Course Retake Policy
Students may retake a course if they received a “U”, "W", or "WA" in the course or if they passed the course and would like to try to improve their grade. Students who want to retake a course that they have successfully completed should contact their Academic Advisor. Please note that when retaking a previously passed course, the most recent attempt at the course will counted toward the student's GPA, even if the most recent attempt is a lower grade.
When a previously failed or withdrawn course is retaken, the “U”, "W", or "WA" grade is updated to an “R”. “R” grades count as course attempts and are factored into the calculation of Course Completion Ratio for Financial Aid Satisfactory Academic Progress.
For example, if on the first attempt of a course the student was awarded a “U, when the student retakes the course and earns a passing grade, the “U” from the first attempt will be changed to a “R”, representing that the student has retaken the course. The “U” will no longer be factored into the student’s GPA. This example does not address Course Completion Rate for Satisfactory Academic Progress. It calculates only GPA which is the qualitative standard.
Students that retake an elective course after earning a “U” may take another elective course in its place, however the “U” will continue to be calculated in the student’s GPA. In this circumstance, the student will remain eligible to graduate from their degree program as long as they are meeting the requirements of Good Academic Standing.
Financial Aid Repeated Coursework Policy
The Department of Education requires institutions to follow new regulations which impact students who repeat courses. These repeat courses may impact financial aid eligibility and awards for Federal Title IV financial aid. In order for a repeated course to count toward financial aid enrollment status for financial aid purposes, students may only repeat a previously passed course once (a total of two attempts). If a student enrolls in a previously repeated course for a third time, this course will not count towards the enrollment for financial aid purposes. This rule applies whether or not the student received aid for earlier enrollments in the course.
- A student may receive aid when repeating a course for the first time.
- A student may receive aid when repeating a course that was previously failed or withdrawn from regardless of the number of times the course was attempted and failed (Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy still applies).
- A student may receive aid to repeat a previously passed course one additional time. If a student fails the second attempt no more financial aid will be given to repeat the course a third time. If the second attempt is a withdrawal then it is allowable for a third attempt.
- Once a student has completed any course twice with a grade; they are no longer eligible to receive aid for that course. If a student retakes a course that is not aid eligible, the credit hours will be excluded from the financial aid enrollment for that semester.
Examples:
When counting credits to determine aid eligibility for that term, repeated classes will be excluded from the financial aid eligibility. The impact may include:
- Reduced Pell Grant if the eligible credits cause a decrease in enrollment status.
- Subsidized or Unsubsidized loans cannot be awarded if the financial aid eligible credits are less than 6 credits for undergraduate students and less than 3 for graduate students.
- A different payment method may be assigned (i.e. cash) for a course deemed ineligible for aid.
This rule is a Federal Regulation. Once a repeated class can no longer be counted within a student’s enrollment for federal financial aid purposes, it is not subject to appeal and cannot be overridden by Aspen University regardless of the circumstances.