New York State Good Academic Standing Standard

Students receiving NYS awards must show evidence of good academic standing by meeting program pursuit standards and reaching specific benchmarks of academic progress. For financial aid purposes, good academic standing consists of two elements: Program Pursuit and Satisfactory Academic Progress. Program pursuit is defined as completing a certain percentage of degree-specific course work each term. Satisfactory Academic Progress has two components: students must accumulate credits toward the degree at a certain rate and maintain a minimum grade point average in each term a state award payment is received.

An award recipient who fails to maintain good academic standing by not meeting the program pursuit or the academic progress requirement loses eligibility for further NYS awards until he or she is reinstated in good standing. A NYS scholarship may be revoked if the recipient is not reinstated in good academic standing within a reasonable time.

A waiver from these requirements exists to provide qualified students experiencing temporary difficulty in maintaining eligibility with an opportunity to have uninterrupted participation in the state programs. Good academic standing requirements may be waived once.

Program Pursuit

is determined each time a NYS award is received whether the award is for fulltime or part-time study. Half-time TAP awards for accelerated summer study are not considered part-time awards and are factored into the program pursuit calculation differently.

During each semester a NYS award is received, a student must complete a certain percentage of a minimum required course load. The percentage of course work that must be completed each semester becomes greater as a student receives additional payments until the point where a student is required to complete the equivalent of 100% of the minimum required course load for any remaining payments.

Students receiving full-time TAP payments are evaluated for program pursuit using 12 semester hours as 100% of a minimum full-time course load. Students receiving APTS are evaluated using 3 semester hours as 100% of a minimum part-time course load. [Note: The State defines the minimum enrollment requirement for APTS eligibility as 3 semester hours. This definition holds at CUNY even though CUNY customarily makes no APTS awards for enrollment fewer than 6 semester hours of credit.]

More specifically, during the first and second semesters of State-supported study, a student must complete 50% of the minimum credits or equated credits required for that payment. If receiving a full-time TAP payment, a student must complete at least 6 semester hours of credit to meet the 50% program pursuit requirement. For APTS purposes, 50% of the minimum part-time course load is defined as 1.5 semester hours of credit.

During the third and fourth semesters of State-supported study a student must complete 75% of the minimum credits or equated credits required for that payment. If receiving a full-time TAP payment, a student must complete at least 9 semester hours of credit to meet the 75% program pursuit requirement. For APTS purposes, 75% of the minimum part-time course load is defined as 2.25 semester hours of credit.

After the fifth semester of State-supported study, and for every semester thereafter, a student must complete 100% of the minimum credits or equated credits required for that payment.

Both degree credits and credit equivalents awarded for remedial work count toward fulfilling the pursuit requirement. In addition, all grades that indicate a student persisted throughout the semester are counted, including second and subsequent “R” grades received for the same course (which are taken to be the equivalent of an “F” grade when determining pursuit or progress). The grades at CUNY that do not count toward meeting the pursuit requirement are “WD”, “W”, “WU”,“WA”, “WF” and “WN”.

Students receiving Part-Time TAP (P-TAP) are considered to be receiving a strict pro-ration of a full-time TAP award. Therefore, these students are evaluated for program pursuit using the total enrolled semester hours of credit for the term in question and applying to that number the appropriate completion percentage. For example, a student receiving P-TAP for 9 semester hours of credit would have to complete 4.5 (rounded down to 4) semester hours of credit to meet the 50% program pursuit requirement and 6.75 (rounded down to 6) semester hours of credit to meet the 75% program pursuit requirement. A student receiving P-TAP for 11 semester hours of credit would have to complete 5.5 (rounded down to 5) semester hours of credit to meet the 50% program pursuit requirement and 8.25 (rounded down to 8) semester hours of credit to meet the 75% program pursuit requirement.

Once a student receives his or her first State-aid award, he or she is “placed” on the first step of the undergraduate level progress chart. For each full-time or part-time award received, the student moves up one step on the pursuit chart. A student who fails to meet the required percentage of completed course work may not continue to receive State program funds without first re-establishing award eligibility.

