Financial Aid & Scholarships Petition Process

Students who fail to meet SAP standards may petition for an exception from SAP requirements due to extenuating circumstances, such as:

  • Death of a close relative
  • Injury or illness of the student
  • Injury or illness of the student’s dependent or spouse
  • Other circumstances outside the student’s control (e.g. jury duty, official military duty, etc.)

Note: Circumstances relating to your employment are rarely granted exceptions to SAP policy.

Deadline

Your petition for current semester aid eligibility must be received before the midpoint of the semester.

Process

The petition is a one-time exception to the SAP requirements. Petitions are reviewed and approved on a case-by-case basis.

The Financial Aid & Scholarships committee will consider the SAP standard(s) you failed to meet, the type and degree of circumstances affecting the failure, the extent to which these circumstances have been resolved and your Financial Aid & Scholarships history.

A financial aid advisor will contact a student via their Wildcat Mail to acknowledge receipt of a financial aid petition and if any additional documents are required. Once a complete petition is submitted, the Financial Aid Office will have up to thirty days to make a decision. If a student does not deliver all the required documents within thirty days, the appeal will go to the Financial Aid & Scholarships Committee as is. Be aware that any supporting documentation received after the petition semester ends will not be accepted as we cannot process petitions for a previous semester. 

Petitions that are denied by the Financial Aid and Scholarship Committee can be re-evaluated by the University Associate Provost upon request of the student.

Requirements

Every petition must include:

  • A personal statement
  • Supporting documentation
  • An academic plan
  • Meeting with a financial aid advisor

Petition Instructions

The petition must be a written request. There is not a form or application.

The petition should be uploaded through the student's Verify account.

  1. The petition should include your name, W# and current mailing address.
  2. The petition needs to explain what situation or event caused you to have the satisfactory progress problem that placed you in jeopardy of losing your financial aid or scholarship. You also need to explain what changed that you will be able to be successful in your upcoming semester.  If your appeal is due to circumstances beyond your control, formal documentation is required to substantiate your circumstances and must be submitted with the letter of petition. Petitions should offer factual information and not be emotionally based.
  3. You must meet with an academic advisor to set up an academic plan. This plan can be from your department advisor and can be set up in CatTracks Planner along with advisor notes, or a form you receive from the advisor. The plan should include how you are going to or how you have overcome the problem.
  4. Include your educational goals, such as how many more semester hours you will need to obtain your degree, and provide a schedule of courses that will lead to that goal. You may add any information you feel has valid bearing on your case. Be factual and deal with the issues.
  5. If your petition is a result of exceeding the federal limit of attempted hours to attain a bachelor’s or associate’s degree, you must obtain a graduation evaluation from your department of study that states the courses and number of hours required to graduate. If your program of study requires more that the average number of hours, your department advisor must provide you with this information. These items must be submitted with the petition letter.
  6. At the time you submit this petition, you must work with a financial aid advisor to address the petition in the Financial Aid & Scholarships Office:

Student Services Center, Suite 120
Hours: Monday-Thursday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Friday 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Mailing address: 3885 West Campus Dr Dept 1136, Ogden, UT 84408
Email: finaid@weber.edu or scholarship@weber.edu

Probation Status

If your appeal is approved, you will be moved to probation status for one semester. During this semester, you are expected to:

  • Complete 100% of your credit hours
  • Maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.0,
    or bring your cumulative GPA up to a 2.0,
    or otherwise follow the academic plan established by the WSU Financial Aid & Scholarships office.

If you successfully complete the terms of your outlined academic plan during the semester of probation and meet the minimum satisfactory academic requirements, you will be returned to good financial aid standing.

If you meet the terms of your academic plan but haven't met the minimum satisfactory progress standards, you will be required to submit an updated academic plan before the federal aid for the next semester may be released.

If you are unsuccessful in completing the requirements of your academic plan and the minimum satisfactory academic standards, you will be denied financial aid and required to attend school at your own expense until the minimum satisfactory academic standards have been satisfied.