempted units are institutional units summed from student enrollment and include units from all terms within and prior to the aid year or term being evaluated. The process uses either the units-taken value or, if that value is zero, the Financial Aid progress units to gather this sum of units attempted at the institution. Audited units are not counted. Grade Exclusions are not included in attempted units. You then have the option to include different types of transfer units in addition to the institutional attempted units. Transfer Options include:

• The Towards GPA option counts transfer units that have been matriculated for any term prior to or including the term being processed as included in GPA units.

• The No GPA option counts transfer units that have been matriculated for the term prior to or including the term being processed as no GPA units.

• The Course Credit option counts transfer units that have been matriculated for the term prior to or including the term being processed as course credits.

• The Test Credit option counts test credit units that have been matriculated for the term prior to or including the term being processed.

• The Other Credit option counts other credit units that have been matriculated for the term prior to or including the term being processed.

• The TC Units Adjust option subtracts transfer credit adjustments from the attempted unit total that have been entered for any term prior to or including the term being processed.

Earned units are calculated in one of two ways:

• If grade exclusions are not enabled, first institutional units are taken from the cumulative earned unit value from student career term table for the term or highest term for the aid year being evaluated. Then transfer units are included based on the transfer unit options selected.

• If grade exclusions are enabled, units are summed from student enrollment similar to the base cumulative attempted units. Then courses that the student is enrolled in that are on the grade exclusions setup are subtracted from this total. Transfer units are included based on the transfer unit options selected.

You can use the following options for transfer units to be then included in the cumulative earned units calculation:

• The Towards GPA option counts transfer units that have been matriculated for any term prior to or including the term being processed as included in GPA units.

• The No GPA option counts transfer units that have been matriculated for the term prior to or including the term being processed as no GPA units.

• The Course Credit option counts transfer units that have been matriculated for the term prior to or including the term being processed as course credits.

• The Test Credit option counts test credit units that have been matriculated for the term prior to or including the term being processed.

• The Other Credit option counts other credit units that have been matriculated for the term prior to or including the term being processed.

• The TC Units Adjust option subtracts transfer credit adjustments from the attempted unit total that have been entered for any term prior to or including the term being processed.

With attempted units and earned units calculated, the calculated SAP status code is determined in one of two ways:

• Use Percentage

  The student career-specific percentage is compared to the calculated percentage (earned/attempted). If the calculated percentage is equal to or greater than the student career specific rule, the student receives the Career Pass Default Status code. If the student has zero completed units, the Zero Earned Default Status is used. If the calculated percentage is less than the student career-specific rule, the student receives the SAP status code associated with that rule.

• Use Completed Units

  The student career-specific number is compared to the calculated number (earned/attempted). If the calculated earned number is equal to or greater than the student specific rule, the student receives the Career Pass Default Status code. If the student has zero completed units, the Zero Earned Default Status is used. If the calculated earned number is less than the student career-specific rule, the student receives the SAP status associated with that rule.

Ensure that the setup covers the entire range of units and percentages or numbers by career, by career and program, or by career, program, and plan. If a rule match is not found, the student receives the Career Pass Default Status code. The ranges and statuses that are set here are to find students who are not making progress.

Two Year GPA Test

The Two Year GPA test reviews students who, at the end of their second year, are maintaining at least a C grade point average, that is, a 2.0 or above grade average. This test checks whether a student's current GPA falls within a certain range in relation to a range of attempted terms. In an example test rule, a student who has attempted between 3 and 4 terms and whose current GPA is between 0.00 and 1.99 is assigned a nonpassing status.

Attempted terms are counted by academic career from student enrollment. A term is counted if units are taken, enrollment status is enrolled, and at least one course in that term is not audited. A term is not counted if the student either completely drops or audits all courses in that term.

Two options for deriving the cumulative GPA value are the Total Overall GPA and the Special GPA:

• If the Special GPA field is populated in the setup, the Special GPA type is used, which is the cumulative GPA earned at this institution.