Academic Progress

To maintain award eligibility, students must meet the academic progress standard for each fulltime award semester (that is, each time the student accumulates 6 payment points). This standard has two components:

• Students must accrue a specified number of credits;

• Students must achieve a minimum grade point average (GPA).

Old Progress Standard – 1st NYS award received before July 1, 2006

All students new to the program are automatically eligible for their first payment. In addition, there are no minimum credit-accumulation or GPA criteria for the second payment. In order to be eligible for the third payment, a student must have earned at least 6-degree credits with a minimum 1.00 GPA. By the fourth payment, a student must have accumulated 18-degree credits with a 1.2 GPA. A student must maintain a 2.00 GPA (“C” average) from the fifth state payment to the completion of the undergraduate degree. In addition, the student must have accumulated 31-degree credits by the fifth payment, 45-degree credits for the 6th payment, 60 credits by the 7th payment, 75-degree credits by the 8th payment, 90 credits by the 9th payment and 105 credits by the 10th payment.

2006 Progress Standard

The 2006 progress standard applies to students first receiving state aid in 2007-08 through and including 2009-10 and remedial students first receiving state aid in 2007-08 and thereafter. There are separate credit-accumulation and minimum GPA criteria for state aid recipients enrolled in two-year associate degree/certificate programs or four-year baccalaureate degree programs.

Two-Year Standard: All students new to the program are automatically eligible for their first payment. To be eligible for the second payment, a student must have earned 3-degree credits with a minimum .5 GPA. By the third payment, a student must have earned at least 9-degree credits with a minimum .75 GPA. By the fourth payment, a student must have accumulated 18-degree credits with a 1.3 GPA. A student must maintain a 2.00 GPA (“C” average) from the fifth state payment to the completion of the degree. In addition, the student must have accumulated 30-degree credits by the fifth payment, and 45-degree credits for the sixth payment.

Four-Year Standard: All students new to the program are automatically eligible for their first payment. To be eligible for the second payment, a student must have earned 3-degree credits with a minimum 1.1 GPA. By the third payment, a student must have earned at least 9-degree credits with a minimum 1.2 GPA. By the fourth payment, a student must have accumulated 21- degree credits with a 1.3 GPA. A student must maintain a 2.00 GPA (“C” average) from the fifth state payment to the completion of the undergraduate degree. In addition, the student must have accumulated 33-degree credits by the fifth payment, 45-degree credits for the 6th payment,60 credits by the 7th payment, 75-degree credits by the 8th payment, 90 credits by the 9th payment and 105 credits by the 10th payment.

2011 Progress Standard

The 2011 progress standard applies to non-remedial students first receiving state aid in 2010-11 and thereafter. There are separate credit-accumulation and minimum GPA criteria for state aid recipients enrolled in two-year associate degree/certificate programs or four-year baccalaureate degree programs.

Two-Year Standard: Non-remedial students new to the program are automatically eligible for their first payment. To be eligible for the second payment, a student must have earned 6-degree credits with a minimum 1.3 GPA. By the third payment, a student must have earned at least 15- degree credits with a minimum 1.5 GPA. By the fourth payment, a student must have accumulated 27-degree credits with a 1.8 GPA. A student must maintain a 2.00 GPA (“C” average) from the fifth payment to the completion of the degree. In addition, the student must have accumulated 39-degree credits by the fifth payment, and 51-degree credits for the sixth payment.

Four-Year Standard: Non-remedial students new to the program are automatically eligible for their first payment. To be eligible for the second payment, a student must have earned 6-degree credits with a minimum 1.5 GPA. By the third payment, a student must have earned at least 15- degree credits with a minimum 1.8 GPA. By the fourth payment, a student must have accumulated 27-degree credits with a 1.8 GPA. A student must maintain a 2.00 GPA (“C” average) from the fifth state payment to the completion of the undergraduate degree. In addition, the student must have accumulated 39-degree credits by the fifth payment, 51-degree credits for the 6th payment, 66 credits by the 7th payment, 81-degree credits by the 8th payment, 96 credits by the 9th payment, and 111 credits by the 10th payment.

Students who first received an award prior to the 2007-08 academic year will have to continue to meet the 2006-07 academic progress requirements. The new progress requirement described above does not affect these students.

