All students who receive federal or state financial aid (including loans) while attending IU South Bend are required to meet or exceed the following satisfactory academic progress policies:

• Undergraduate students must maintain a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.0 and complete 75 percent of the course work attempted.
• Graduate students must maintain a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 and complete 75 percent of the course work attempted.
• All students must complete their degree within 150 percent of the maximum length of the program. For example, if a bachelor’s degree can be earned by completing 124 credit hours, students have a maximum of 186 attempted credit hours in which to complete the degree.
• Students receiving financial aid must attend all classes.
• Undergraduates who receive all F’s or a combination of F’s and W’s during one academic period, and received federal aid for the same academic period, may be required to repay all or part of any aid received.
• Associate degree students should complete their degrees in 80 or fewer credit hours.
• Bachelor degree students should complete their degrees in 186 or fewer credit hours.
• All transfer credit hours that appear on a student’s academic transcript are counted toward the duration of eligibility.
• Any repeated course work on your transcript is reviewed.
• Students who are in a second undergraduate degree program and are approved for financial assistance are eligible only for loans, Federal Work-Study, and CVO (Child of Veteran or Public Safety Officer Supplemental Grant program).
• Students who are in a second undergraduate degree program or dual degree program (also called double major) must follow the satisfactory academic progress requirements for all undergraduates.
• Students who have attempted 125 percent of the course work necessary to complete their degree are subject to a “High Hours” review. This requires that students submit a list of courses they must still take in order to complete a first bachelor’s degree.

Teacher’s Certificate

• Teacher certification students must complete a Teacher’s Certification Outline, providing a list of courses needed to complete the certificate.
• Students who are in a teacher’s certification program, and are approved for financial assistance, are awarded aid at the undergraduate level. They are eligible only for loans and Federal Work-Study.
• Students who are in a teacher’s certification program must follow all the satisfactory academic progress requirements for all undergraduates.

Preparatory Course Work Required for
Admission to an IU South Bend Graduate Program

• Student must identify all classes to be taken over the next 12 months as prerequisites for admission to an IU South Bend graduate program.
• Student must provide written affirmation from an academic advisor that the student will be admitted to an IU South Bend graduate program upon successful completion of prerequisite classes.
• Students approved for preparatory course work may receive federal Stafford Loans at the fifth-year undergraduate federal loan limit.
• Students who are in preparatory course work classes must follow all the satisfactory academic progress requirements for all undergraduates.

All federal requirements for Satisfactory Academic Progress are outlined in the US Department of Education’s Federal Financial Aid Handbook, published annually.

When students have attempted 125 percent of the maximum hours needed for their degree, they are required to submit documentation of the remaining hours needed to complete the degree. These students are monitored to assure they are enrolled in the correct courses until their degree is completed. In such cases, aid is awarded one semester at a time and a High Hours Course Outline is required from the academic advisor.

Students who fail to maintain the requirements listed above are placed on a financial aid contract for the next term or semester of enrollment. Contracted students who fail to meet the requirements of their contract are suspended from financial aid. Suspended students have the right to appeal the loss of aid if they have encountered extenuating circumstances.

Students who stop attending classes or who formally withdraw from all their courses during a term or semester may be subject to a Return of Title IV Funds calculation. These students may be required to repay some or all of their federal grants and/or loans based on the results of the calculation.

Satisfactory Academic Progress FAQs

If you have additional questions regarding IU South Bend's academic progress policy and the Return to Title IV Funds calculation, please contact the Office of Financial Aid or ask a question online.