• If the Special GPA field is not populated in the setup, the cumulative GPA value from the student career term record is used. This is the Total Overall GPA including transfer units from student career term.

• If the Special GPA field is populated in the setup and the Student Special GPA field is blank or does not exist for a student, the Undetermined Default Status code is used.

The Cumulative GPA is determined through evaluations:

• For Pass 1, the cumulative GPA is as of the most recent fully graded term associated with the Aid Year or Term being evaluated.

• For Pass 2, the cumulative GPA is from the most recent enrolled term that is less than the lowest numbered evaluation term associated with the Aid Year or Term being evaluated. Pass 2 does not look at the fully graded date.

In the setup, you must define the number of terms that equals two years of study at your institution. You can set up rules for any combination of terms and GPA by career, by career and program, or by career, program, and plan. If a rule match is not found, the student is assigned the Career Pass Default Status code. The ranges and statuses that are set here are to find students who are not making progress.

Student Selection Criteria for SAP Evaluation

Student selection criteria are the same for online, batch, or simulation processing. If the student has an active FA term for the aid year (aid year processing) or term (term processing) and the career used for the SAP evaluation is not excluded by award type or career, the student is considered eligible for SAP evaluation, and the process attempts to create an SAP calculation or simulation.

Award Exclusions

For Award Exclusions, the system excludes if either the financial aid item type matches or the item type falls within the range defined by the Item Type From and Item Type To values on the Exclusions page.

You can list awards that are excluded from SAP evaluation:

• A student who has only the item types listed in the award exclusions setup is not selected for an SAP evaluation.

• A student who has both excluded item types and nonexcluded item types is selected for an SAP evaluation.

• If exclusions are set up with a financial aid type, but without values in the Item Type To and Item Type From fields, students who have awards only of that financial aid type are not selected for an SAP evaluation.

Note. Award Exclusions are the only exclusions that affect whether or not a student is selected for an SAP Evaluation. Course and Grade exclusions affect the results of specific tests. Course Exclusions affect the results of the Maximum Attempted Units test. Grade Exclusions affect the Current Earned Units test and the Cumulative Earned Units test.

Standard SAP Selection, Student Override, and Population Selection

Use the one of three options to select IDs for SAP evaluation, Standard SAP Selection, Student Override, or Population Selection.

• If you use the Standard SAP Selection, all IDs for the associated career defined in the run control with the appropriate active FA Term data and award exclusion data for the term/aid year and career entered on the run control page are selected for an SAP evaluation. If you use the Student Override options or Population Selection option, the selection is limited to a subset of IDs.

• If you use the Student Override option, only the IDs entered in the override section of the run control page are reviewed to determine whether they have the appropriate active FA Term data and award exclusion data for the term/aid year and career entered on the run control page.

• If you use the Population Selection option, only the IDs provided by the Population Selection feature's input Selection Tool are reviewed to determine whether they have the appropriate active FA Term data and award exclusion data for the term/aid year and career entered on the run control page.

• If you use either the Student Override or Population Selection option:

  • If an ID meets the SAP Evaluation criteria, the process attempts to calculate an SAP Status for that ID.

  • If an ID does not meet the SAP Evaluation criteria, no SAP action is taken for that ID.

See Using the Population Selection Process.

Batch, Online, and Simulation Processes

The online and simulation SAP processes always run with the following options enabled:

• Use Pass 2 data.

• Run if a previous status for the same term/aid year exists.

• Do not create Report Data.

• Update any existing SAP data if any calculation value changes occur, even if the SAP status remains the same.

• Use Statuses and Actions rules when Pass 1 eligible.

  Therefore, ensure that all academic statuses are entered in the setup for Statuses and Actions rules, or the process might return an incorrect Calc SAP Status value.

In a batch process, these settings are optional and can be modified on the Process SAP run control page. To process SAP for a single student with different options than the online process uses, enter that ID in the Student Override section, and set the run control options as desired for that student.