Because academic progress is based on cumulative performance, grade changes and the resolution of incomplete grades affect a student’s GPA once they are part of a student’s record. These changes do not retroactively change past payments but may affect the next payment. Also note that APTS and PTAP recipients are evaluated for academic progress only when they have accrued payments equal to a full-time award semester, that is, each time 6 payment points have been accumulated.

Treatment of Remedial Students

A student shall be deemed to be in a program approved by the Commissioner for remedial study if he/she:

• Indicates the need for remediation for at least two semesters through scores on a recognized college placement exam or a nationally recognized standardized exam, as certified by the college and approved by the State Education Department;

• Is enrolled in the Search for Education, Elevation and Knowledge (SEEK) program or the College Discovery (CD) program; or

• Is or was enrolled in at least six credit hours of noncredit remedial instruction the first semester they received a TAP award.

• Students meeting the definition of remedial student will not be subject to the new academic standards but rather will stay on the 2006 chart.

Transfer Students

Number of Previous Payments

In assessing the financial aid record of a transfer student, a receiving college must determine the number of payments a student has previously received, and whether or not a student has used a waiver. The Higher Education Services Corporation provides payment and waiver information on the payment roster.

Program Pursuit

The payment points which are shown on the certification roster determine the student’s placement on the pursuit chart.

Academic Progress – Determining Grade Point Average

Colleges may choose one of two ways to consistently develop students’ transfer grade point averages. Whichever of the two options it elects, a college must uniformly apply it to each and every transfer student.

The first option is to have a student start from scratch, and use, for the purpose of GPA development, only those courses a student actually takes at the new college.

The second option is to calculate an incoming “transfer GPA.” This and the GPA a student develops at the new college become the student’s cumulative GPA, to be used in assessing the student’s academic progress as he or she continues in the program.

Academic Progress – Beneficial Placement

A college must make the determination as to where to place a transfer student on the progress chart. It can either place the student at the level of credit (defined here as the number of credits assigned by the new college) or at the level corresponding to the number of payments that the student has already received. The choice is determined according to which of the two options would most benefit an individual student.

The point where a student is placed on the Good Academic Standing chart and the actual number of payments a student has received may not line up. For a transfer student, as for a student who has received a waiver, the headings in the top row of the progress chart might more appropriately be read as next payment instead of first, second, third, etc. Once placed on the chart, either by virtue of starting at step one or higher, a student must meet the appropriate program pursuit and academic progress standards to maintain eligibility each semester.

Readmitted Students

A re-admitted student is one who begins a course of study, leaves, and subsequently returns to that same college. For State aid purposes, a re-admitted student may fall into one of three categories. In each of these, a student is subject to the college’s normal re-admission procedures.

If a student left the college in good academic standing and is then re-admitted, the student is eligible for NYS aid upon returning to the college. If a student left the college after having lost good academic standing and returns to the college after an absence of at least one year, the student is eligible for NYS aid upon returning to the college.

If a student left the college after having lost good academic standing and returns to the college after an absence of less than one year, there are two ways this student can regain eligibility for the first semester of the student’s return:

• the student is granted the use of a waiver, provided that he or she has not already used the waiver; or

• the student has made up the deficiency by attending without the benefit of State support another college during the semester of absence from the college of initial enrollment.

Placement on the Chart for Readmits

Readmitted students are placed on the Good Academic Standing Chart according to the rules which govern the placement of transfer students.

Accelerated Study

Students can receive an additional term award for attending an additional study term beyond the regular program of study for the academic year. Students can also receive an additional award for half-time summer attendance. At CUNY, the summer term is always the accelerated term and the term evaluation process includes both full-time and part-time summer term enrollment. Accelerated half-time study requires being enrolled for at least six but fewer than 12 credit hours (with a minimum of three real credits). Additionally, to receive an award for half-time accelerated study, the student must have been enrolled as a full-time student in an approved program of study in New York State during the preceding spring term or the next fall term. In order to be eligible for either a full-time or a half-time award for an accelerated term that began after January 1, 2007, the student must complete 24 credits at the college of summer attendance in the prior two semesters. These credits may be earned in any combination (i.e., 12 + 12, 6 + 18, etc.). Up to three (3) credits in each of the prior two semesters can be non-credit remedial hours.

