Understand the minimum SAP the U.S. Department of Education demands from an institution for eligibility in federal programs. A school's policies must be as strict for financially assisted students as for those who pay tuition. An undergraduate's progress must be measured both qualitatively and quantitatively.
Qualitatively, a student must achieve a 1.6 Grade Point Average (GPA) after 30 credit hours, a 1.8 after 60 hours and a 2.0 thereafter, which is considered a "C average" by the DOE. This 2.0 GPA must be maintained to earn a degree.
Some universities conform with the government's stair step method, which is more advantageous to underclassmen. Lehigh University adds one tenth to the 1.6 minimum after every semester until reaching the 2.0 standard at the onset of a student's junior year. At the other pole, Arizona State demands a 2.0 after a freshman's first term.
As to the quantitative measurement of the SAP, the DOE establishes the boundaries and defers the internal structures to the participating institutions. Federal assistance will not extend to more than 150 percent of a school's "published length of the educational program" in which a full-time undergraduate is enrolled. For instance, a psychology major in a 120 credit hour, four year curriculum, is afforded 6 years of financial aid. Whereas Ohio State's SAP simply repeats the government standard of 150 percent, Notre Dame applies a range from 120 credit hours to 196, depending on the chosen field of study. In contrast, the University of Maryland lays down a blanket 180 credit hour maximum, irrespective of a student's major.
Each college sets a threshold percentage of classes passed compared to courses started--a withdrawal, an incomplete and an "F" grade counting against the student. Arizona State's minimum is 67 percent, while Maryland's requirement is 75 percent. The DOE does not specify a percentage, only that each school establish a rule as stringent for financial aid students as for non-scholarship attendees.