Pass 1 and Pass 2 Evaluations

The SAP process evaluates SAP for each student two times, Pass 1 and Pass 2.

Pass 2 is optional when running in batch, but is always used online or in simulation. In batch, if the Pass 2 option is selected, the process calculates for both Pass 1 and Pass 2, and uses the Pass 2 calculation results unless Pass 1 data is not present. When Pass 2 is used, Statuses and Actions rules are not used to determine a calculated SAP status.

Pass 1 and Pass 2 data collection differ as follows:

Setting Up SAP

The SAP Setup pages are used to set up your rules that determine an SAP status for each of the eight tests. The rules are designed to be failure rules. If a student's actual test value matches a setup rule, the test fails. If a student's actual test value does not meet a rule, the student receives the Career Pass Default Status code for that test. For better processing performance, keep the rules as simple as possible.

Use the remaining setup pages to set up course and award exclusions, communications, and evaluation terms and aid years.

This section discusses how to:

• Define SAP status codes.

• Set up rules for statuses and actions and the Academic Standing, Maximum Attempted Units, and Maximum Attempted Term tests.

• Set up tests for Minimum Current GPA, Minimum Cumulative GPA, Current Earned Units, Cumulative Earned Units, and Two Year GPA.

• Set up course, award, and grade exclusions.

• Set up SAP communications.

• Set up evaluation terms for aid year processing.

• Set up evaluation terms for term processing.

• Define SAP Application Engine libraries.

Pages Used to Set Up SAP

Defining SAP Status Codes

Access the Setup page (Set Up SACR, Product Related, Financial Aid, Satisfactory Academic Progress, Define Setup Criteria, Setup).

Use the Setup page to define, by institution and career, the SAP status codes and code severity, and how the SAP status updates the satisfactory academic progress value on the student's Packaging Status Summary page. To modify a status code, click the + icon to the right of the Effective Date field to create new setup criteria, and make the changes.

Ensure that this page is set up and saved before doing any further setup. Never delete SAP status codes after you start creating student SAP data because those codes would then be invalid in the Student SAP record.

The Set Up Activation field defines whether the SAP setup is active or inactive at this institution:

• When any of an Academic Institution's careers has a Setup Activation Field value of Active, students have a Satisfactory Academic Progress field on the Packaging Status Summary page that is display-only with the SAP Details link shown.

• When all of an Academic Institution's careers have a Setup Activation Field value of Inactive or are not defined, students have a Satisfactory Academic Progress field on the Packaging Status Summary page that is editable, and the SAP Details link is not shown.,

• The online, batch, and simulation processes cannot run successfully for student SAP records in careers with a Setup Activation Field value of Inactive.

SAP Process Type

The two process types are Aid Year and Term. Although it is not recommended to change from one process type to the other, you can insert a new row at the Effective Date field level and update the setup. The value in the Effective Date field determines which row is used compared to the current date.

Aid year processing is for multiple terms, which you define on the Define Evaluation Aid Year page.

Term processing is for a single term, which you define on the Define Evaluation Term page.

Status Codes

It is important that your SAP status codes are relevant and define your student population. Be sure you have a code that represents a passing status, such as MEET.

Default SAP Status

The SAP evaluation process assigns these default statuses for particular cases, as described below. For each of these default statuses, select a status code that you defined in the Status Codes group box.

Setting Up Rules for Statuses and Actions and the Academic Standing, Maximum Attempted Units, and Maximum Attempted Term Tests

Access the Criteria1 page (Set Up SACR, Product Related, Financial Aid, Satisfactory Academic Progress, Define Setup Criteria, Criteria 1).

Use the Criteria1 page to define your quantitative SAP requirements. You set up rules that determine how to set a final status based on a previously calculated status and a currently calculated status. You also set the rules and options for three of the eight SAP tests.

Click the Expand All button to expand all enabled tests and their corresponding rule grids for this effective dated row. Click the Collapse All button to collapse the tests. Or, use the expand/collapse arrow on each test to expand the grid for only that test.