Progress criteria for an accelerated award are based upon the same criteria as eligibility for any academic year semester. This means that for an accelerated payment, a student must have achieved in the prior semester both the academic progress and program pursuit standards stipulated on the good academic standing chart for receipt of a “next award.” Eligibility for an award for accelerated study does not increase a student’s maximum award entitlement under TAP. TAP is still limited to 4 years at the undergraduate level and/or 4 years at the graduate level.

Half Awards

Any accelerated course work becomes part of a student’s cumulative GPA. Work performed in the accelerated term affects a student’s academic progress standing and therefore his/her eligibility for a next payment.

A student who has a whole number (0, 1, 2, etc.) of previous payments, and who receives a half award in the accelerated term, has his/her payment number “rounded down” for the next award. This means, for example, that a student whose total number of payments at the end of the accelerated term is 3½ will be considered as having received 3 payments for placement purposes only.

If a student has received 4 ½ payments for 4 full terms plus a half-accelerated award and then received a second accelerated half payment, the payments cumulate to 5 and the student would be at the 100% pursuit level for the summer semester.

Full Awards

Students who receive full awards in the accelerated term are governed by the standards indicated on the Good Academic Standing chart for that payment number.

Regaining Award Eligibility

When a student does not meet the requirements outlined on the good academic standing chart either by failing to reach program pursuit and/or academic progress standards in any given semester, further NYS awards to the student are suspended. For State aid purposes the student can be said to have lost good academic standing and is therefore ineligible for his or her next award.

There are a number of ways a student may regain eligibility:

• A student can combine two or more semesters’ work to regain good academic standing, provided that only one of those semesters is paid for through State support

• A student may be eligible for a waiver. If the college approves a waiver, the student may continue in the State aid program without interruption.

• A student who transfers is automatically eligible for State aid in the first semester at the new college even if the student has not met the good academic standards at the college from which he or she transferred.

• A student who is readmitted into his or her college after an absence of at least one calendar year can become eligible providing he or she meets the college’s readmission requirements.

There is no provision in the State regulations that limits the number of times a student can lose good academic standing and seek reinstatement except that a student may use the waiver provision to regain eligibility only once.

A student who has been granted a waiver for failure to meet program pursuit is not stalled on the good academic standing chart while the waiver is in effect. The student is expected to meet the pursuit standard stipulated for continued participation in the program.

Waiver of Good Academic Standing Requirements

In order to provide some allowance for cases where otherwise academically proficient students experience a “bad” semester, a waiver of the good academic standing requirements can be granted. The waiver permits a student to receive a State award the semester immediately following the one in which the student failed to meet the program pursuit and/or academic progress standard. The college must have a written policy statement about the granting of waivers. Failure of the college to adhere to its published policies concerning the waiver or to maintain the necessary documentation may result in an audit disallowance. Because a waiver is to be granted only when unusual or extraordinary circumstances are present, it is not expected that the waiver provision will be used with great frequency. Therefore, the following principles are to be kept in mind when establishing policies:

• The waiver should be granted only when there is reasonable expectation that a student will meet future requirements. [A college’s published waiver policy must address student eligibility requirements.]

• A student may receive a waiver of the good academic standing requirements only once. A student may receive this one-time waiver after failing to meet program pursuit guidelines, academic progress standards or a combination of both requirements during one semester. A student who uses a waiver after failing to meet, for example, program pursuit in one semester cannot receive an additional waiver for failure to make academic progress during another semester.

• The granting of a waiver must be approached in terms of the best long-range interests of the student. Use of the waiver is an important option and should only be considered with the concurrence of the student. For example, a student who is one or two credits short of the required number of credits for the next payment might be better served by taking a summer course at their own expense to regain eligibility instead of using a waiver.

• A waiver does not increase the total number of payments a student may receive. Waiver information is reported to HESC and becomes part of the student’s history of state-aid usage. HESC reports prior use of the waiver for all students, including transfer students, as part of the payment roster information.