Warning! You specify from-to ranges for attempted terms and units on this page. If the ranges overlap from one row to another in such a way that the system cannot determine only one SAP status for the specific rule for a particular Academic Program and Academic Plan, the Process SAP process abnormally ends with no results and the log indicates an SQL duplicate error. See specific warnings in the following field definitions.

Statuses and Actions

Select the Use Statuses and Actions check box to use this feature and set up rules. When using Statuses and Actions rules, make sure that all possible statuses and actions are set up. The Statuses and Actions rules feature is always executed for Pass 1 online process and is an option in batch, when enabled.

If the process cannot find a rule match for previous and calculated status, the final status that is generated may be incorrect. Therefore it is important to ensure that all possible statuses and actions are set up. Blank setup values are not allowed. Statuses and Actions rules are only evaluated for Pass 1 processing.

Academic Standing Test

The Academic Standing Rules group box indicates which academic standing values used by Academic Careers, Academic Program, and Academic Plan are not meeting Academic Standing and may be ineligible for financial aid. Students who meet the rules set up here are considered to fail this test, so write the rules with failing Academic Standing statuses and non-passing SAP Statuses.

Select the Use Academic Standing Test check box to set up rules for the Academic Standing test.

Maximum Attempted Units Test

The Maximum Attempted Units test defines maximum units a student can attempt before their SAP status is affected. Students who meet the rules set up here are considered to fail this test, so write the rules with failing ranges and nonpassing SAP statuses.

Select the Use Max Attempted Units Test check box to set up rules for the Maximum Attempted Units test.

In the Max Attempted Units Option group box, select the transfer unit criteria to include in the maximum attempted unit total. You can select any combination of the following check boxes, or select none.

Maximum Attempted Terms Test

The Maximum Attempted Terms test defines the maximum terms a student can enroll in before their SAP status is affected. Students who meet the rules set up here are considered to fail this test, so write the rules with failing ranges and nonpassing SAP statuses.

Select the Use Max Attempted Terms Test check box to set up rules for the Maximum Attempted Terms test.

Setting Up Tests for Minimum Current or Cumulative GPA, Current or Cumulative Earned Units, and Two-Year GPA

Access the Criteria2 page (Set Up SACR, Product Related, Financial Aid, Satisfactory Academic Progress, Define Setup Criteria, Criteria 2).

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Use the Criteria2 page to define your qualitative SAP requirements and the rules for four of the eight SAP tests.

Click the Expand All button to expand all enabled tests and their corresponding rule grids for this effective dated row. Click the Collapse All button to collapse the tests. Or, use the expand or collapse arrow on each test to expand the grid for only that test.

Warning! You specify from-to ranges for the five tests on this page. If the ranges overlap from one row to another in such a way that the system cannot determine only one SAP status for the specific rule for a particular Academic Program and Academic Plan, the Process SAP process abnormally ends with no results and the log indicates an SQL duplicate error. See specific warnings in the following field definitions.

Minimum Current GPA Test

The Minimum Current GPA test determines the lowest current GPA that a student can have and still be eligible for financial aid. Students who meet the rules set up here are considered to fail this test, so write the rules with failing ranges and nonpassing SAP statuses.

Select the Use Min Current GPA Test check box to set up rules for the Minimum Current GPA test.

Minimum Cumulative GPA Test

The Minimum Cumulative GPA test determines the lowest cumulative GPA that a student can have and still be eligible for financial aid. Students who meet the rules set up here are considered to fail this test, so write the rules with failing ranges and nonpassing SAP statuses.

Select the Use Min Cumulative GPA Test check box to set up rules for the Minimum Cumulative GPA test.

Current Earned Units Test

The Current Earned Units test evaluates the student's attempted units and earned units and compares the quotient (earned/attempted) to the rules. Students who meet the rules set up here are considered to fail this test, so write the rules with failing ranges and nonpassing SAP statuses. Define the percent or minimum number of current term or aid year units a student must complete of attempted units per term.

Select the Use Current Earned Units Test check box to set up rules for the Current Earned Units test.

In the Current Earned Units Option list, select whether to use percentage or units:

• Select Use Percentage to use the percentage of completed units for the current term or aid year.

• Select Use Completed Units to use a minimum number of units to be completed for the current term, by term or aid year.

Fields for the Current Earned Units test change depending on the option that you select. For example, if you select Use Percentage, the Cur Earned Units % From and Cur Earned Units % To fields appear.

Cumulative Earned Units Test

For the Cumulative Earned Units test, you define the percent or minimum number of units a student must complete of attempted units per term. Students who meet the rules set up here are considered to fail this test, so write the rules with failing ranges and nonpassing SAP statuses.

Select the Use Cumulative Earned Units Test check box to set up rules for the Cumulative Earned Units test.

In the Use Cumulative Earned Units Options drop-down list, select whether to use percentage or completed units for term or aid year processing:

• Use Percentage: Use the percentage of completed units for the current term or aid year.

• Use Completed Units: Use a minimum number of units to be completed.

For Cumulative Attempted Transfer Unit Criteria, select the transfer unit criteria check boxes to include in the cumulative attempted unit total. You can select any combination of boxes, or select none.

For Cumulative Earned Transfer Unit Criteria, select the transfer unit criteria check boxes to include in the cumulative earned unit total. You can select any combination of boxes, or select none.

Two Year GPA Test

Select the Use Two Year GPA Test check box to set up rules for the Cumulative Earned Units test.

Setting Up Course, Award, and Grade Exclusions

Access the Exclusions page (Set Up SACR, Product Related, Financial Aid, Satisfactory Academic Progress, Define Setup Criteria, Exclusions).

Use the Exclusions page to identify English as a Second Language (ESL) and remedial courses for exclusions and place caps on the number of ESL and remedial courses to exclude for calculating Maximum Attempted Units. Identify student records to exclude from the SAP selection process based on types of awards and/or identify grades to exclude from cumulative and current earned units calculation.

Course Exclusions

Course Exclusions are used in the Maximum Attempted Units Test to identify ESL and remedial courses that should be excluded in the count and to also place caps on the number of ESL and remedial courses to exclude from the unit count.

Select the Use Course Exclusions check box to set up rules for Max Units to Exclude and Course Exclusions.

The Max Units to Exclude (maximum units to exclude from all course exclusions) group box has two selections.

Course Exclusions are criteria for excluding courses from the Maximum Attempted Units test. Excluded courses include Remedial courses or ESL courses.

Award Exclusions

Award Exclusions are criteria for excluding students from the selection for an SAP evaluation based on an aid type or specific awards you specify.

Select the Use Award Exclusions check box to use this function.

Grade Exclusions

Grade Exclusions are criteria for excluding course units with specific grading schemes, grading basis, and grade input values from the Current Earned Unit and/or Cumulative Earned Units tests.

If you use Grade Exclusions, the Current and Cumulative Earned Units values are derived from the student's enrollment, minus the units to be excluded. If you do not use Grade Exclusions, the Current and/or Cumulative Units value is derived from the student's Career Term data.

You must set up any and all course grades that you do not want to be counted toward earned units, including Failing grades.

Warning! Some schools may have "blank" grading schemes in Student Enrollment as a result of migrating to CS 8.9 or 9.0 from earlier versions. If you have grades intended to be excluded that fall in this category, you must enter them in the Grade Exclusion setup as 'blank' Grading Schemes with the associated Grading Basis and Grade Input.

Select the Use Grade Exclusions check box to use this function.

Setting Up SAP Communications

Access the Communications and Checklists page (Set Up SACR, Product Related, Financial Aid, Satisfactory Academic Progress, Define Setup Criteria, Communications and Checklists).

The Create SAP Communications process updates the 3C Trigger table in PeopleSoft Campus Community.

See Using the 3C Engine.