• A waiver is not automatic. A student must apply for a waiver according to the procedures clearly established by his or her college. A college must make an assessment of the reasons for the student’s failure to meet requirements. The college must also maintain a written record of the findings and determination of each case. In issuing waivers, the college should not use a “check-off” type form with only basic information about the student. There should be a written narrative detailing the effects of the extraordinary circumstances on the student’s academic achievement and the waiver officer’s findings and determinations for granting a waiver.

Placement on the Progress Chart

A student who has been granted a waiver for failure to make academic progress is stalled on the academic progress portion of the chart for the semester during which the waiver is being used. The student is expected to use the term to advance to the level the student could not achieve without the waiver.

A student who has been granted a waiver for failure to meet program pursuit requirements is not stalled on the good academic standing chart for the semester during which the waiver is in effect. By the end of the semester covered by the waiver, the student is expected to meet both the pursuit and progress standard stipulated for continued participation in the program.

Eligibility Related Issues

Students who apply for State awards for the first time after having already attended college are placed on the good academic standing chart in step number one, as being certified for their first payment. Because of this, a student’s academic performance prior to applying for State aid does not enter into consideration in certifying a student for the first payment. This principle also applies to college credit earned by high school students.

Change of Curriculum

Academic Progress is assessed based on accumulated credits and GPA earned toward the program of study that student is enrolled in for that term. Therefore, a change of program would exclude credits and grades for courses that no longer count towards the new program and could throw the student out of progress. In moving from one program to another, the basis for calculating both accumulated credits and cumulative GPA is changed and may differ from the cum credits and GPA showing on the transcript. State guidance does specifically prohibit using change of program as a way of circumventing the C average requirement.

A student who changes his or her major while receiving State aid may experience some difficulty in making the adjustment during the transition semester. Although a student’s continuation in the program will be governed by the same guidelines which pertain to all students in that program, the student who has been succeeding academically prior to switching majors, but loses good academic standing for State awards because of a “bad” transition semester is a likely candidate for a waiver. (Always keep in mind that there should never be an automatic reason for a waiver to be granted; each student’s situation should be reviewed and documented individually.) Also note that all work attempted at the institution becomes part of a student’s cumulative GPA.

Unresolved (Incomplete) Grades at Time of Certification

In the case where a student has met program pursuit and academic progress standards, but has received an incomplete grade, the student can be certified as eligible for the following semester. If the incomplete grade is subsequently changed to a failure and the student’s GPA falls below the minimum level required for eligibility, the student retains the current award but would be ineligible for continued payments unless work completed during the State-supported semester is sufficient to raise the student’s GPA to at least the required minimum.

C Average Requirement

A student who has received the equivalent of two or more full years of NYS student financial aid payments [24 or more payment points] must have a cumulative C (2.0) GPA to be eligible for continued State-supported assistance (see Section 661 (4)(b) of the NY State Education Law). This requirement applies to all State-funded general and academic performance awards available at CUNY. If a student fails to achieve a 2.0 GPA after receiving the equivalent of 4 full-time semester TAP payments, he or she may not receive further state aid payments until a 2.0 GPA is once again achieved.

Transfer students with 24 or more payment points are assumed to have met the C average requirement in their first term of study at the new college since only courses for which the student has earned a C or better are normally accepted in transfer. [The school can also consider the actual grades of the courses accepted in transfer, but if this approach is adopted, it must be consistently applied to all transfer students.] If a student with 24 or more payment points of assistance is a readmitted or returning student, with or without transfer credits earned elsewhere, and the GPA is still less than 2.0, the student is ineligible for State-support in the initial term upon return and must attain a 2.0 GPA to regain eligibility unless the student applies for and is granted a waiver (see below).

C Average Requirement Waiver

Students may apply for a waiver of the “C” average requirement based on undue hardship resulting from circumstances that have affected their ability to achieve the required C average. If granted, this waiver does not count as a use of the one-time only waiver of the NYS Good Academic Standing requirements [see above]. Records of the use of the waiver of the “C” average requirement are separately maintained by the college and not reported to HESC. This waiver of the “C” average requirement may be granted more than once if circumstances warrant.

Note: there can be no waiver of the C average requirement for P-TAP students because having a cumulative GPA of at least 2.00 is in the legislation as one of defining eligibility requirements of the P-TAP program.