Events

Communication Comments

Comment ID and Variables

The following table details the Comment ID values, variables, and examples of Description entries and resulting comments. The Comment ID values are the same as the field names from the Actualcolumn on the Student SAP page.

Setting Up Evaluation Terms for Aid Year Processing

Access the Define Evaluation Aid Year page (Set Up SACR, Product Related, Financial Aid, Satisfactory Academic Progress, Define Evaluation Aid Year).

Use this page to select terms for aid year processing for the selected aid year. The Evaluation Terms field prompts a list of all terms defined at your institution.

Setting Up Evaluation Terms for Term Processing

Access the Define Evaluation Terms page (Set Up SACR, Product Related, Financial Aid, Satisfactory Academic Progress, Define Evaluation Terms).

Use this page to select terms for term processing for the selected aid year. The Evaluation Terms field prompts a list of all terms defined at your institution.

Defining SAP Application Engine libraries.

Access the SAP AE Process Setup page (Set Up SACR, Product Related, Financial Aid, Satisfactory Academic Progress, Define SAP AE Library).

Use this page to specify which Application Engine application library sections you want to use for each of the eight SAP test.

The SAP feature was designed and structured to be a modular program. Each of the eight delivered SAP tests is enclosed in its own Application Engine application library section. You can implement custom AE library sections to perform the desired SAP test logic for any of the eight SAP tests instead of using the delivered AE library sections.

For more information on customizing the eight SAP tests:

See Campus Solutions 9.0 Customizing SAP Developers Guide on My Oracle Support, ID 1155793.1

Processing and Maintaining SAP

This section discusses how to:

• Run the SAP batch process.

• Maintain student SAP.

• View the Satisfactory Academic Progress field.

• Define student-specific career exceptions.

• Define student-specific aid year exceptions or term exceptions.

• Create SAP communications.

• Simulate a student SAP calculation.

• Review students from a batch run.

Note. When running an online, batch, or simulated SAP process, there must be an active FA Term row for either the aid year or the term being processed. Also, ensure that the Set Up Activation field is set to Active on the Setup page (Set Up SACR, Product Related, Financial Aid, Satisfactory Academic Progress, Define Setup Criteria, Setup).

Pages Used to Process and Maintain SAP

Running the SAP Batch Process

Access the Process SAP page (Financial Aid, Satisfactory Academic Progress, Process SAP).

Before running the SAP process, ensure that the Set Up Activation field is set to Active on the Setup page (Set Up SACR, Product Related, Financial Aid, Satisfactory Academic Progress, Define Setup Criteria, Setup).

Population Selection

The Population Selection check box is selected or cleared, depending on the value in the Selection Criteria field in the Input Parameters group box on this page. When the check box is selected, population selection options appear in the Population Selection group box.

For more information on population selection:

See Using the Population Selection Process.

Input Parameters

Update Options

These options appear only when the Don't Run If SAP Status Exists check box is not selected.

Student Override

Select the Student Override option to display the Student Override grid for entry of student IDs. Enter the IDs of the students to be considered for SAP evaluation. If the students meet the evaluation criteria, an SAP calculation is created. Only the IDs you list are processed.

Maintaining Student SAP

Access the Student SAP page (Financial Aid, Satisfactory Academic Progress, Maintain Student SAP Data, Student SAP).

All students with an FA Term built are able to access the SAP Student Data page, which allows for online SAP calculation for an individual student. Students must have an active row in FA Term for the term or aid year that is being processed. If an active row does not exist, the process executes but returns a blank page, or, if a previous status exists, the existing page data is displayed.

Note. Before running the online process, ensure that the Set Up Activation field is set to Active on the Setup page (Set Up SACR, Product Related, Financial Aid, Satisfactory Academic Progress, Define Setup Criteria, Setup).

This page displays the SAP status code and all the calculation results used to determine a student's SAP status code.

The Aid Year or Term field is displayed depending on the setup criteria. Enter the aid year or term to process for the SAP online process.

Click the Calc SAP button to run the SAP process for an individual. An Active FA Term record must exist for the aid year or term being processed. After processing, the SAP Calculation Results, SAP Calculation Data, and Processing Information group boxes are populated.

Student SAP

SAP Calculation Results

SAP Calculation Data

Processing Information

Viewing the Satisfactory Academic Progress Field

Access the Packaging Status Summary page. (Click the Packaging Status Summary link from the Student SAP page.)

Satisfactory Academic Progress	Enter the SAP status. If the field is not editable, active SAP setup data exists. When active setup data exists, the Process SAP process updates this value based on the SAP status code setup.
SAP Details	Click this link to navigate to the Student SAP page.

Defining Student-Specific Career Exceptions

Access the Career Exceptions page (Financial Aid, Satisfactory Academic Progress, Maintain Student SAP Data, Career Exceptions).

This page is for student-specific career rules, rewriting the rule at the student level for the Effective Date and Status control when the student-specific career rule is applied. If any career rules fail when processing, the Exception Failure Default Status is applied and the exception flag is set to Y for the test using the exception.

The SAP status assigned for any career exception failure is the Exception Fail Default Status. It is recommended that this Severity code is the highest of the Not Meet status codes.

Click the Calc SAP button to run the SAP process for an individual. An Active FA Term record must exist for the aid year or term being processed.

Career Exceptions

Defining Student-Specific Term Exceptions

Access the Term Exceptions page (Financial Aid, Satisfactory Academic Progress, Maintain Student SAP Data, Term Exceptions).

This page appears when the process type set up for this student's institution and career is set to term processing. This page is for student-specific term rules. The rules apply only to the specific term entered.

If any of these rules fail, the Exception Failure Default Status is applied. You should make this Severity code the highest of all the Not Meet status codes.

Click the Calc SAP button to run the SAP process for an individual. An active FA Term record must exist for term being processed.

Term Exceptions

Audit Information

Defining Student-Specific Aid Year Exceptions

Access the Aid Year Exceptions page (Financial Aid, Satisfactory Academic Progress, Maintain Student SAP Data, Aid Year Exceptions).

This page appears when the process type set up for this student's institution and career is set to aid year processing. This page is for student-specific aid year rules. The rules apply only to the specific aid year that is entered.

If any of these rules fail, the Exception Failure Default Status is applied. You should make this Severity code the highest of all the Not Meet status codes.

Click the Calc SAP button to run the SAP process for an individual. An active FA Term record must exist within the aid year being processed.

Note. For descriptions of the fields on this page, refer to the documentation about the fields on the Term Exceptions page and replace term with aid year.

Creating SAP Communications

Access the Create SAP Communications page (Financial Aid, Satisfactory Academic Progress, Create SAP Communications).

The SAP Communications process inserts a row into the Event 3C Trigger table. The unmodified (vanilla) Event Process creates the 3C elements as set up in the Event setup record. You can control the production of duplicate communications by using the unmodified (vanilla) event processing controls.

See Identifying Trigger Conditions.

See Naming an Event.

Simulating a Student SAP Calculation

Access the Simulate Student Eligibility page (Financial Aid, Satisfactory Academic Progress, Simulate Student Eligibility).

To run the SAP process for a single student without updating the SAP Student Data page, use this page to process SAP status online.

Depending on your setup criteria, either the Term or Aid Year field appears. Enter the aid year or term to process for the SAP online process.

Click the Calc SAP button to run the SAP simulation process for an individual. An Active FA Term record must exist for the aid year or term being processed. After processing, the SAP Calculation Results, SAP Calculation Data, and Processing Information group boxes are populated.

Student SAP

SAP Calculation Results

SAP Calculation Data

Processing Information

Reviewing Students from a Batch Run

After running the SAP process in batch, you can use the Review Report Data page to review the results for all eight tests for all students processed in the batch. This page is available when you select either the Update and Report or the Report Only option on the Process SAP page.

Access the Review Report Data page (Financial Aid, Satisfactory Academic Progress, Review Report Data).